Master of Arts in Digital Cultural Economy
African cultural output travels globally while the value overwhelmingly accrues elsewhere, because the rights, distribution, data and negotiation expertise sits elsewhere. This programme builds the executives, policy leaders and institution...
Employment thesis
What this programme is designed to produce
Forward publishes the destination of every programme before you enrol. If the thesis stops holding, the programme is reviewed and, where necessary, retired. Next review: 2031.
Roles
- Cultural industries executive
- rights and licensing manager
- festival and institution director
- cultural policy adviser
- heritage and museum digital lead
- creative economy investment analyst
- cultural tourism strategist.
Employer types
- Music, film and publishing companies
- collecting societies and rights organisations
- museums and heritage bodies
- ministries of culture and tourism
- development organisations funding creative economies
- platforms and streaming services
- and creative enterprises.
Target outcomes we hold ourselves to
- Senior management and policy roles in a sector with rising investment and weak professional supply.
Compulsory · The Forward Core
How the Core works →Every Forward programme, including this one, carries the same five cross-cutting requirements. They are graded, not optional.
- AI Fluency
- Quantitative Reasoning
- Ethics and African Context
- Human-Advantage Skills
- Enterprise
Includes 12 months paid work-integrated learning
Am I eligible?
Check yourself against the published requirements
7 questions written specifically for Master of Arts in Digital Cultural Economy. Every answer is checked against a requirement Forward has published, and the result tells you which page that requirement comes from. Indicative only, the admissions office decides on your full file.
What is the highest qualification you hold?
Curriculum structure
The same degree, in both pathways
Every Forward programme is published in both pathways: Path One, the term plan of two six-month terms, and Path Two, the block sequence of twelve four-week blocks. Same competencies, same assessments, same award. Toggle to see this programme in each.
Path One term plan shown
Path One · The Term Model
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 501 | Applied Intelligence for Professionals Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| FDC 502 | Research Evidence and Method Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| CTM 510 | The Creative Economy: Structure, Value and African Position Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| CTM 511 | Intellectual Property, Rights and Licensing Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| CTM 512 | Cultural Data, Platforms and Audience Analytics Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| CTM 513 | Cultural Institution Management and Finance Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 503 | Governance, Ethics and Leadership of Intelligent Systems Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| CTM 520 | Digital Distribution, Streaming and Global Markets Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| CTM 521 | Heritage Digitisation, Repatriation and Community Consent Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| CTM 522 | Cultural Policy, Funding and Advocacy Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| CTM 523 | Advanced Elective Objective | 4 | 3-2-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| CTM 530 | Applied Project: Institutional or Enterprise Commission Performance | 15 | 0-2-28 |
| CTM 531 | Negotiation and Deal Making in Creative Industries Performance | 4 | 1-0-6 |
Total credit units: 72
Curriculum source
Forward University Curriculum Compendium
Assessment
Coursework + project + integrated exam
Work-integrated learning
12 months paid co-operative education
Your week at Forward
A typical week on Master of Arts in Digital Cultural Economy
Path One, the Term Model: your own pace across a six-month term, one live session a week, short flexible lessons, and assessment on demand.
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Curriculum explorer
Drill into the degree, step by step
Choose a study path, then a year, then a term or block, then a course. Credit totals add up as you go, and every course shows what comes before it and what it unlocks.
Step 1, choose a year
Step 2, choose a term
TERM 1 (SIX MONTHS) | FORMERLY SEMESTER 1
Year 1 · this step is worth 30 CU
Cumulative
30
Programme total
60
30 CU of 60 CU completed by the end of this step (50%)
Step 3, choose a course
Pick a course to see the detail
Credits, assessment, prerequisites and what each course unlocks later.
The twelve Forward capabilities
What this programme develops in you
Every Forward degree develops the same twelve cross-cutting capabilities. The profile below is the level this programme is designed to develop and verify by graduation, on the four-level scale in Part B2 of the Curriculum Compendium. Every claim above Level 2 is verified by someone other than the teaching lecturer.
- C1Intelligent Systems FluencyLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C2Quantitative and Evidential ReasoningLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C3Ethical and Contextual Judgement CriticalLevel 3 of 4, Independent
- C4Communication and Persuasion CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C5Disciplinary MasteryLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C6Technical Production and CraftLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C7Problem Framing and Systems ThinkingLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C8Collaboration and Multidisciplinary TeamingLevel 3 of 4, Independent
- C9Enterprise, Value and Commercial Literacy CriticalLevel 3 of 4, Independent
- C10Professional Conduct and Workplace PerformanceLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C11Learning to Learn and Adaptive CapacityLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C12Stewardship and Public Contribution CriticalLevel 3 of 4, Independent
Critical capabilities for this programme: Ethical and Contextual Judgement · Communication and Persuasion · Enterprise, Value and Commercial Literacy · Stewardship and Public Contribution. A graduate cannot pass out of this programme below the stated level on any capability marked critical.
Programme Learning Outcomes
What you will be able to do
Each outcome is assessed, and each is tagged with the Forward capabilities it is verified against.
- PLO 1Analyse creative sector value chains and where value is captured and lost.
- PLO 2Structure rights, licensing and royalty arrangements to the benefit of creators.
- PLO 3Design and lead cultural institutions, festivals and platforms as businesses.
- PLO 4Apply digital distribution, data and audience analytics to cultural products.
- PLO 5Formulate cultural policy and make the economic case for it.
- PLO 6Manage heritage digitisation with community consent and cultural integrity.
Why this programme exists
African cultural output travels globally while the value overwhelmingly accrues elsewhere, because the rights, distribution, data and negotiation expertise sits elsewhere. This programme builds the executives, policy leaders and institution...
Admission requirements
A Bachelor's degree of at least Second Class Lower Division in any discipline, or substantial professional experience in the creative sector assessed through recognition of prior learning. Alternative pathways: Foundation Year, diploma entry with advanced standing, mature age entry and recognition of prior learning, all governed by Part A5 and Part G. Online applicants additionally complete the compulsory Digital Readiness orientation under Part D6.
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