The Malawi University of Science and Technology (MUST) is a fourth Public University established by the Government
of Malawi in December, 2012. The University is situated in Thyolo District, about 27 km East of Blantyre City. It has four
Schools, namely the Malawi Institute of Technology (MIT); Ndata School of Climate and Earth Sciences (NSCES);
Academy of Medical Sciences (AMS); and Bingu School of Culture and Heritage (BISCH). MUST offers various
programmes through these schools. An exciting opportunity has arisen at the University for suitably qualified candidates to enroll and study under this prestigious institution of higher learning through Open, Distance and E-Learning (ODeL)
With support from the USAID funded Strengthening Higher Education Access in Malawi Activity (SHEAMA),
led by Arizona State University (ASU), MUST is inviting applications from suitably qualified persons to pursue the
following short courses through ODeL
- Business Management and Entrepreneurship This programme targets individuals aspiring to become
successful entrepreneurs, business owners, trainers in entrepreneurship and business development, and
community development officers. Women and youths in small and medium scale business are encouraged to apply.
Indicative Content: Introduction to business and entrepreneurship, business environment analysis,
marketing plan development, human resource planning and organization, financial planning and writing a winning
business plan.
Course duration: 6 weeks (fully online)
Fees for Business Management and Entrepreneurship Candidates will pay K200,000.00. An initial part payment is
required before registration with the remainder to be paid a month after commencement of classes.
- Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems This course is designed to introduce GIS basics, mapping
and spatial analysis tools which can be used to solve different spatial problems in order to enhance decision
making and improve communication.
Indicative content: Introduction to GIS and GIScience, Introduction to QGIS software; Spatial data models;
Cordinate system and map projections; GIS data sources; Spatial databases; Spatial data analysis using QGIS; Automating workflows in QGIS; Cartography and geovisualisation; and web mapping.
Target Participants: Data managers, statisticians, academicians, researchers, cartographers, project
managers, executive managers and technical staff involved in disaster risk management, conservation managers, health specialists, social scientists, monitoring and evaluation experts, WASH specialists, hydrologists, GIS professionals, professionals working in utility institutions, town planners, environmentalists, college students and anybody who works with spatial data.
- GIS and Remote Sensing for Natural Resources Management This course focuses on introducing GIS and Remote
Indicative content: Basic GIS and Remote Sensing concepts and terminologies in the context of natural resource
management; GIS and Remote Sensing data acquisition for natural resource management; Remote sensing image
processing and interpretation; hydrological data analysis in GIS using QGIS; Land use and land cover mapping
and change detection using QGIS, processing vegetation indices; forest mapping and vegetation monitoring;
cartography and geovisualisation. Target Participants: Conservation managers,
forestry officers, biologists, hydrologists, geologists, environmentalists, researchers, executive managers and
technical staff involved in disaster risk management, project managers, academicians, professionals working in utility
institutions, town planners, professionals working in disaster risk management, monitoring and evaluation experts,
college students and those who work/will work with remote sensing and GIS data.
- Geospatial Database Management This introductory-level course is intended to present
fundamentals of geospatial database design, implementation, management, and access. It is intended
for participants who want to learn how to create, maintain, and retrieve data from a spatially enabled database. It is
a course for anyone who is interested in organizing spatial and non-spatial data in geospatially enabled Database
Management Systems (DBMS).
Indicative content: Geodatabase Design Strategies, Database Types, Managing Data in Tables (RDBMS),
Spatial Data Modeling and Spatial Data Models, Entity Relationship (E-R) Models, Normalization, Data Dictionary,
Data Standards, Coordinate Reference Systems, Spatial Metadata, Structured Query Language (SQL), Spatial Join,
Topology, PostGIS and QGIS, Postgres/PostGIS Topics: Management Functions, Geometry, Spatial Functions and
Geodatabase design project.
Target Participants: GIS experts, cartographers, data scientists, statisticians, computer scientist, conservation
managers, forestry officers, environmentalists, researchers, executive managers and technical staff involved in disaster risk management, project managers, academicians, professionals working in utility institutions, town planners, professionals working in disaster risk management, monitoring and evaluation experts, college students and those who work with spatial data.
- GIS and Remote Sensing for Disaster Risk Management This course will introduce the basic concepts of GIS, Remote
Sensing and disaster risk management and impart practical skills on how to utilize GIS and Remote Sensing during
pre- and post-disaster management such as early warning systems, hazard mapping and damage assessments.
Indicative content: Basic concepts of GIS, Remote Sensing and disaster risk management; spatial data
sources for disaster risk management; Spatial data
collection using Global Positioning System (GPS); Creating field data collection apps for disaster risk management
studies; Introduction to QGIS; Hazard, vulnerability and risk assessment with GIS and Remote Sensing; Application
of risk information for risk reduction and planning; use of satellite imagery in post-disaster impact and damage
assessment; flood mapping with satellite imagery using ESA SNAP Toolset; Cartography and geovisualisation; sharing
DRM information through web maps.
Target Participants: The course is open to all professionals in the field of disaster risk management who require
knowledge and skills on the use GIS and Remote Sensing in their organisations. Participants are welcome from a broad
range of organisations and individuals including physical planning professionals, GIS experts, college students and
those who work / will work with GIS data and Remote Sensing data.
Course duration for courses 2, 3, 4 and 5: Each course will run for 3 weeks (online sessions) and 3 days face to face
(practical sessions).
Fees for courses 2, 3, 4 and 5: Candidates will pay K150,000.00. An initial part payment is required before
registration with the remainder to be paid a month after commencement of classes.
SHEAMA Scholarship Opportunity There are few scholarship spaces available to candidates
who obtained their MSCE qualifications through Community Day Secondary Schools (CDSS) and Open Secondary
Schools (Night Schools). Those from SHEAMA target rural districts of Karonga, Kasungu, Salima, Balaka, Mulanje
and Chikwawa, especially adolescent girls, young women and persons with disabilities, are particularly encouraged
to apply. SHEAMA scholarships will be made available to a few candidates that will meet the program set
criteria. For those who meet the scholarship requirements, please contact the ODeL Coordinator at MUST, through
cmaluwa@must.ac.mw and 0999304336 or the Director of Scholarships and Grants at SHEAMA, through smkwetez@
asu.edu or 0991784775; or ksululu@asu.edu or 0999029849.
Organizations intending to sponsor a group of participants may also contact us for more details and special
arrangements.
Mode of Application
Request for application forms from the address or email below.
Send filled application forms together with other relevant documents to the same address, on and before 20th March
- If you previously responded to this announcement, you do not need to re-apply. All previous applications are
well filed.
The Director of Research, Postgraduate Studies and
Outreach, Malawi University of Science and Technology,
P.O. Box 5196, Limbe.
Email: odeladmissions@must.ac.mw