Programme Details

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), number 1 and 2, have everything to do with agriculture: poverty and hunger have to be halved by 2030. Projections for 2030 have shown hungrier people in Africa than in the early 1990s. Hundreds of millions of children are expected to be born over that period of time, and many of them may become new members of the hunger force. Today, tropical agriculture has been interpreted as food insecurity and hunger driven by land degradation, climate change and population pressure on land. This calls for sustainable land and water resources management to avert the negative trend in the tropics. Tens of millions of lives can be saved from hunger. Practical scientific solutions exist. Agriculture based on area expansion is always detrimental and cannot be designated sustainable unless the forgone ecosystem services are accounted for somehow. Sustainable agricultural development remains an elusive goal and incompletely understood concept by the current generation of agricultural scientists, particularly in many of the world's poorest regions where adoption is low. Low agricultural productivity continues to be a key factor in unsustainable production systems, despite decades of research on soil conservation, breeding and other sustainable practices. The challenge facing University training, researchers and policy analysts is to understand the processes causing low agricultural productivity and how to design mechanisms or a combination of technologies and practices that will provide farmers in developing countries with the economic incentives needed to adopt more sustainable land use and management practices. Many practising African agricultural scientists today have been trained in a single discipline approach, such as soil science, crop science, animal science or food science, and therefore lack a multi-disciplinary approach to address the problem of low agricultural, food insecurity and sustainable development intertwined in the moving target of hunger and increasing population. A graduate program in Global Change and Sustainable Agriculture (GSA) seeks to address the always incomplete concept of sustainable agriculture by generating a critical mass of world-class scientists that have practical intellectual and leadership capacity to offer solutions to the challenges of low agricultural productivity (including people, plants, animals, soil, water, and other resources), environmental health and poverty in the developing world. The programme focus is aligned with vision 2040 and NDPIII. Vision 2040 stresses Science, Technology, Engineering and Innovation (STEI) and industrialization. The NDPIII has its vision as “A Transformed Ugandan Society from a Peasant to a Modern and Prosperous Country within 30 years”. The program duration is two years comprising of two semesters of taught courses, followed by two semesters devoted to research work leading to a thesis. Students gain knowledge and experience in diverse discipline areas and holistic approaches necessary to understand and develop sustainable agriculture to support rural development, alleviate poverty and reach food security, especially in the developing world. The program focuses on multi-disciplinary teaching and research into five major systems: land, water, agriculture, climate and human dimension (society and economic development). The degree program focuses on investigating the internal operational challenges of these systems and the dynamics of their interaction at multiple scales to produce food. Solutions are proposed for their sustainable deployment, focusing on the conservation of; soil resources, biodiversity, and water, in the frame of combating land degradation and climate change. Experiments, participatory research, statistics and mathematical models are the primary investigative tool in our teaching and research to bridge natural and social sciences. The training also prepares one to be a hardworking, dedicated and self-reliant individual with the ability to work with diverse groups of people. In addition, the program cultivates written and verbal communication skills, which enable one to be self-motivated and fit in all walks of life

