The Master of Arts degree in Aspects of Biblical Interpretation from London School of Theology (LST) is available to ASM Diploma graduates. The program is offered entirely by distance learning and is validated by Middlesex University in Great Britain.

About London School of Theology
Founded in the 1940’s as London Bible College, the college became the London School of Theology in 2004. LST is a world-renown leader in evangelical higher education where intellectual thoroughness and rigor go hand in hand with a passion to see students grow personally and spiritually. In addition to its regular programs for training ministers, missionaries, and lay teachers and scholars, LST has a dedicated center for postgraduate studies (the Guthrie Centre), and the Centre for Islamic Studies.

Admission
Holders of an accredited bachelor’s degree with at least a 3.6 grade point average (GPA, 4.0 scale) and either the Diploma in Pastoral Theology or the Diploma in Theological Studies may be admitted into this program with a letter of recommendation from ASM. Those with GPAs below 3.6 will be required to provide additional justification as to why they should be admitted into the MA program.

Holders of an ASM diploma with a 3.6 GPA but without an accredited bachelor’s degree will be required to complete one or more undergraduate modules at a B+ or above, per the direction of LST, before they could be admitted into the MA program.

Dissertation Supervision may be provided by ASM faculty members.

Program Links

Program Cost
As of the 2009-2010 school year, the cost for the MA was approximately $6,100. The cost will vary according to the exchange rate.

UNDERSTANDING THE ENGLISH THEOLOGICAL EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM
The first theological degree in England is not a Master of Divinity (MDiv), as in the US), but rather a bachelor’s degree, typically a Bachelor of Divinity (BD) or a Bachelor of Theology (BTh). This is true of most English professional education—for example, a graduate of a medical school in England is awarded the combined degrees of Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (usually abbreviated MBBS). Thus the English BTh or BD is equivalent to the US MDiv

A master’s degree in theology in England is the second theological degree, generally a Master of Arts (MA) or a Master of Theology (MTh), though certain universities award a Master of Letters (MLitt) or a Master Philosophy (MPhil) degree. The usual difference between an MA/MTh and an MLitt/MPhil) is that the former is composed of both coursework and a shorter master’s dissertation, while the latter is ordinarily based only upon research and writing a much longer dissertation. Note that in England the culminating research and writing project for a master’s degree is called a dissertation (vs. thesis in the US) and for the doctorate it is called a thesis (vs. dissertation in the US).

In the US, the second theological degree is built on the MDiv and is typically either the Master of Theology (ThM) in academic areas or the Doctor of Ministry (DMin) in practical theology areas.  (However, the DMin does require substantially more work than a ThM and is considered a terminal degree by accreditation agencies.) Thus the English MA is equivalent to the American ThM. The third theological degree in both the US and England is generally a Doctor of Philosophy degree (PhD or DPhil) or sometimes the Doctor of Theology (ThD or DTh).

The MA in Aspects of Biblical Interpretation program offered by London School of Theology and validated by Middlesex University is a second theological degree. Excellent performance in this program can qualify the student for admission into LST’s or other school’s doctoral programs.