Master of Science in Advanced Manufacturing Systems
Industrial transformation in Uganda is constrained less by machinery than by the absence of engineers who can design, digitalise and lead a production system. This programme is built for working manufacturing professionals and for graduates...
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
- Plant and operations manager
- manufacturing systems engineer
- industrial digitalisation lead
- quality and continuous improvement manager
- supply and production planning lead
- consultant.
Employer types
- Food and beverage, pharmaceutical, cement and steel, packaging, textiles, agro processing, industrial parks and development agencies supporting industrialisation.
Target outcomes we hold ourselves to
- Directly aligned to national industrial policy with sponsorship interest from manufacturers and industrial development institutions.
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 Science in Advanced Manufacturing Systems. 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 |
| IEM 510 | Production Systems Design and Analysis Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| IEM 511 | Advanced Quality and Statistical Methods Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| IEM 512 | Industrial Automation and Control Systems Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| IEM 513 | Manufacturing Data Architecture and Analytics Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 503 | Governance, Ethics and Leadership of Intelligent Systems Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| IEM 520 | Digital Twins and Advanced Simulation Performance | 6 | 3-2-4 |
| IEM 521 | Lean, Theory of Constraints and Operational Excellence Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| IEM 522 | Maintenance, Reliability and Asset Strategy Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| IEM 523 | Industrial Energy, Environment and Cleaner Production Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| IEM 524 | Advanced Elective Objective | 3 | 2-2-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| IEM 530 | Major Plant Project: Measured Improvement in a Real Factory Performance | 20 | 0-2-38 |
| IEM 531 | Capital Projects, Investment and Industrial Finance Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| IEM 532 | Manufacturing Leadership Practicum Objective | 5 | 4-2-0 |
Total credit units: 89
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 Science in Advanced Manufacturing Systems
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
90
30 CU of 90 CU completed by the end of this step (33%)
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 JudgementLevel 3 of 4, Independent
- C4Communication and PersuasionLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C5Disciplinary MasteryLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C6Technical Production and Craft CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C7Problem Framing and Systems Thinking CriticalLevel 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 Performance CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C11Learning to Learn and Adaptive CapacityLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C12Stewardship and Public ContributionLevel 3 of 4, Independent
Critical capabilities for this programme: Technical Production and Craft · Problem Framing and Systems Thinking · Enterprise, Value and Commercial Literacy · Professional Conduct and Workplace Performance. 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 1Design a production system to defined throughput, quality and cost targets.
- PLO 2Lead a factory digitalisation programme including data architecture and analytics.
- PLO 3Apply advanced quality, reliability and process improvement methodologies.
- PLO 4Manage industrial safety, environmental performance and energy intensity.
- PLO 5Lead technical teams and manage capital projects to completion.
- PLO 6Build the investment case for manufacturing capacity and defend it to financiers.
Why this programme exists
Industrial transformation in Uganda is constrained less by machinery than by the absence of engineers who can design, digitalise and lead a production system. This programme is built for working manufacturing professionals and for graduates entering plant leadership, and every assessment is set inside a real factory.
Admission requirements
A Bachelor's degree of at least Second Class Lower Division in engineering, industrial technology, physical sciences or a cognate field; candidates from other backgrounds with three years of manufacturing experience may enter 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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