PhD in Agro-ecology and Food Systems

 The integration of ecological studies in Agriculture as a holistic approach to providing solutions to problems related to agricultural production and productivity has over the last decades gained momentum. In the context of the changing climate and the growing concerns for better healthy food systems, Agro-ecology seems to provide answers to mega problems facing agricultural sustainability and environmental health. It has become clear that there is growing anecdotal and case study evidence of Agro-ecology multiple benefits from climate resilience to farm productivity but also being a sustainable farming approach and social environment. Mainstreaming Agro-ecology therefore requires a fundamental cultural and philosophical shift on how society defines efficient Agriculture. This programme is therefore aimed at making a contribution in that direction.

Programme Purpose

The main purpose of the programme is to produce well trained top-level skilled professionals with interdisciplinary and international orientation to facilitate the development of institutions and structures for sustainable utilization of knowledge and technologies in Agro-ecology in an integrated way.  The programme also seeks to develop a new calibre of highly motivated and dynamic graduates with capacity to face the new challenges and intricacies facing Agriculture today and beyond. This is a unique programme for grooming agricultural scientists with interdisciplinary orientation, organizational and leadership skills, cross-cutting professional skills and the requisite mindsets to influence utilisation of knowledge in agro-ecology and food systems that will eventually spill over to grassroots.

To achieve this purpose, the programme targets professionals in universities, research, extension, Non-governmental Organisations (NGOs) and policy development institutions that need high level innovative and analytical capabilities.

Who Qualifies.

A Prospective student seeking admission to this programme shall normally require a Master’s Degree in a relevant field from a recognized institution of Higher Learning. In exceptional circumstances, prospective students who hold a First-Class Degree with relevant working experience and appropriate professional qualifications can also be admitted.

Admission to the Programme

To be admitted to this PhD programme, one is required to submit a preliminary research proposal/ concept note and copies of published academic work (Dissertations not inclusive).

Acceptance is dependent upon the prospective student’s proposal receiving favourable reports.  Once the proposal/ concept is accepted, the prospective student will be invited for an interview. If the admission panel deems the prospective students work satisfactory, s/he will be admitted as a PhD student. If the Panel is not satisfied with the proposal/concept, a revised proposal may be submitted within a specified period.

Mode of Delivery

There are two modes of delivery:

1. By Course Work and Dissertation
2. By Research

PhD by Course Work and Dissertation

A Candidate will be expected to follow one year of coursework programmes. After successfully completing the first year, a candidate will undertake research for two years leading to a completed and defended dissertation.

 PhD by Research

A prospective student will be admitted as M. Phil Student. M. Phil student will be differentiated to PhD status after a maximum of one year having submitted and successfully defended his/her research proposal.

Course Outline

Year II and III

Research-Thesis/Dissertation

Tuition

Full Time (FT): Ushs 6,600,000 (USD 3,595) per year

Part Time (PT):Ushs 5,600,000 ( USD 2,750) per year

Application Procedure

Application forms can be obtained from:

Registrar’s office at the Uganda Martyrs University Main campus (Nkozi)
Kampala office at Uganda Catholic Management and Training Institute (Rubaga)
Uganda Martyrs University Website www.umu.ac.ug

Master of Arts in Bioethics

Master of Arts in Bioethics is a multidisciplinary program designed to create a work force that has the knowledge and skills to critically analyse right and wrong, and what ought to be done when medicine, science, and innovative technologies are applied on living organisms. Since the 1990s, Uganda has been actively involved in multinational cooperation and collaboration to resolve ethical issues in global health, human rights, and bio-politics.  Uganda’s success in reducing HIV prevalence through a predominantly behavioural change strategy is well documented in ethics literature. Uganda has also played a pivotal role in global HIV/AIDS research. On the domestic level, the country has embarked on initiating ethical and legal mechanisms to deal with persistent ethical issues in clinical trials, medical malpractice, counterfeit drugs, human and organ trafficking. But probably more challenging is the advance of innovative biotechnology such as in genetic modification of species. This trajectory makes it necessary for the country to engage in an ethically informed discourse grounded in Bioethics knowledge.

