Rationale

The Graduate Certificate in Ministry is a 40 cp coursework award which encourages students to reflect critically on the practice of ministry with a view to furthering their understanding of the nexus between ministry and theology, developing their ministry praxis, and enhancing their ministry. The program is intended for both lay and ordained persons and provides a basic orientation to postgraduate studies in ministry.

Because an understanding of theology is foundational to a consideration of what constitutes effective ministry, entry into the Graduate Certificate in Ministry program is normally restricted to graduate students who have satisfactorily completed prior tertiary studies in theology - e.g., the BCT's Graduate Certificate in Theology or Bachelor of Theology.

Building on generic academic skills developed in their previous tertiary studies (e.g., skills in critical thinking, in logical and independent thought, and in identifying and accessing information), students in the Graduate Certificate in Ministry program begin to develop similar research-oriented skills to those identified in the rationales for the graduate programs in ministry and theology, including:

adaptation of previously learned skills in collecting, analysing, and organising information to the specific requirements of the ministry-theology interface
mastery of the genres of writing appropriate to academic discourses in ministry and theology
development of an understanding and appreciation of ministry-oriented research
development of the skills required to undertake research into the theory and practice of Christian ministry.

In addition, the Graduate Certificate in Ministry articulates with the Graduate Diploma in Ministry and the Master of Ministry courses to support the attainment of the kinds of ministry-oriented outcomes implicit in the overall rationale for the postgraduate programs in ministry. Consequently students in the Graduate Certificate in Ministry course also begin to

develop their ability to respond analytically and constructively to the critical conversation which takes place between theology and the practice of ministry
develop their ability to engage in sustained critical reflection on their own practice of ministry
develop the ability to evaluate and apply to their own ministry practices new learnings and insights into theology and the theory and practice of ministry
develop a personal theology of ministry embracing the issues faced in their ministries and ongoing evaluation of their assumptions about the meaning of the Christian faith and the foundations of ministry.