The building blocks of the main programme

If you are a candidate for ordained ministry in the Church of England, your programme of training will probably cover three years and will lead to either a BA Hons in Contextual Theology or to a Higher Education Diploma (Dip HE) in Contextual Theology. These two programmes are very similar in content and are, for the most part, taught in the same midweek seminar and weekend lecture sessions. The main difference between them is that Dip HE students write somewhat fewer assignments and are assessed at a lower level for the first two years.

If you are a candidate for licensed reader ministry you read for a two year Dip HE in Ministry. The first year of this programme is identical to the BA Hons in Contextual Theology, and reader candidates study for it alongside ordinands. The second year is taught separately in distinct, reader-specific seminar and tutorial groups.

If you are an independent student you study for either the BA Hons or Dip HE over three years alongside ordinands.

The BA and Diploma programmes contain the following key building blocks, each consisting of particular modules:

The Classwork Programme (CP 1-9)

Reading, study, class work and assessment in connection with regular midweek evening teaching sessions and residential weekends. The Classwork Programme comprises nine core modules. Depending on the award for which students are reading, they either take all nine of these modules or a selection of them.

For more on CP modules 1-9, click here.

Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning (PL 1-3)

For BA and Dip. HE in Ministry candidates only, a research project requiring students to present a case for claiming credit for practical and experiential learning acquired before they joined NTMTC.

For more on the Accreditation of Prior Learning, click here.

Models of Ministry (MM 1–3)

Assessed projects and placements in students’ workplaces, home churches and elsewhere, with development of preaching and other ministerial competencies.

For more on the Models of Ministry modules, click here.

Bible in Depth (BS 1-2)

Assessed work on detailed study of selected books from the Old and New Testaments.
For more on the Bible in Depth modules, click here.

Residential weeks (RW 1-3)

Annual weeks of intensive residential study covering a variety of practical subjects including liturgy, preaching, theological reflection, conflict management, leadership development, pastoral theology, death and dying and Anglican identity.

For more on the Residential Week modules, click here.

Personal Development (PD 1-3)

Self-awareness, spiritual formation, prayer and reflection (based on the keeping of a private learning journal). This strand of training also includes annual personal development questionnaires, retreats and regular meetings with a personal tutor.

For more on the Personal Development modules, click here.

Assessment

There are currently no formal written exams in the NTMTC programme. Assessment is continuous and takes a variety of forms: essays, individual and group projects, presentations and other kinds of assignment.

Those studying for the BA Hons in Contextual Theology produce 24 assignments in all over their three years of study. Those taking the Dip HE in Contextual Theology produce 18. There is also a key formational assessment, which comprises a detailed report on each student's spiritual and academic progress at the end of each year of their training. In the case of ordinands, this is sent to the student’s sponsoring bishop at the end of the second and third years.