Master of Public Health in Digital Epidemiology
A Master of Public Health built for a surveillance environment that is now digital, genomic and real time. It trains population health leaders who can build and run modern surveillance and modelling capability rather than commission it, 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
- District or national public health leader
- surveillance systems lead
- epidemiologist
- outbreak response coordinator
- health programme director
- monitoring and evaluation lead
- policy adviser.
Employer types
- Ministries of health and public health institutes
- continental and international health agencies
- global health programmes
- research institutes
- NGOs
- and insurers.
Target outcomes we hold ourselves to
- The standard credential for senior public health practice, differentiated here by genuine technical modelling and data engineering capability.
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 Public Health in Digital Epidemiology. 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 |
| HLB 510 | Advanced Epidemiology Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| HLB 511 | Advanced Biostatistics Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| HLB 512 | Health Systems, Policy and Financing Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| HLB 513 | Data Engineering for Surveillance Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 503 | Governance, Ethics and Leadership of Intelligent Systems Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| HLB 520 | Infectious Disease Modelling and Scenario Analysis Performance | 7 | 4-2-4 |
| HLB 521 | Genomic and Event Based Surveillance Performance | 6 | 3-2-4 |
| HLB 522 | Programme Evaluation and Implementation Science Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| HLB 523 | Outbreak Leadership and Risk Communication Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| HLB 524 | Advanced Elective Objective | 3 | 2-2-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| HLB 530 | Dissertation: Applied Public Health Investigation (client verified) Performance | 20 | 0-2-38 |
| HLB 531 | Field Placement with a Health Authority Performance | 5 | 0-0-0 |
| HLB 532 | Research Communication and Policy Translation 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 Public Health in Digital Epidemiology
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 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 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 Contribution CriticalLevel 3 of 4, Independent
Critical capabilities for this programme: Intelligent Systems Fluency · Quantitative and Evidential Reasoning · Communication and Persuasion · 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 1Design and lead epidemiological studies and surveillance systems.
- PLO 2Apply advanced biostatistics and infectious disease modelling to policy questions.
- PLO 3Build and manage data pipelines for routine and event based surveillance.
- PLO 4Lead outbreak investigation and response and communicate under pressure.
- PLO 5Evaluate health programmes and interventions rigorously.
- PLO 6Apply health equity, ethics and community engagement to public health decisions.
Why this programme exists
A Master of Public Health built for a surveillance environment that is now digital, genomic and real time. It trains population health leaders who can build and run modern surveillance and modelling capability rather than commission it, and...
Admission requirements
A Bachelor's degree of at least Second Class Lower Division in a health, biological, social or quantitative discipline; professional experience in health is an advantage. 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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