The discipline of Geoinformatics and Surveying (GuV) has changed its name. Effective December 14, 2023, it is now called Applied Informatics and Geodesy (AIGeo).
The Department was first established in 2001 with a degree program (Diplom) in Geoinformatics and Surveying. The portfolio of its degree programs was then expanded to nine bachelor's and master's degree programs following the Bologna Process:
- Applied Informatics B.Sc.
- Applied Informatics B.Sc. (dual, public service, 50/50 split with the School of Business, starting in 2020)
- Geoinformatik und Vermessung B.Sc. (ab 2007)
- Geoinformatics and Surveying B.Sc. combined studies (dual) (starting in 2014)
- Applied Informatics M.Sc. (starting in 2023)
- Digital Methods in the Humanities and Cultural Studies M.A. (in cooperation with Johannes Gutenberg University, starting in 2016)
- Geoinformatics and Surveying M.Sc. (starting in 2007)
- Geoinformatics M.Eng. (starting in 2001)
- Geoinformatic Certificate (Continuing Education) (before 2001)
The names of the degree programs are crucial for the external image of the discipline. The new name of the discipline – Applied Informatics and Geodesy (AIGeo) – appropriately reflects the considerable growth in the range of subjects available and the diversification of the teaching staff. With the new name, the professors of the department make it clear that the current fields of activity extend beyond the core area of geoinformatics and surveying. The discipline is clearly positioned by its close links with the university’s in-house research facility, i3mainz – Institute for Spatial Information and Surveying Technology, and mainzed, Mainz Center for Digitality in the Humanities and Cultural Studies, which is the open network for bundling digital expertise in this field at the scientific hub of Mainz. The new name also makes it sufficiently distinguishable from its direct partner in the School of Business, Information Systems (Wirtschaftsinformatik).
The new name of the discipline picks up on the tradition of the Sieker Declaration of 02/13/2010, under which all relevant professional associations strive for a joint position with respect to society and the political arena, alongside coordinated activities for the next generation in view of the shortage of skilled workers. This raises public awareness of the great social and economic importance of geodetic expertise, from surveying to geoinformation, valuation, and land management. With this name change, the discipline reflects the developments of recent years towards broad, highly interdisciplinary, applied informatics while continuing to emphasize its roots in geodesy.