Master of Science in Cybersecurity and Digital Forensics
Uganda's critical financial, identity and public service infrastructure is now digital, and the national capacity to investigate, attribute and defend against attacks on it is thin. This programme builds senior defenders, investigators and ...
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
- Head of security operations
- incident response lead
- forensic examiner and expert witness
- security architect
- threat intelligence lead
- assurance and audit lead
- regulator or investigator.
Employer types
- Banks and payment operators
- telecommunications
- national security, revenue and identity agencies
- law enforcement
- managed security providers
- regulators
- audit firms.
Target outcomes we hold ourselves to
- An acute national and regional shortage at senior level, with immediate absorption and consulting demand.
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 Cybersecurity and Digital Forensics. 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 |
| AIC 510 | Advanced Network and Systems Security Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| AIC 511 | Applied Cryptography and Protocol Analysis Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| AIC 512 | Digital Forensics: Acquisition, Analysis and Evidence Performance | 6 | 3-2-4 |
| AIC 513 | Cyber Law, Evidence and Expert Testimony Objective | 4 | 3-2-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 503 | Governance, Ethics and Leadership of Intelligent Systems Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| AIC 520 | Advanced Incident Response and Threat Hunting Performance | 7 | 1-0-12 |
| AIC 521 | Offensive Security and Adversary Emulation Performance | 6 | 3-2-4 |
| AIC 522 | Security of Machine Learning and Agentic Systems Performance | 6 | 3-2-4 |
| AIC 523 | Security Governance, Risk and Board Reporting Objective | 6 | 5-2-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| AIC 530 | Major Investigation or Defence Project (client verified) Performance | 20 | 0-2-38 |
| AIC 531 | Threat Intelligence Practicum Performance | 5 | 1-0-8 |
| AIC 532 | Critical Infrastructure and Payments Security Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
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 Cybersecurity and Digital Forensics
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 Judgement CriticalLevel 3 of 4, Independent
- C4Communication and PersuasionLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C5Disciplinary Mastery CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C6Technical Production and Craft CriticalLevel 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 LiteracyLevel 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: Ethical and Contextual Judgement · Disciplinary Mastery · Technical Production and Craft · 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 1Lead the detection, containment and recovery of a significant security incident.
- PLO 2Conduct a forensically sound investigation and present findings as an expert witness.
- PLO 3Design security architecture for a complex regulated estate.
- PLO 4Assess and defend machine learning and agentic systems.
- PLO 5Build and lead a threat intelligence and adversary emulation capability.
- PLO 6Advise a board and a regulator on cyber risk in financial and legal terms.
Why this programme exists
Uganda's critical financial, identity and public service infrastructure is now digital, and the national capacity to investigate, attribute and defend against attacks on it is thin. This programme builds senior defenders, investigators and assurance leaders, with an explicit stream on the security of machine learning systems and on evidence standards admissible in Ugandan and regional proceedings.
Admission requirements
A Bachelor's degree of at least Second Class Lower Division in computing, engineering or a cognate discipline, or a Bachelor's in another discipline with at least three years of relevant security, audit or investigative experience. 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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