Programme Objectives

1. To help students understand the broader dimensions of theory and methods in bioethics from historical, systematic, and religious perspectives.
2. To teach students learn to communicate effectively in relating theory and practice in matters of bioethics methodological issues; develop critical analysis skills
and cogent arguments, and learn to effectively engage scholarly literature in writing bioethics researched essays from historical, systematic, and religious perspectives.
3. To ensure students develop competencies and ethical values that make them resource persons in ethical leadership.

Entry Requirements

A candidate seeking admission into the M.A. Bioethics programme should possess a Bachelors degree with first class or an upper second class in sciences or humanities. A candidate who possesses a Master’s Degree obtained through following taught causes and the presentation of a minor thesis, done in a recognized university, can also be admitted. All eligible candidates will be subjected to a graduate admission test (GAT) before they qualify for admission, except those with a first class degree from a reputable university 

Mode of Delivery

The programme is delivered through any of the following two modes of study

1. Fulltime mode

The Full time MA Bioethics mode runs for one year and one semester at Nkozi main campus and is comprised of three semesters.  The course is based on a Semester – Credit Unit System. A semester is defined as the duration of 17 weeks during which the registration, teaching and mode of assessment of university courses takes place at the scheduled time. The 17 weeks will are divided into 15 weeks of teaching and 2 weeks of examination.

Year One – Semester One

Year One – Semester Two

Year Two – Semester One: Student will be required to select one of the two elective courses)

2. Part-time Mode

The Part time MA Bioethics mode runs for two years at Rubaga campus. Students are expected to attend classes for 70 consecutive weekends. During this period they prepare and hand in their dissertations/ capstone project. In this modular mode, the exam is done at the end of each module, and specifically the weekend after classes

Year One

Year Two

Tuition
Part Time
EAC Nationals: Ushs 3,500,000 per year.
Non-EAC Nationals: USD 2,050 per year

Full Time

EAC Nationals: Ushs 6,502,000 per year
Non-EAC Nationals: USD 3,550 per year

Application Procedure

1. Application forms can be obtained from:Registrar’s office at the Uganda Martyrs University Main campus (Nkozi)
2. Kampala office at Uganda Catholic Management and Training Institute (Rubaga)
3. Uganda Martyrs University Website (www.umu.ac.ug)

Master of Arts in Microfinance Management 

Microfinance has been embraced in developing countries as an important tool in poverty alleviation through the financial inclusion of the poor. It is considered as a tool of community economic development and as such many stakeholders including; government, development agencies and NGOs, are paying significant attention to the development of this sector. In an attempt to enhance the financial inclusion of the poor; and to find solutions to financing   problems for micro and small enterprises, several initiatives to provide affordable financial services have been tried by governments, non-governmental organizations, the private sector and local self-help organizations in developing countries. A wide range of microfinance institutions (MFIs), self-help savings and credit associations, farmers’ groups, workers’ savings and credit arrangements, commercial MFIs and commercial banks operating special microfinance projects have  emerged to provide individuals and micro and small businesses with direct financial services on a regular basis.

Today, the Microfinance sector is evolving very fast, but it is still riddled with capacity problems that need to be addressed. As the sector grows, the need for advanced skills becomes even greater: to provide improved products, to introduce new products, to come up with better models of governance, to better regulate the sector etc. Employers in the various institutions in the sectors are looking for employees who are grounded in microfinance skills. The Master of Arts in Microfinance Management programme seeks to fill this gap. Graduates from this program should have competences required in the management and governance of MFIs; developing and managing microfinance products; managing microfinance credit; strategic planning and managing the growth of microfinance institutions; embedding social performance in the management and governance of microfinance institutions; developing and managing a motivated workforce; developing relevant models of microfinance management etc. They should also be able to contribute to the development of policies to govern the sector and also work as regulators.

Programme Objectives

The objectives of this programme is to produce graduates who can:

1. Explain the core theories, concepts and practices in microfinance
2. Describe business models that would support Sustainable Financial Inclusion for developing countries
3. Identify effective research models for microfinance
4. Identify effective management and governance models for microfinance

Entry Requirements

Admission to Master of Arts in Microfinance Management   shall be done in accordance with the University and Faculty Regulations. A candidate shall be eligible for admission to the programme on meeting any of the following minimum requirements:-

1. A bachelor’s degree in related field from a recognised institution.
2. A working experience of at least two years in a relevant field is an added advantage
3. Possession of a degree and professional accounting qualifications such as; CPA (U), CPA (K), ACCA, CIMA, ICSA, or any other equivalent plus a minimum of two years of  experience.

