Master of Theology Program
A working knowledge of French or German is required of Th.M. majors in semitics and Old Testament. This re quirement may be satisfied in one of the fol lowi ng ways: I) two years of col lege level instruction with a grade of "B" or better or 2) a satisfactory score on an examination administered by the de partment. Students must fulfi ll this re quirement during their first 16 units of course work in order to continue in t he program. D. Course Work: The Th.M. program requires the com pletion of 26 semester hours of course work distributed as follows: IO units in the major department, six units in the major department or closely related areas approved by the major advisor, IO units in any area (two of which must be TPT!TCE 720. Students ma1ori ng in systematic theology must take TH 709). Students are required to take a mini mum of 14 units in Th.M. courses num bered in the 800 series, with the re mainder at the 660 and 700 levels. TPT/ TCE 720 1s required of all st udents, re gardless of major. Additional research and reading assignments will be made in 600 and 700 level courses to make the work of Th.M. character. At the discre tion of the advisor, a maximum of four units in any department at any level may be credited toward the course re quirements. A Th.M. student must carry nine (9) or more units to be considered a full-time student. Those carrying less than nine units are considered part time students. A maximum of eight (8) units may be taken by Th .M. students in off-campus "i ndependent study" courses. It is recommended that this be done in the middle or latter portion of the program, and in any case with the approval of the ma1or departmental ad visor.
E. Concurrent Enrollment Option: Senior Talbot M.Div. students who have completed 80 or more units and are accepted in the Th.M. program are permitted to take a maximum of four units per semester of Th.M. courses, (with faculty permission), for application to Th.M. program requirements. Such course work must meet all normal Th.M. standards and cannot be credited toward M.Div program requirements. This option allows students who accel erate their MDiv. studies by taking courses in interterm and summer ses sion to obtain both the MDiv and Th.M. degrees in four years or less. F. Admission to Candidacy: Student completing 16 hours of course work may be granted status as a degree candidate by written application to the Graduate Committee. Appl ications for candidacy must be supported by ( I) evidence of sat isfactory completion of all prerequisite and normal course work to that point; (2) a recommenda tion for admission to candidacy by the department chairman in the student's ma1or field; (3) approval by the major departmental chairman of an accept able thesis topic. G. Comprehensive Examinations: All candidates for the Th.M. degree must pass a written comprehensive ex amination over the major field of study. At the discretion of t he Graduate Committee, on recommendation of the faculty, candidates may also be required to take minor comprehensive examina tions in O ld Test ament, New Testament and Systematic Theology. These exami nations serve as a major means of eval uating the student's academic compe tency and ability to complete the de gree requirements. Comprehensive examinations may be taken any t ime af ter completion of 18 units of Th.M. course work. Only two retakes of such an examination are permitted. H. Thesis: An acceptable thesis evidencing a high degree of scholarly competence in the student's major field must be submitted
may be taken. Divinity degrees presented from non-accredited seminaries and the ological schools are individually evaluated. Deficiencies discerned in such cases may be made up by course wo1·k at Talbot or other specified accredited institutions. Stu dents must also have the personal qualifi cations necessary fo1· a minister· of Christ, including promise of future usefulness. They must be spiritually qualified by pro viding evidence of a born-again experience and a consistent Christian manner of life. Graduates of other seminaries must file a full application with the office of admis sions and records. Master of Divinity stu dents currently enrolled at Talbot may file for admission by submitting a written re quest to the Graduate Committee in care of the director of admission. All applicants are required to submit a statement of one to two double spaced typewritten pages explaini ng their career goals and personal objectives in seeking Th.M. training. Program Description and Requirements A Residence Requ irements: A minimum of two semesters in resi dence at Talbot is required for the Th.M. degree. No more than four advanced graduate semester course units from an accredited semi nary or theological school will be accepted toward fulfillment of Th.M. course requirements. B. T ime Limit for Degree: All course, examination and thesis re quirements must be completed within five years, beginning on the date of the student's first registration for Th.M. courses at Talbot. C. Major Areas of Academic Study: Majors in the Th.M. program are of fered in the depa1·tments of Bible expo sition, missions and intercultural studies, New Testament, practical theology, se mitics and Old Testament, and system atic theology.
Program Director: W. Bingham Hunter, Ph.D. Purpose The Master of Theology curriculum is a challenging post-graduate degree program designed to equip the student with special ized academic knowledge and advanced professional skills. The program represents not merely an extra yea1· of formal the ological study but a high level of academic attainment. refinement of research capa bilities and personal professional develop ment. The program prepares students for both increased effectiveness in profession al pastoral ministry and further study at the Ph.D and Th.D. Level. Since both A.TS. (the Association of Theological Schools) and A.A.B.C. (the American Association of Bible Colleges) consider the Th.M. degree the minimum educational credential for teaching biblical and theological subjects at accredited seminaries and Bible schools, the Master of Theology is of special inter est to students pursuing a teaching career. Qualified students aspiring to excellence and leadership in many areas of ministry and service for Christ find the Th.M. pro gram personally enriching and academically stimulating. Admission Requirements The student must present acceptable Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor or Master of Divinity degrees. Specifically, he must have maintained at least a 3.25 average in his Divinity program and have completed at least eight semester hours of Greek be yond beginning Greek and 12 semester hours of Hebrew, four of which may be Aramaic. Applicants deficient in the biblical languages may take the prerequisite units at Talbot while taking other Th.M. courses but such deficiencies must be made up be fore more than I 6 units in other subjects
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