Inculcating Professionalism in to the University Degrees: Experience of the Faculty of Geomatics, Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka

Abstract

The Faculty of Geomatics, Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka is reputed for its BSc degree in Surveying Sciences since its inception in 1997 in its effort to produce professional surveyors. Due to the technological advancements over the past two decades and the vast changes occurred surrounding the surveying profession, a highly specific knowledgeable and skilful individuals who are narrow in the scope were needed to cater the current demand. The Faculty has identified this by conducting a comprehensive stakeholder survey and in 2014; a whole new curriculum was developed with five specializations in Geomatic field. In this process, one of the major objectives was to acclaim the local and international accreditations for the programme. Now, this new degree is accredited by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and the hydrographic specialization programme is recognized for the FIG/IHO/ICA Category-B level. Further, the faculty is also became an academic member of the International Federation of Surveyors (FIG). With these, Faculty of Geomatics became a world-class degree awarding institution in the entire South Asian region in the field of surveying sciences. Finally, producing graduates on a professional field requires comprehensive planning through a well thought curriculum by considering the variations contiguous to the profession and the expectation of the society with respect to the intent graduates. This article describes our experience in this process.