Diffs between undergrad theology degrees - UNISA & UoL

Those of you who've done undergrad theology courses/degrees at UNISA and/or University of London, please chime in.

I'm interested in getting some input in regard to the differences of academic approach and demands, as well as differences in genre, between UNISA (University of South Africa) and the University of London's theology degrees (distance-learning, of course).

What are the differences in academic rigor in view of the differences (or no differences) of the universities' cirriculums and how they are presented?

I'm already very interested in the University of Glouchestershire, a consortium of seven UK colleges (some of which are London Bible College, Spurgeons, St. James), but I get the feeling that the academic rigor, demand and broadness of the UofG could be considered sub-par to UNISA or the UoL. (Hey, if you've done work at the UoG or LBC, do chime in too!)

Thanks very much,

Starkman

 

Starkman,

Good to hear from you. One point of clarification: the consortium involving 7 UK theological colleges to which you refer is the Open Theological College. It is "housed" or based at the University of Glouchestershire. However, the university itself is a full-fledged independent institution with full degree-granting authority.

As a Spurgeon's guy, and knowing quite well the academic calibre of LBC and other institutions involved in the OTC, I would say that you could fully expect this to be a challenging and immensely enriching program.

One major difference between OTC and the other two schools to which you refer is that the OTC courses will be from an evangelical perspective, whereas the UoL and UNISA courses will reflect more of a liberal, mainline theological flavor.

Hope this info is helpful.

 

I should add that the OTC program is also validated by Glouchestershire.

 

I thought that 2 of the "colleges" in the consortium were mainstream Anglican seminaries?

 

This is close to accurate, but not quite fully. In actuality, three of the colleges are Anglican: St. John's College, Nottingham; Oak Hill College; and Trinity College, Bristol. A fourth, the Univ. of Clouchestershire, has historic ties to the Church of England; yet, I'm not clear as to whether or not it is officially an Anglican institution. You are right to observe that, in this context, the term "college" effectively represents the same thing as a seminary.

In the UK, it isn't probably accurate to refer to a given school as a "mainstream" Anglican institution. Because there aren't Anglican "splinter" groups, such as the "Reformed" Episcopalian and Charismatic Episcopalian groups that can be found around the US, either an institution is Anglican or it's not. If you drop by the websites of the schools I've mentioned, you will find that they explicitly identify themselves as both Anglican and evangelical. Since WWII, evangelicalism has grown to be quite a force within the Church of England. A considerable percentage of Anglican clergy and congregations (and several theological institutions) would identify themselves as evangelical today. Indeed, many, such as the faculty at St. John's College, Nottingham, would claim identification with the influences of the charismatic evangelical movement. According to some of my Anglican classmates from Spurgeon's College, Oak Hill College probably represents one of the more theologically-conservative evangelical sectors of the contemporary Church of England. A number of evangelical Anglican pastors and scholars are embraced as exemplary figures within the wider, global evangelical community.

This strong presence of evangelicalism within the Church of England is one of the primary reasons why there was such an outcry against Rowan Williams being appointed as Archbishop. It was widely felt among evangelicals that he simply did not represent their convictions.

 

I haven't, but I've scouted both programs (applied a UNISA program in philosophy at one point, am currently giving the London B.D. a come-hither look, etc). The differences as I understand them (I'm sure that some of this is incorrect):

- The UNISA Th.B. program consists of a series of 4-6 modules that involve both mailed-in assignments and proctored examinations, which must generally be taken at the nearest South African embassy. (Has this policy changed?) Concentrations are available in biblical studies, systematic theology, religious studies, theological ethics, and (if memory serves) missiology. Th.M. programs in ecclesiology and Christian spirituality are also available, so something at the bachelor's level may be available or in the works.

- The University of London B.D. program consists of a series of 10-12 modules, each consisting of study material and a proctored comprehensive essay exam that can be taken at Sylvan Learning Centers worldwide (there are about a dozen in or near Jackson, Mississippi, so I'm sure there are some wherever you are as well). No mailed-in projects are required. There aren't really "tracks" per se, but you can fulfill the biblical study requirement via English New Testament or Greek New Testament; if you choose door #1, you have to do Hebrew Old Testament (and if my reading of the program curriculum is right, you can technically do both Hebrew and Greek if you're feeling hardcore). Various elective courses are available, including modules on Buddhism, Islam, mind-body philosophy, and religious epistemology.

The UNISA program is likely to be substantially cheaper, but neither program is all that expensive (the London program is something in the ballpark of US$5K).

At one time, UNISA offered a B.D.; that option might be worth looking into as well.

Good luck!


Cheers,

 

I don't know much about the theology programs at these schools, but here are some current details about the examination centers.

University of London no longer works through Sylvan Learning (Prometric) Centers. Exams are taken at one of the member institutions in the National College Testing Association:

http://testing.byu.edu/NCTA/Consortium/find.asp

Unless you are able to make other arrangements, Unisa exams are taken at one of the following centers:

http://www.unisa.ac.za/Default.asp?Cmd=ViewContent&ContentID=10916


Alex