Low agricultural productivity continues to be a key factor in unsustainable production systems, despite decades of research on soil conservation, breeding and other sustainable agricultural practices. The challenge facing University training, researchers and policy analysts is to understand the processes causing low agricultural productivity and how to design mechanisms or a combination of technologies and practices that will provide farmers in developing countries with the economic incentives needed to adopt more sustainable land use and management practices. Today, tropical agriculture means talking about food insecurity and hunger driven by land degradation, climate change and population pressure on land. This calls for sustainable land and water resources management to avert the negative trend in the tropics. Tens of millions of lives can be saved from hunger. Practical scientific solutions exist. Agriculture based on area expansion is always detrimental and cannot be designated sustainable unless the forgone ecosystem services are accounted for somehow. Sustainable agricultural development remains an elusive goal and incompletely understood concept by the current generation of agricultural scientists, particularly in many of the world's poorest regions where adoption is low. Many practising African agricultural scientists today have been trained in a single discipline approach such as soil science, crop science, animal science or food science and therefore lack an Interdisciplinary/ multi-disciplinary approach to address the problem of low agricultural, food insecurity and sustainable development. There is a perception that everything is fine when agriculture is sustainable, even for generations to come. However, that is a simplistic idea because agriculture competes with other land uses in terms of space and ecosystem services. Sustainable agriculture for ten (10) million people is not the same as sustainable agriculture for forty-five (45) million people, making it a difficult concept. A Doctor of Philosophy graduate program in Global Change and Sustainable Agriculture (GLOSA) seeks to unravel the always incomplete concept of sustainable agriculture through generating a critical mass of high-quality, world-class scientists that have practical intellectual and leadership capacity to offer solutions to the challenges of low agricultural productivity (including people, plants, animals, soil, water, and other resources), environmental health and poverty in the developing world. The program duration is four (4) years, comprising eight (8) semesters devoted to major research work leading to a thesis. The existing human resources in natural and social sciences and facilities provide effective teaching, research, supervision, and mentorship to the PhD candidates. The program's philosophy stands on the concept that depth within a specialty and interdisciplinary breadth are critical to shaping the minds of future generations of scientific leaders. Therefore, the program's emphasis is to develop independent thinkers by fostering creativity and channelling curiosity through scientific training. Students taking the PhD by Research option will be offered additional support opportunities to develop specific professional skills throughout their tenure in the graduate school through discipline-specific courses and foundational cross-cutting courses. This program will also include interdisciplinary interactions among students supplemented by seminars and other activities (retreats and symposia). Students gain knowledge and experience in diverse discipline areas and holistic approaches necessary to understand and develop sustainable agriculture to support rural development, alleviate poverty and reach food security, especially in the developing world. The programme focus is aligned with vision 2040, NDPIII and The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), number 1 and 2. Vision 2040 stresses Science, Technology, Engineering and Innovation (STEI) and industrialization. The NDPIII has its vision as “A Transformed Ugandan Society from a Peasant to a Modern and Prosperous Country within 30 years”. SDGs number 1 and 2, have everything to do with agriculture: poverty and hunger have to be halved by 2030. The program is built under a multi-disciplinary research in five major systems: land, water, agriculture, climate and human dimension (society and economic development). The graduate program focuses on investigating the internal operational challenges of these systems and the dynamics of their interaction at multiple scales to produce food. Solutions are proposed for their sustainable deployment, focusing on the conservation of; soil resources, biodiversity, and water, in the frame of combating land degradation and climate change. Experiments, participatory research, statistics and mathematical models are the primary investigative tool in our teaching and research to bridge natural and social sciences. The training also prepares students to be hardworking, dedicated and self-reliant individuals with the ability to work with diverse groups of people. In addition, the program cultivates written and verbal communication skills, which enables them to be self-motivated and fit into all walks of life.  The program has in-built strategic and long-term productive collaborations beyond research contacts through international conferences, professional workshops and seminars aimed to establish deep professional ties, trust and shared benefits that will work to bridge the sharp cultural divide between academia and field practices.

Plant breeding is an all-encompassing and multi-disciplinary science and art of improving crop plants. It involves the application of many scientific disciplines such as genetics, agronomy, statistics/biometrics, plant pathology, agricultural entomology, molecular biology, scientific communication and other relevant disciplines. The multi-disciplinary nature makes it suitable for individuals who aspire to develop or improve crop varieties for yield, quality, resistance to plant parasites, drought and low soil fertility adaptation and maintaining and evaluating plant genetic resources. It is also suitable for those who wish to develop varieties with special use to support local plant breeding and seed science systems to meet stakeholders’ needs and respond to indigenous demands. Products of these efforts positively impact on the production of food, feed and fibre. The training also prepares one to be a hardworking, dedicated and self-reliant individual with the ability to work with diverse groups of people. In addition, the programme cultivates written and verbal communication skills, which enables one to be self-motivated and fit in all walks of life.

