BA THEOLOGY, MINISTRY AND MISSION

Bristol Baptist College’s BA programme gives students the opportunity to:

  • develop and demonstrate an understanding and critical appreciation of the Bible and Christian tradition.
  • integrate knowledge and understanding of the Christian tradition with the development of professional and vocational skills.
  • develop and demonstrate the ability to evaluate arguments and points of view – including those not held by the student – fairly, sensitively and with intellectual rigour.
  • develop the discipline and skills to pursue in-depth study of more specialised areas of the subject.

This course will be of interest to those preparing for various forms of Christian ministry, and to anyone wishing to deepen their discipleship and understanding of theology within a Christian context. It is taught in partnership with Trinity College, Bristol and students study alongside those training for ministry in the Church of England.

There is a specialist pathway through the BA for those interested in Baptist accredited ministry. This includes a number of required modules but also gives the opportunity for options. Other students can make their own choice of modules from across the subject areas of the awards.

The programme includes the opportunity to gain credit for work and reflection carried out in a placement church or context. For those on a ministerial pathway this is a required element of the programme.

Some teaching at Certificate (Level 4) and Diploma (Level 5) is currently available in the evenings as well as during the day. Teaching at Level 6 is currently only available during the day. Most teaching takes place on Tuesdays, but some pathways require attendance on other days.

Level 4 (year 1  for full-time students) lays down a strong foundation of knowledge and skills in such areas as the Bible, Christian doctrine, practical theology and reflective practice.

Level 5 (year 2 for full-time students) builds on the previous level, with opportunities for close study of Biblical texts or periods of Christian history, engagement with missional thinking or developing competence in pastoral care and leading worship.

Level 6 (year 3 for full-time students) provides further opportunities for you to develop your understanding and knowledge, including the choice of completing a dissertation or project in an area of particular interest.

To be awarded the qualification 360 credits are required. These may be taken over 3 years full-time or 4-9 years part-time. You must take at least 40 credits per year. The programme is made up of modules which are normally worth 10 or 20 credits. The dissertation in the final year is worth 40 credits. Each credit taken equates to a total study time of 10 hours. Total study time includes scheduled lectures, classes, or seminars and independent study including pre-reading for classes and writing assignments. Your overall grade for this course and your degree classification are based on the marks obtained for the final 240 credits of the programme, with greater weight being given to the final 120 credits.

Modules you may study include:

New Testament Texts
Old Testament texts
Issues in Biblical Theology
Church History
Christian Doctrine
Environmental Theology
Baptist History and Principles
New Testament Greek
Biblical Hebrew
Leadership
Reflective Practice
Mission and Apologetics
Informal Learning with Children & Young People
Theology of Development in Childhood and Adolescence
Values, Policy and Practice in Children’s or Youth Ministry

A copy of the regulations for the programme is available at this link.

What will I study?

Students cover a wide range of topics in the Certificate to give them a firm foundation in the areas of Bible, Christian Tradition, and Ministry and Mission.

These include:

Old Testament
New Testament
Christian Doctrine
Church History or Ethics
Students can choose other modules depending on their pathway or interest, such as:
Spirituality and Discipleship
Mission and Evangelism
Pastoral Care
Values and Practice in Youth work
Methods of Reading the Bible
Values and Practice in Children and Family Work
Informal Learning with Children and Young people
Theology and Development in Childhood and Adolescence
Preaching
Worship
New Testament Greek
Biblical Hebrew

All Certificate students take at least one of the following:

Placement in a church, community or mission context
Integrated Learning week – Islam

Students who follow the CYM endorsed pathway will also be awarded the CYM Foundation Certificate in Children’s or Youth Work. Read more here

A copy of the regulations for the programme is available at this link.