Duration of Programmme

The Master of Arts in Microfinance Management is a two-year programme for fulltime and part-time students and three years for distance learning students. In compliance with the policy of the university, students who fail to complete in the designated time for one reason or the other can re-register for two more years. Students failing to complete within that time will be automatically de-registered by the university.

Mode of Delivery

The Programme is delivered through any of the following two modes of study

1. Fulltime programme: The normal duration for Full time Master of Arts in Microfinance Management programme is run for two years (Twenty four months for classroom related academic work and research).
2. Weekend programme: The normal duration for the weekend programme is two years. Students study on Friday evenings from 6:00 pm to 9:00pm, a total of three hours and on Saturdays from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm.
3. Distance Learning: The normal duration for distance learning is three years. The distance learning students will have to attend three residential workshops. The first workshop will be at the beginning of the first year and in it students will be introduced to the program and the university in general i.e. the structure of the program; program guidelines; coursework and final assessments issues; online learning; students facilitators interactions etc. They will also have seminars in different areas of microfinance, field trips and module introduction. In the next conference (i.e. at the end of the first year) students will still attend seminars, have modules introduced, and do final assessment exams. In the third residential conference (at the end of the second year) students will do final assessments, attend seminars and present their research proposals. At the end of the third year students will have to attend a research conference in which all students will have to disseminate the findings of their research work.

Course Outline

Year One, Semester One

 Year One, Semester Two

 Year Two, Semester One

 Year Two, Semester Two

Tuition

Part Time

EAC Nationals: Ushs 3,500,000 per year
Non-EAC Nationals: USD 2,050 per year

Full Time

EAC Nationals: Ushs 6,502,000 per year
Non-EAC Nationals: USD 3,550 per year

Master of Science in Agroecology

Agriculture in most African countries is performed by smallholder farmers at varying levels. Their practices are characterized by abundant labor, land, but limited capital. There are, however, global changes in the dynamics of production resources that have greatly transformed the picture of subsistence and smallholder producers. For many small-scale African farmers today, neither land nor labor, capital are abundant. Currently the resources required for sustainable agricultural production have become scarce across the sub-Saharan Africa. Results of such scarcities come with effects such as hunger, environmental degradation, and climate change and variability, competition for land, water and forest resources etc. The balance between exchanging traditional cultivation methods for increased use of inputs (pesticides, herbicides, mineral fertilizers, hybrid seeds for sowing) and testing new cultivation methods pauses a challenge too. Smallholder farmers, however, are largely unable to afford any external inputs or make extra investment in modern agriculture including improved subsistence systems.

The Master of Science in Agroecology provides a rigorous, interdisciplinary training through an innovative blend of locally taught academic courses and jointly supported programme activities by e-learning over the internet. The mission of this programme is therefore to support poverty alleviation for households based on small-scale farming systems. This links into the broad need to establish an action-orientated, dynamic, creative and interdisciplinary education and training programme that interacts across farmers’ practices, development work, extension, education and research (the knowledge continuum), within the area of agroecology (as ‘Ecology of Food Systems’). Some of the valid questions to be answered by the programme are:

• How can production be increased without harming the socio-economic context of the landscape and without causing environmental imbalances?
• How can the production systems interact with food marketing and logistics, with the aim of improving food security and food safety for consumers while also increasing farmers’ income?
• If in the past the peasant farmers were able to protect and maintain the environment, why, is the current generation constantly failing to do so now?
• Does it really matter, how food is produced, stored, processed, and consumed?

Programme Objectives

The M.Sc. Agroecology programme fosters the development of practical, interdisciplinary skills to prepare students for the complex field of agriculture. Students acquire a firm grasp of the technical, political and socio-cultural context of organic agriculture, techniques for studying local/indigenous knowledge, data collection and analytical methods used for planning, monitoring and evaluation, management and leadership in management of natural resource and implementation of development programmes. .

