Study Professional Geospatial Engineering and Surveying

If you are looking to launch or advance your career in the field of surveying and spatial information, the Master of Professional Engineering (Geospatial Engineering and Surveying) at the University of Newcastle will help you develop management expertise, specialise and deepen your technical skills and be equipped to lead projects and move into more senior roles.

Advance Your Engineering Career: 1-year Accelerated MPE

If you are already a professionally recognised engineer, the 1-year accelerated MPE will allow you to gain a highly relevant postgraduate qualification to help advance your career.

As well as deepening your technical knowledge with advanced courses in your area of specialisation, you will also diversify your skills in an area outside of engineering, such as business, management, entrepreneurship and innovation, health and safety or disaster risk reduction.

Get Professional Recognition in Australia: 2-year Accelerated MPE

If you already have an engineering degree from an overseas university but are seeking professional recognition, this 2-year accelerated MPE will give you an advanced qualification preparing you for practice in Australia and around the world.

You will deepen your technical knowledge in your area of specialisation, learn about engineering practice in the Australian context and develop professional skills in project management and complex problem solving.

Why study with us?

  • Relevant in the real world: connect with business through industry-based projects, guest lectures, mentorship and case studies.
  • Ready for your future, ready for the world: our professional practice and leadership courses will help you develop skills in project management, complex problem solving, innovation and communications.
  • Powerful learning: our smaller student cohort means you’ll have greater access to teaching staff and be part of a close-knit student community.
  • Designed around you: choose up to four courses in an area outside of engineering. Diversify your skills in areas such as business, design, or entrepreneurship.
  • Australian Technology Network (ATN): We are one of six Australian universities included in this network - focused on enterprise, impact and finding solutions to issues facing our economy and society.

Female student in orange vest and hardhat stands with surveying equipment and two male students stand in background.

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What you will study

The Master of Professional Engineering (Geospatial Engineering and Surveying) is a flexible degree that will allow you to fast-track your career in surveying and geospatial engineering. You will have the opportunity to diversify your expertise with courses in specialised spatial data collection, analysis and management, or broaden your skills base in a complementary area such as business and management, entrepreneurship and innovation, or design. Plus you can choose a major project that’s linked to industry or focused on design and research.

Core courses

  • Engineering Complexity
  • MPE Thesis A
  • MPE Thesis B
  • Managing Engineering Projects
  • Geodesy
  • Industrial Surveying
  • Satellite Positioning
  • SDS & RS
  • Photogrammetry
  • Engineering Complexity
  • MPE Thesis A
  • MPE Thesis B

Directed Courses

From a list of directed courses, all students choose a minimum of five courses. Examples include:

  • Sustainable Development
  • Hydrology
  • Town Planning
  • Law for Work Health and Safety
  • Geodesy

Program structure

1-year program: You will take advanced surveying and geospatial engineering courses and choose directed courses to broaden your skill base and enhance your employability. By gaining a highly relevant postgraduate degree you will accelerate your career, opening up opportunities to work at a more senior level.

2-year program: Your study program is designed to build on your prior studies and develop the core technical competencies. If you are already a graduate surveyor, licensed/registered surveyor, or qualified engineer in Australia, this advanced program will broaden your skill base allowing for enhanced specialisation in your field and boosting your employability.

2024 Program Handbook

Refer to the program handbook for details of the complete program structure, course requirements and availability.

View program handbook

My Degree Planner

Use our degree planner to see what your study journey through the Master of Professional Engineering (Geospatial Engineering and Surveying) might look like.

Prospective student planner Current student planner

Career

Career opportunities

Surveyors and geospatial engineers work on a huge range of tasks in many different environments – industries like land surveying, mining surveying, remote sensing, geodesy and space research, construction, environmental management and transportation. Surveying and geospatial engineering continues to be one of the most in-demand qualifications in the world, with many countries desperate to fill a shortage of professional skills in this field.