The PhD programme is interdisciplinary and therefore, the target group shall be holders of Masters (or Masters of Science) degree in Computer Science including Science in Data Science, AI, Computer Engineering, Information Systems, Information Technology, Software Engineering and others related to the field of Computer Science. The programme will also target graduate fellows and staff from public and private universities, research institutions, government ministries and individuals from the world of work and academia who may require high level qualifications and expertise through research in Computer Sciences.

The Master of Science in Cyber Physical Systems Engineering curriculum offers rigorous technical courses in both fundamental and advanced, emerging areas of Cyber Physical Systems. the academic coursework will give learners formal training in engineering software, systems, platforms, products for complex business challenges and Data Analytics, they will work on the design, control and optimization of cyber-physical systems, through a combination of core and elective courses, and project work. The program involves both theory and practice and welcomes students with diverse interests in control theory, wireless communication, data analysis, IoT design, implementation and management

Master of Public Administration

The rapid evolution of computing in the last century has transformed our world. Industries in every field are becoming more and more productive and efficient. The UN highlights the critical role of science, technology and innovation in achieving the Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs).SDG goals cannot be achieved without the effective, appropriate, and inclusive application of science,technology, and innovation. Tjoa (2016) also highlights the enormous potential of ICT to accomplish the SDGs, which cover the three dimensions of economic prosperity, social equity and environmental sustainability in 2030. Adding that no other domain in the recent past had such a strong influence on the development of countries and societies than information and communication technologies (ICTs), especially in driving today’s innovation, efficiency and effectiveness across all sectors. The proposed programme intends to address SDG4 (Quality education) and 9 (Generating employment and income through innovation).

PhD program in Material Engineering hosted by the Department of Polymer, Textile and Industrial Engineering has three tracks: Fiber and Polymer Science; Bio and Nanomaterials; Mechanics of Materials. These are the key areas with already existing human resources and facilities to provide effective teaching, research, supervision, and mentorship to the candidates. The PhD programme is further designed to impart practical skills through field placement of the students for industrial attachment in appropriate industries and workenvironment for the development of appropriate skills and identification of relevant research gaps which will form the basis of their theses.

The PhD degree in Sustainable Energy Engineering at Busitema University is awarded after successful completion of a Research (and Development) project in a specific niche energy engineering area, lasting not less than three years of registration. The actual length of the project may vary depending on the rate of progress and time allocated to the work by the particular candidate. In general, however, this time should not exceed 6 years, as work done or assumptions made earlier in the research may easily be superseded by developments elsewhere in that time

The MSc in Sustainable Energy Engineering at Busitema University is a dynamic two-year programme structured into two equally important phases:

Year 1: Intensive coursework covering postgraduate-level generic Energy and Research courses.

Year 2: Research and Development (R&D) in a specialised area of Sustainable Energy.

This programme is designed to produce cutting-edge energy engineering specialists capable of independently designing, optimising, and managing energy utility systems, particularly in developing-country contexts. Graduates will address critical gaps in energy efficiency expertise for industrial and commercial sectors while serving as a talent pool for doctoral research in specialised energy fields.

Potential Career Opportunities

The expected benefits from the programme include:

 A continuous source of cutting-edge knowledge personnel, able to independently design and supervise: manufacturing, installation, operation, maintenance and disposal of energy engineering systems. This is much unlike the current situation where there is limited in-country personnel to competently handle such a wide-ranging set of activities.

A continuous source of potential new knowledge and technology creators for the Ph.D. programme. The proposed Ph.D. programme is designed as a contingent extension of this M.Sc.’s research so that the student has an effective four years of continuous research (and development) on an issue.

Not only that, but also graduates of the MSE programme can pursue exciting roles such as: Energy Systems Engineer, Renewable Energy Project Manager, Sustainable Energy Consultant, Energy Efficiency Analyst, Research and Development Engineer in Energy Technologies, University Lecturer or Academic Researcher, Energy Policy Advisor, Industrial Energy Manager. Additionally, the programme offers a strong foundation for students interested in pursuing doctoral studies (Ph.D.) in energy-related disciplines.