Master of Science in Geospatial Analytics
An advanced degree for professionals who need to build, not merely operate, geospatial decision systems: national land systems, agricultural monitoring platforms, urban growth models and humanitarian information services. It is deliberately...
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
- Senior geospatial analyst
- geospatial software engineer
- earth observation programme lead
- land information systems manager
- spatial data scientist
- consultant.
Employer types
- Ministries and land agencies
- agricultural and insurance firms
- humanitarian and development organisations
- mining and infrastructure
- earth observation companies
- and research institutes.
Target outcomes we hold ourselves to
- Strong regional shortage at senior technical level with substantial consultancy and international remote 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 Geospatial Analytics. 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 |
| ECE 510 | Advanced Remote Sensing and Sensor Physics Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| ECE 511 | Machine Learning for Spatial and Image Data Performance | 6 | 3-2-4 |
| ECE 512 | Spatial Databases, Infrastructure and Services Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| ECE 513 | Advanced Geostatistics and Spatial Modelling Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 503 | Governance, Ethics and Leadership of Intelligent Systems Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| ECE 520 | Big Earth Data and Cloud Native Geospatial Engineering Performance | 7 | 4-2-4 |
| ECE 521 | SAR, Interferometry and Multi Sensor Fusion Performance | 6 | 3-2-4 |
| ECE 522 | Land Systems, Tenure and Urban Growth Modelling Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| ECE 523 | Geospatial Product and Service Design Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| ECE 524 | Advanced Elective Objective | 3 | 2-2-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| ECE 530 | Dissertation: Operational Geospatial System (client verified) Performance | 20 | 0-2-38 |
| ECE 531 | Geospatial Ethics, Sovereignty and Data Governance Objective | 5 | 4-2-0 |
| ECE 532 | Research Communication and Publication Objective | 5 | 4-2-0 |
Total credit units: 90
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 Geospatial Analytics
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 Fluency CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C2Quantitative and Evidential Reasoning CriticalLevel 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 LiteracyLevel 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 ContributionLevel 3 of 4, Independent
Critical capabilities for this programme: Intelligent Systems Fluency · Quantitative and Evidential Reasoning · Technical Production and Craft · Problem Framing and Systems Thinking. 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 1Architect and build geospatial data infrastructure and services at national scale.
- PLO 2Apply advanced machine learning to multi sensor earth observation data.
- PLO 3Model spatial processes including growth, diffusion accessibility and risk.
- PLO 4Design geospatial decision products with and for a named institutional user.
- PLO 5Apply data governance, privacy and land tenure considerations to spatial systems.
- PLO 6Conduct and report original applied research.
Why this programme exists
An advanced degree for professionals who need to build, not merely operate, geospatial decision systems: national land systems, agricultural monitoring platforms, urban growth models and humanitarian information services. It is deliberately...
Admission requirements
A Bachelor's degree of at least Second Class Lower Division in geomatics, geography, computing, engineering, environmental or agricultural sciences, with quantitative and programming capability. 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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