The joint K.U.Leuven / Purdue University Master of Science Program in Earth Observation will be administered by the relevant multidisciplinary groups at both partner institutions. The groups represent the individual faculties they each encompass, in casu on both sides the Schools of Engineering and Agriculture, and the Faculty of Sciences.

The program is made up of two consecutive academic years. The first one encompasses two semesters of course work, one at each university, the second is dedicated to research with as home base the university through which the student joined up with the program. Nevertheless, during this second year all participants, irrespective of their location, will also participate in a topical seminar course on Earth Observation Applications taught over the internet. Because of practical considerations (scheduling of semester start and end), Purdue University offers basic Earth Observation courses in the first-year fall semester. K.U.Leuven continues in their second half of the academic year with courses that are more focused at applications and process modeling.

July start research at “mother” institution
June final oral exams and submission of dissertation manuscript (for peer-review in a relevant international journal)

Means and facilities permitting, it is the intention to administer the final oral exams jointly in alternating locations. This entails that for one given year, participating students and academic staff will all converge either in Leuven or at Purdue, where also a closing ceremony can be held.

It is possible that the creation of a joint degree, rather unique and new for both partner universities, may need a few years before it can be brought to full fruition. Various educational commissions have to be dealt with at both sides of the ocean, and various legal hurdles have to be taken before a legally truly joint degree can be made available. The program may initially have to operate under the classical single-institution diploma rules. As such, the first rounds of degrees may have to be earned in the major field from a particular faculty (K.U.Leuven) or department (Purdue University) rather than in the multi-disciplinary field of Earth Observation itself under both partners. This intermediate phase will be kept to one, maximum two, diploma delivery cycles.

As we wish to guarantee a consistent quality, degrees are awarded on a pass/fail principle (no honorary mentions). A pass requires all course exams to carry a minimum evaluation of 12 out of 20, and progression to the second year will only be possible with a minimum of seven successful courses out of the total ten. Course exams may be taken over again either during the first year or during the second, pending local organizational customs.

With respect to the M.S. thesis research, the student’s principal advisor will be selected after the first year of study at the institution the student initially registered in. In other words, that university will function as home base for the research year, and the individual research topics will be chosen within, or selected to support, ongoing research activities, either within the partner universities or under the umbrella of their industrial partners. The research programs will be tailored to reflect the individual interests of the student as well as those of the supporting research group, and to meet the requirements of the program. The candidate’s advisory committee will be composed of the principal advisor, a co-advisor from the partner institution, and faculty and/or assisting academic personnel from a mix of disciplines optimally supporting the student’s research plan.