MTH South African Theological Seminary

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MTH South African Theological Seminary

Master of Theology

We are pleased to announce a new MTh course in Science and Theology. This course is the first of its kind to be presented in South Africa and Africa as a whole. It is a structured course, covering areas such as History of the Debate, Big Bang Cosmology, Evolution and Creation, The Book of Genesis, Flood Geology, Creation Models, and many other interesting topics on the subject of Science and Theology. The course culminates in the writing of a mini-thesis on a subject of choice within the discipline. The course will be overseen by Drs. Mark Pretorius and Dan Lioy, who have written and published extensively on the subject.
No prior knowledge of science is needed to enrol for the MTh in Science and Theology. Enrolments are now open.
Please contact Leschenne@sats.edu.za for more information.
The Postgraduate School of the South African Theological Seminary proudly offers our outstanding Master of Theology programme, designed to produce competent leaders who have expert knowledge in a particular field and are able to serve God effectively as pastors, missionaries, teachers or leaders. The Postgraduate School of SATS is committed to provide the best opportunities and support for advanced theological studies. A competent team of full time staff members and associates, each specialising in a particular field of theology, serves an ever-growing number of postgraduate students from all parts of the world.

The M.Th. is a fully accredited, completely online programme that provides the opportunity for advanced theological research. You can choose between two formats – Full thesis and Coursework – and within each there are further options regarding research focus and research method. This means you co-design a curriculum that is most suitable to your situation and need.
All candidates benefit from our extensive support system that includes:

  • professional support from the Postgraduate School staff team
  • dynamic online learning platform
  • expert guidance from course facilitators and thesis supervisors
  • access to a plethora of online resources
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SATS remains committed to the pursuit of integrated theology by assisting students to discover the integral connectedness of the various branches of theology, and to let this insight shape the way they engage with theology. We also Offeran M.Th programme in Integrated Theology that guides students in applying this methodology at an advanced academic level.

Coursework MTh

The Coursework MTh totals 180 credits (approximately 45 US credits) and contains three components:

  • Research Orientation course (24 credits)
  • 4 Elective courses (24 credits each)
  • Research component: Mini-thesis or Research project (60 credits)

The following list provides more detail about course options.
Research Orientation – MRS5240
This compulsory course aims to familiarise students with advanced theological research at SATS and academic writing. You will receive guidance to help you design your programme, choose your elective courses, and conceptualise your research project.

Elective courses (24 credits each)

You can choose from the following electives (Click here to see the Postgraduate Course Details)

  • MBS5241 Old Testament Introduction
  • MBS5242 New Testament Introduction
  • MBS5243 Biblical Theology
  • MBS5244 Biblical Hermeneutics
  • MBS5246 Biblical Book Study
  • MPT5240 Practical Theology: Mapping a Ministry

New courses are in development and will appear on the SATS website as they become available.

Research component

There are two options for the final 60 credit research component:
RES5600 Mini-thesis
The Mini-thesis is designed for students who may want to continue with a Ph.D. in Theology at a later stage. The journey includes the submission of a formal research proposal. (Click here to see see a brief description of the course.)
RES5601 Research project
In this course you will summarise, augment and integrate the research findings of the elective courses of the M.Th. Coursework programme in a final research report that demonstrates your ability to do research and to present your findings. (Click here to see see a brief description of the course.)

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General comments:

  • The courses vary greatly in content and approach, yet all are based on SATS’ core values.
  • Electives are also offered as stand-alone courses.
  • Students have a maximum of six months to complete each 24 credit course. Where they fail to finish a course in time, additional fees will be charged.

Students take an average of four years to finish the M.Th. Coursework programme.
Full thesis MTh
The Full thesis MTh provides you with the opportunity to engage in an extensive research project on your topic of choice. This may be within traditional research fields as listed above (Coursework MTh), or it may venture into new areas of scholarship.
We will appoint a supervisor with the relevant expertise to guide you along your thesis journey. After the orientation process, you will design your research proposal and write a thesis that is approximately 50,000 words in length (about 150 pages).
The thesis journey is structured according to 5 phases:
Phase 1
This begins when a person contacts SATS to enquire about a possible master’s programme and runs through registration,  orientation, exploring focus and methods, and finally identifying a research concept.
Phase 2
In Phase 2 the candidate compiles and submits a formal research proposal. This is done under the guidance of a supervisor specialising in the chosen field of research. This proposal is done according to a prescribed template and has to meet strict
academic criteria.
Phase 3
Once the research proposal is approved by the Postgraduate Committee, the candidate can proceed with research and thesis writing under the guidance of the appointed supervisor(s). Phase 3 is the first half of this process and involves the submission of
a detail progress report for review.
Phase 4
In Phase 4 the candidate finishes the research and the draft thesis.
Phase 5
The draft thesis is submitted for internal and external examination and the required improvements are made. The final step is the oral defense of the thesis. When all of these are successfully concluded, the candidate is awarded the MTh degree.

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Enrolment Requirements

The minimum admission requirement is a relevant Bachelor Honours Degree. A “professional” Bachelor’s Degree with a minimum of 96 credits at level 8 or a Postgraduate Diploma may also be recognised as meeting the minimum entry requirement to a cognate Master’s Degree programme. In all cases, the qualification must have been earned at an accredited institution. In the case of foreign qualifications the institution must be accredited by a recognised accrediting body or by the institution’s national government. Candidates must have achieved an above average grade in their entry-level qualification.