The objectives of the programme are:

• To Increase the relevance of agro ecology in higher agricultural education in respect to small-scale farming systems.
• To generate agriculture graduates with the ability to understand, analyze and elaborate the farm as a production unit that interacts with its dynamic surroundings.
• To produce graduates that are able to give relevant support to the design of farming systems that integrate production and conservation, and in which the production enhancing activities are mainly based on local and sustainable resources.
• To make use of the complementary expertise of programme partners teaching staff and utilize it rationally as a common resource pool for sharing teaching and supervision of Masters students.
• To exploit and further develop the distance learning tools in use in partner universities, combining e-learning over the internet with locally facilitated face-to-face teaching of classes.
• To create an environment for student and staff exchanges between universities involved in the Agroecology and other related programs.

Entry Requirements

The course is open to holders of at least 2nd Class Upper in a Bachelors degree in biological sciences, and any other degree deemed relevant from recognized institutions. Applicants must have passed a Graduate Admission Test (G.A.T) administered by the School of Postgraduate Studies and Research of Uganda Martyrs University. Priority will be given to students of organic agriculture and those working in very closely related systems to ensure graduates’ future contribution to sustainable development.

Mode of Delivery

The program will be completed in a minimum of 2 years and maximum of 4 years; delivered in four semesters, of 17 weeks each. It is taught on both fulltime at our Main Campus in Nkozi and part-time during weekends. During this period each student is expected to attend lectures, participate in participatory agro-ecosystem analysis exercises, undertake course works, sit for examinations, conduct research, and write a dissertation.

Programme Structure

KEY: TH denotes tutorial hours, LH lecture hours, CH denotes contact hours, PH denotes, practical hours CU denotes credit units, MEE Course code for Masters of Science in Agroecology

Tuition

Part Time
EAC Nationals: Ushs 3,500,000 per year.
Non-EAC Nationals: USD 2,050 per year

Full Time

EAC Nationals: Ushs 6,502,000 per year
Non-EAC Nationals: USD 3,550 per year

Application Procedure

1. Application forms can be obtained from:Registrar’s office at the Uganda Martyrs University Main campus (Nkozi)
   2. Kampala office at Uganda Catholic Management and Training Institute (Rubaga)
   3. Uganda Martyrs University Website (www.umu.ac.ug)

Master of Science in Development Economics

Master of Science in Development Economics has been developed  to create a workforce with leadership, knowledge, skills and competences that aims at producing qualified Development economists capable of steering and sustaining their institutions and the Economy in general amidst scarce resources. The ever changing needs of developing countries call for development of a human capital base equipped with economic competences to deal with the global trends of contemporary development. Furthermore, there is a remarkable increase in the demand for development economists in the wake of liberalized economies. This in turn has created a need for specialists who are capable of handling the emerging development challenges and opportunities. Therefore, the programme is designed to answer the training and career development needs of managers, bankers, government employees and development workers in the area of development economics, who will serve as focal point experts to design and analyze development policies.

Programme Objectives

The objectives of this programme is to produce graduates who:

1. are able to analyse and develop policies which are applicable to the Sustainable development of their Economies
2. are able to critique the on-going economic reforms locally and internationally and how they impact on the Economies of developing countries
3. are able to apply macroeconomic models/tools in decision making for effective and efficient functioning of the economy.
4. are able to examine the economic challenges facing developing countries.
5. are able to develop and manage strategic and operation plans for Development programmes
6. are able to manage economic resources in public and private institutions
7. are able to design and conduct research on Economic development related issues/ challenges

Entry Requirements

Admission to the Master of Science in Development Economics will be governed by the University regulations and the School of Post Graduate Studies. The applicant must have at least a second lower first degree and relevant work experience in the field related to Economics, Agriculture, Business and Development studies.

In addition, the candidate should also sit and pass the direct entry exam (Graduate Admission Test) set by the University. 

Mode of Delivery

The Programme is delivered through any of the following two modes of study

1. Fulltime programme: The normal duration for Full time Master of Science in Development Economics programme is run for one and half years (ten months for classroom related academic work and 16 weeks of research).