A Master of Professional Engineering in Geospatial Engineering and Surveying will open up even more varied career opportunities than you already have, empowering you to take on a leadership role, start your own business or manage major surveying and engineering projects.

  • Salaries: As a surveyor or geospatial engineer, you’ll be valued and well rewarded. Starting salaries for our postgraduate engineers average around $154,000 which is above the national average. * Graduate Outcomes Survey 2020
  • Flexibility: Some surveyors and geospatial engineers work 9-5 in an office, others fly-in-fly-out from a project site. You might prefer hands-on fieldwork, design and development, or managing people and projects.
  • Global opportunities: As a qualified engineer you can travel the world and work almost anywhere you choose. Professional recognition through Engineers Australia lets you work in places such as Canada, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Russia, Turkey, the UK and the USA.

Application info

Applying for Master of Professional Engineering (Geospatial Engineering and Surveying)

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Applications to study are now open. Submit your application now..

Apply to study in Australia

Both students and education agents can submit applications online. This is our preferred way of application. You can save your application after you have started, and come back to it later.

Before you get started

To ensure that the process goes smoothly for you, you should complete the following steps before applying:

  1. Review the program that you wish to apply for. Note the admission criteria, admission instructions, requirements & structure and any additional information listed.
  2. Review the program fees and costs.
  3. Check whether your postgraduate program has a Semester or a Trimester closing date. Please view the application closing date.
  4. If you are from a non-English-speaking background, you need to satisfy the University's English language requirements and ensure that you can provide evidence of your English proficiency if required.

You will be considered for entry based on criteria such as your undergraduate studies and/or equivalent prior learning and/or relevant work experience.

Postgraduate application process

Other things to consider

Make sure you double check the special entry requirements, assumed knowledge or recommended studies for the degree:

Direct Admission into the 1 Year MPE (Geospatial Engineering and Surveying) Program*:
  • Graduates from the University of Newcastle or another institution with a Bachelor Honours Degree (AQF 8) with Class 2 Division 2 or above in Surveying
  • Graduates from the University of Newcastle or another institution with a Bachelor Honours Degree (AQF 8) in Surveying with a Newcastle calculated GPA of 4.5 or above
Direct Admission into the 2 Year MPE (Geospatial Engineering and Surveying) Program*:
  • Graduates from the University of Newcastle or another institution with a Bachelor Degree (AQF 7) in Surveying AND a Newcastle calculated GPA of 4.5 or above
Direct Admission into the MPE Program:
  • Applicants currently undertaking or having completed the Master of Engineering Management program at the University of Newcastle may be admitted to the Master of Professional Engineering in the same discipline area as their undergraduate engineering degree.  The volume of learning required for the MPE will be assessed for individual applicants based on their background.

*Further Admission Requirements (if applicable)

Alternative Engineering Disciplines:

Applications for the Master of Professional Engineering (Geospatial Engineering and Surveying) from graduates from a different engineering discipline other than surveying are welcomed, but will be assessed for eligibility on an individual basis by the Faculty.

GPA Equivalence for Non-University of Newcastle Applicants:

Applicants from external institutions will be required to provide transcripts of previous studies to allow assessment of GPA equivalence on the University of Newcastle scale.

Alternate Entry Path Incorporating Work Experience:

Applications from graduates with an appropriate Bachelor Degree (AQF 7) or Honours Degree (AQF 8 ) in engineering not meeting the above requirements, BUT with significant relevant work experience will be assessed for eligibility on an individual basis by the Faculty.

 

Students in the 2 Year Program are required to complete 12 weeks of Industrial Experience as part of the program requirement.

It is anticipated that some commencing students may have met the Industrial Experience requirement, as such they will be deemed to have met this requirement, provided they can submit suitable evidence, such as a statement from the employer.

Students admitted to the 1 Year Program will either hold a Washington Accord qualification, or have an undergraduate Surveying degree (AQF8) from UoN or another institution and therefore are exempted from this requirement.

You can look at Uni prep for options to brush up on knowledge before you start.

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