The South African Theological Seminary offers the following postgraduate programmes:

• PhD in Theology
• Master of Theology
• Bachelor of Theology Honours

PhD information

Accreditation

The South African Theological Seminary has been granted accreditation for the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Theology and is registered with the Department of Education to offer this degree. Standards of accreditation in South Africa are extremely high. The Council on Higher Education (CHE) is the only body in South Africa that is authorised to accredit tertiary institutions. The CHE has a stated policy of national and international comparability. In this regard, we have been subjected to a very stringent evaluation. You are therefore assured that the degree you earn is of the highest standard and that the credits earned are fully portable.

Options

Our Doctoral programme is a research-based programme consisting of a dissertation. There is NO coursework in our PhD programme. The Admissions Committee holds the right to assign further reading or theological subjects should a candidate not meet the necessary requirements. Our doctoral programme offers you a choice of three fields of study, Biblical Studies, Systematic Theology or Practical Theology. You will conduct your research under the supervision of one or two experts in the chosen field of study. Our doctoral supervisors have been carefully selected to provide you with the high academic standards and the levels of service excellence for which we have become known.

Dissertation

On enrolment you will be required to complete RES6600 Theological Research Methodology, a course which culminates in the submission of your dissertation proposal to the Postgraduate Committee. If and when your title is accepted, under the guidance of your supervisor, candidates will be required to write approximately 250-350 page dissertation, (approximately 80,000-100,000 words, 12 point font, one-and-a-half spacing). There is no coursework. All work is submitted and returned via email, except the final bound copies. The full details pertaining to the formatting of your dissertation are contained in RES6600. Two independent External Examiners, as well as an Internal Examiner, your supervisor, will assess your dissertation and if it is successful, you will be awarded the Doctor of Philosophy degree at the next Graduation Ceremony. The maximum duration of this programme, which is at level 10 on the National Qualifications Framework, is six years.

On achieving this qualification, students will be able to:

1. Identify, understand, interpret, integrate, apply and communicate a body of new knowledge (original research) in interaction with existing knowledge (current state of research in the field of study).
2. Apply logical, theoretical, analytic, creative and systematic thinking, effectively to solve a range of problems within a focused research context.
3. Exhibit the ability to identify and address issues of ethical action and social responsibility in the field of research.
4. Apply principles of sound research practice in collecting, organizing and evaluating information in terms of a critical understanding of relevant research methodologies, techniques and technologies.
5. Be aware of, and be able to interact constructively with, multicultural and multi -faith communities, from a theological perspective.
6. Apply the insights of one or more disciplines to identify and critique issues of church and society.

Entrance requirements

To register for a Doctoral programme prospective students must have an appropriate Masters Degree (or equivalent) in an appropriate field, from an accredited institution.

Certified (notarized) proof of the above should accompany the application form, together with a certified (notarized) copy of your ID or valid Passport.

The Seminary offers a free, no obligation evaluation of your transcripts, which can either be faxed to us at +27 11 234-4445 or scanned and sent as email attachments to postgraduate@sats.edu.za. We will initiate a response to your request within two days of receipt.

MTh information

Accreditation

The South African Theological Seminary is the first private tertiary institution to have been awarded accreditation for the MTh programme. The standards in South Africa are extremely high as far as accreditation is concerned. There is only one body that is authorised to accredit tertiary institutions, namely the Council on Higher Education, which has a stated policy of national and international comparability. In this regard we have been subjected to a very stringent evaluation. You are therefore assured that the degree you earn is of the highest standard and that the credits are fully portable.

Options

The seminary offers two kinds of MTh programmes, namely, the research MTh and the structured MTh.

OPTION ONE: The research MTh

The research MTh consists of a 180-credit thesis of 40,000-50,000 words (±140-160 pages) in a field of specialisation. The process begins with the course RES5300 Research Methodology, which culminates in the submission of a research proposal for a Masters thesis. Your proposal must be approved by the Postgraduate Committee, after which you may proceed with writing the thesis. You have a maximum of one year to get your proposal passed. If you fail to do so, you will not be permitted to continue with the programme. We have faculty who are able to supervise a Masters thesis in any of the following fields:

• Practical Theology
• Church Leadership
• Christian Education
• Pastoral Counselling
• Missiology
• Systematic Theology
• Biblical Studies
• Bible Translation
• Children’s Ministry
• Church History
• Homiletics
• Sports Ministry
• Biblical Greek
• Biblical Hebrew
• Worship Studies
• Youth Ministry
• Theological Ethics

OPTION TWO: The structured MTh

The structured MTh consists of eight 15-credit courses and a 60-credit thesis (±60-80 pages). You will have a maximum of two years to complete the coursework, so you must complete four courses per year. If you fail a course, you have to register for it again (and pay again). The thesis component is expected to take 6-12 months. If you have not finished after one year, you may register for a second year (but may not extend the registration beyond the second year).

The courses for the structured MTh programmes are only offered online. You download all the study materials, upload your assignments, and interact with the course facilitator on the MySats site. The duration for each course is three months; you will need to spend approximately 10-15 hours each week on your studies.

There are structured programmes in Pastoral Theology, Biblical Studies, Missiology, and Child Counselling. Please note that the Master of Theology in Child Counseling programme will not lead to professional registration as a child counselor, counselor or play therapist at any professional board in South Africa, such as the SACSSP or HPCSA. There are also semi-structured programmes in Biblical Greek and New Testament. For details about these programmes, please contact postgraduate@sats.edu.za.

Entrance Requirements

The bridging coursework programme for non-theological backgrounds:

If you have an accredited Bachelor Honours degree or a professional four-year Bachelors degree (480 credits exiting on NQF level 8) in a non-theological field, you may gain access to the MTh programme. To compensate for your thin theological background, you will need to complete 60 credits of bridging coursework before proceeding with the standard research or structured programme.

Entrance requirements for theological backgrounds:

The pre-requisite is an appropriate four-year (level 8, Honours) theology degree (or equivalent). The Seminary offers a free, no obligation evaluation of your transcripts, which can either be faxed to us at +27 11 234-4445 or scanned and sent as email attachments to postgraduate@sats.edu.za. We will initiate a response to your request within two days of receipt.

Bachelor of Theology Honours

Accreditation

We are in the process of replacing our professional, four-year BTh (BTh 4) with a BTh Honours (BTh Hons). Both these qualifications exit on the same academic level, and both grant access to a Master's degree in theology.