Module 8: Internship GIMA

Course goals

• Applied in practice and tested the theoretical and practical knowledge accumulated in modules 1–6. The modules contributed to mastering the student’s syllabus and improving the student’s basis for graduation.
• Acquired or increased technical experience, insight into business, and social and other skills.
• Been given the opportunity to become familiar with a geo-information workplace.

Content

Profile
This module serves to give evidence that the student has gained work experience at MSc level and applied all knowledge obtained in previous modules within a working field, be it research, governmental or commercial.

Contents
The internship allows the student to gain practical experience in a (geo-information) professional working environment. The internship contributes to the successful fulfilment of the required knowledge and experience of an academic and professional GIMA graduate. It allows the student to expand his/her professional experience and create a sound-proof for graduation. Therefore, the internship is considered an academic internship.
The content of the internship must have a research topic. The amount of time spent on this topic must be at least 60% of the internship duration. A maximum of 40% of the internship duration can be spent on developing other professional skills through activities offered by the internship provider, such as attending internal courses, assisting with project management, further development of programming skills, participating within existing projects, etc. The internship is carried out within geo- information companies, agencies, and research institutes in the Netherlands or abroad. In special circumstances, the internship can be carried out in one of the four university departments involved in GIMA: Delft, Utrecht, Wageningen, and Twente.

There are three internship options:

1. Option 1 entails that the internship (30 ECTS, 840 hours) is completely carried out in one organisation
2. Option 2 entails that the internship is carried out at two different internship providers. For example, a person could do two internships, each lasting at least
   15 ECTS, (420 hours). If the internship is divided between two internship providers, the total internship must be at least 30 ECTS and the internship regulations apply in full to each of the two internships. This means two sets of assessment deliverables (internship report / article, personal reflection report and summary / poster / presentation) must be submitted.
3. Option 3 is a combination of an internship of at least 20 ECTS (560 hours) and (an) additional university course(s), of at least 10EC’s so that the total package is be at least 30 ECTS. The additional course(s) can be at an external university or at GIMA universities. The courses must be at MSc level and be relevant and give new (supplementary) knowledge to the GIMA curriculum. The courses must be completed successfully before the internship. Proof of success must be handed in to the GIMA Programme Director and Internship Coordinators before starting the internship, as well as submitting to Student Affairs Geosciences of Utrecht University to obtain the required ECTS. For Option 3, a written request must be submitted to the GIMA Programme Director and the Internship Coordinators for acceptance before participation. The ECTS for additional courses can also be used to gain relevant knowledge/skills for the GIMA MSc thesis. If this is the intention, the written request must also be submitted to the MSc Thesis Coordinators.

Entry requirements

• Letter of acceptance of the master programme Geographical Information Management and Applications
• Passed at least five out of the six content modules (GEO4-GIMA1 – GEO4-GIMA6).