Master of Arts in Christian Ministry

Credits

36

Format

Entirely online

Length

As few as two years

Tuition

$500 per credit; a 50% discount for degree-seeking students

The program

The Master of Arts in Christian Ministry (MACM) is a 36-credit graduate degree designed to prepare individuals for diverse ministerial leadership positions in a global context. The degree seeks to increase biblical, historical, and theological understanding in ways that are integral to personal formation and leadership in diverse ministerial contexts. Course work is offered in English with tutorial and translation support for candidates who are not serving in contexts where English is their dominant language in ministry. Candidates for the degree can expect to acquire knowledge and skills that will increase their effectiveness in ministry. Graduates are expected to serve in a variety of ministerial roles in churches throughout the world. The degree is offered entirely online and can be completed in as few as two years.

Who the degree is for

The MACM is a graduate-level degree. Applicants possess a bachelor’s degree (BA or BS) or its equivalent earned from an appropriately accredited institution. In limited and exceptional circumstances, NSBT may admit an applicant to the MACM who does not hold a qualifying bachelor’s degree, where the applicant can reasonably be expected to successfully complete the program. Such exceptions are limited and require documentation of a clear and justifiable rationale.

Candidates will also be expected to be able to articulate in a manner that is appropriate to their own experience and faith tradition an understanding of their call to serve in Christian ministry.

Third, candidates will be expected to currently belong to a faith community that recognizes them as potential ministers. Candidates will be asked to provide at least one letter of recommendation from a ministerial colleague, supervisor, or overseer confirming this requirement. NSBT understands ministry to be a much broader field than that associated with ordained leadership in a particular community. NSBT is committed to preparing candidates for effective ministries outside the church as much as inside the church.

Applications will be received at any time. Those who complete the application process and are accepted into the MACM will be allowed to begin the program with the next scheduled class session (see academic calendar).

Curriculum

The MACM is a 36-credit degree designed to be completed in as few as two years. Courses are offered in eight-week sessions throughout the year (see the Academic Calendar) and are designed to be taken in sequence. Taking the courses in sequence is not a requirement of the program. Students who must take a leave of absence for one or more sessions and seek to return to the program may do so even if it means being out of sequence with the courses. They will eventually have to make up all courses, however, to graduate.

Candidates must complete ten online courses in all. To graduate they must also complete three credits of field education over the course of 24 weeks in a site of their choosing and a final 3-credit Completion Paper of approximately 50 pages that is written under the direction of a faculty reader and integrates experience and learning. Students are expected to register for the Capstone after they have completed their field education experience, unless otherwise permitted to do so by the Director of Field Education and the Dean.

The two degrees are distinguished not by separate course sections but by the way each student engages the shared courses, through discussions, essays, field education, and a Capstone Paper framed around the student’s own program. Three non-credit courses are also required: a tutorial for online learning, a library orientation, and the Research Skills and Writing Center. The degree must be completed within five years of initial enrollment, and the typical completion timeframe is approximately three years for most master’s degree students.

Field education

Field education is a graduation requirement for both the Master of Arts in Christian Ministry and the Master of Arts in Global Christian Leadership, and no degree is conferred in either program without it. In the Master of Arts in Christian Ministry, field education is a supervised practicum requiring a minimum of 200 hours of ministerial work experience across 24 weeks, which is three academic sessions, at a placement site approved by NSBT, where the candidate serves under a qualified site supervisor who exercises oversight of the work.

The Capstone

The Capstone is the final completion paper that is required for graduation with the Master of Arts in Christian Ministry degree. The paper is expected to be approximately fifty (50) pages in length (not counting the bibliography), and must demonstrate an ability to integrate biblical, historical, contextual, and practical aspects of theological understanding as these relate to the practices of leadership and ministry. The paper is also expected to reflect the commitments of NSBT to public theology and cultural engagement.

The Capstone is developed over multiple rounds of revision with the faculty reader.

The paper is expected to be built upon an initial Challenge Statement drawn from the practice of ministry that serves as the focus or thesis statement for the Capstone. The Capstone at NSBT is not intended merely to be a work in academic research, but is to reflect engagement and change.

Program learning outcomes

Upon successful completion of the Master of Arts in Christian Ministry, candidates will be able to:

• Interpret various biblical texts in light of the overall context of the Bible itself, and in light of the present contemporary context;
• Evaluate the broader historical and theological contours of Christian faith and practice in ways that inform effective ministry in the contemporary world;
• Utilize ministry approaches that engage contemporary cultural contexts and public life in transformational ways;
• Integrate spiritual and moral dimensions of Christian faith with the practice of ministry;
• Demonstrate a capacity for skilled and effective servant leadership in ministry.

Faculty

NSBT has three faculty of record, who carry the teaching of both graduate programs. Every faculty member teaching in them holds an earned doctoral degree and demonstrates expertise in the subject field taught.

Every course is built around the teachings of Dr. A. R. Bernard, Sr.

Cost

NSBT applies a 50% tuition discount to all degree-seeking students, so tuition is $250 per academic credit, $750 per 3-credit course, and $9,000 per degree. Students enrolled under this discount keep the discounted rate through completion of their program. An ending date for the discount will be announced when it is available.

Apply online