About the organization

As per 1 September 2006, the Faculty of Spatial Sciences (FRW) of the University of Groningen started its own Graduate School of Spatial Sciences. The Graduate School of Spatial Sciences provides high quality education for students who want to be trained as a researcher in the Spatial Sciences, either at Research Master or PhD level. It has a unique multidisciplinary perspective, i.e. a combination of economic geography, cultural geography, planning and demography.

URSI (Urban and Regional Studies Institute) coordinates the Graduate School of Spatial Sciences. URSI has a Governing Board, which is responsible for research, its implementation and scientific quality. All professors who participate in URSI are members of this Governing Board. It is chaired by the Director (Prof. I. Hutter), who is responsible for organizational matters concerning URSI. The Director of URSI is also a member of the Faculty Board.

Besides the Director of the Graduate School (Prof. I. Hutter) there is a Daily Board for the Graduate School of Spatial Sciences which includes Hutter (chair) three other members and a secretary (A. Meerburg). This Board reflects the four research lines of URSI: explaining spatial economic change; making places; planning for environmental quality; explaining population dynamics.

The Director of the Graduate School has overall responsibility for content and quality, plus the day-to-day supervision. The Director is also responsible for the methodological part of the programme.

The Daily Board of the Graduate School of Spatial Sciences (henceforth the Board) has the following responsibilities:

• selection of students for each of the programmes
• curriculum, content and quality control of the modules (courses)
• evaluation of Master theses and research proposals
• final grading and graduation of MSc students
• decisions on admission and continuation or discontinuation of students.

 The Director of the Graduate School is responsible for:

• the overall programme
• development of the research programme
• reporting to the Faculty Board
• coordination of networking at national and international level, with Faculty professors
• coordination of curriculum development
• monitoring Research Master’s (ReMa) students and PhD researchers
• input of the teaching staff in ReMa and PhD training, together with the Director of Education/Faculty professors
• implementation of PhD protocol
• public relations, together with faculty Communication Committee.