2. Weekend programme: The normal duration for the weekend programme is two years. Students study on Friday evenings from 6:00 pm to 9:00pm, a total of three hours and on Saturdays from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm,

Course Outline

Tuition

Part Time

EAC Nationals: Ushs 3,500,000 per year
Non-EAC Nationals: USD 2,050 per year

Full Time

EAC Nationals: Ushs 6,502,000 per year
Non-EAC Nationals: USD 3,550 per year

Application Procedure

Application forms can be obtained from:

1. Registrar’s office at the Uganda Martyrs University Main campus (Nkozi)
2. Kampala office at Uganda Catholic Management and Training Institute (Rubaga)
3. Uganda Martyrs University Website (www.umu.ac.ug)

Master of Science in Monitoring and Evaluation

Master of Science in Monitoring and Evaluation is designed to produce top-level skilled professional staff with an interdisciplinary understanding of Monitoring and Evaluation, able to support analytical understanding of the impact of development initiatives in Africa and their comparison globally.Today, the African sub-continent has a vast number of NGOs involved in development aid. While there has been talk of monitoring and evaluation of such programs/projects, methodologies for assessing impacts are problematic. Additionally, there are different monitoring and evaluation guides developed to suit such programs and projects. Hence, checking performance of the effectiveness of individual projects, across sectors and country programs, remains an issue. At the same time, as articulated in the Paris Declaration on aid effectiveness (2005) which made explicit commitment to increasing the impact of aid through the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), development partners are increasingly looking at the impact of aid and aid effectiveness, through the conduct of plausible impact assessment.

These assessments require data derived from Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) systems. At the International Conference on Financing for Development in Monterrey in 2002, development partners re-emphasized this need by agreeing to focus on managing for development results. This agreement advocates a stronger orientation of monitoring systems towards development results. This means, the emphasis has shifted towards identifying what changes (benefits that have been achieved directly or indirectly by development interventions), as well as measuring what has been done. Ongoing reviews, assessments and learning are prioritized equally with end of project evaluation. For these reviews to take place it is important that good M&E systems are incorporated at the planning phase and all levels of reporting.

Programme Objectives

1. To develop students capacity in applying theoretical concepts in M&E.
2. To equip students with analysis skill to enable them examine developmental situations

• To prepare students with skills to participate and handle development projects at community, national and international levels competently

1. To empower students with development research skills and prepare them for progression to higher levels of study
2. To encourage students to become proactive, creative, independent thinkers and analytical in aspects affecting their day-to-day aspects.
3. To provide students with understanding of cross-disciplinary approaches to demographic, social-cultural, economic and environmental factors and structures, uneven development and its impact to local, regional and global scales

Entry Requirements

This course is designed for graduates with a minimum of a bachelor’s degree from a recognized institution. It also targets graduate senior and mid-level government officials, development managers and other professionals covering development work, as well as those that are managing sustainable and people-centred development programs and organizations. All applicants must have a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent and will be required to pass a Graduate Admission Test (GAT) on admission.

Mode of Delivery

The programme is currently delivered through any of the following two modes of study

1. Fulltime mode

The Full time MSc in Monitoring and Evaluation mode runs for one and half years at Nkozi main campus and is comprised of three semesters.  The course is based on a Semester – Credit Unit System. A semester is defined as the duration of 17 weeks during which the registration, teaching and mode of assessment of university courses takes place at the scheduled time. The 17 weeks will are divided into 15 weeks of teaching and 2 weeks of examination.

2. Part-time Mode

The Part time MSc in Monitoring and Evaluation mode runs for two years at Rubaga campus. Students are expected to attend classes for 70 consecutive weekends. During this period they prepare and hand in their dissertations. In this modular mode, the exam is done at the end of each module, and specifically the weekend after classes

Course Content

KEY: TH denotes tutorial hours, LH lecture hours, CH denotes contact hours, PH denotes, practical hours CU denotes credit units, MME Course code for Masters of Science in Monitoring

Tuition

Part Time

EAC Nationals: Ushs 3,500,000 per year

Non-EAC Nationals: USD 2,050 per year

Full Time

EAC Nationals: Ushs 6,502,000 per year

Non-EAC Nationals: USD 3,550 per year

Application Procedure

Application forms can be obtained from:

1. Registrar’s office at the Uganda Martyrs University Main campus (Nkozi)
2. Kampala office at Uganda Catholic Management and Training Institute (Rubaga)
3. Uganda Martyrs University Website (www.umu.ac.ug)