Postgraduate Awards by Coursework

Postgraduate Awards by Coursework

Postgraduate by coursework awards offered at SAC range from graduate certificates through to masters. If your undergraduate degree was in a field other than theology, you can commence study at postgraduate level with a graduate certificate and progress from there to a Master of Divinity. Students undertaking postgraduate studies by coursework also have the option of undertaking specialised study as part of their course.

Contact Dr Lisa Agaiby for any of the specialised units below.

Specialised study

Minor Thesis

The Minor Thesis (MT) is a substantial piece of writing (16,000 words) that can be undertaken as a component of a number of postgraduate awards, including a Masters by coursework degree (for example, Master of Theological Studies or Master of Divinity) and some graduate diplomas, and is the core component of the Graduate Certificate in Research Methodology. The MT is an important entry point into a Higher Degree by Research award (Masters or Doctorate). To meet the admission requirements for a research degree you need to achieve a mark of 75% or above for the MT. For more information, see here.

Supervised Reading Unit

With the approval of the Academic Dean and under the guidance of an appropriate supervisor, students may undertake a Supervised Reading Unit (SRU) as part of their postgraduate course.

The content, learning outcomes, bibliography and type of assessment will be proposed by the student in consultation with the supervisor (a member of faculty), and approved by the Academic Dean. Students taking a supervised reading unit (SRU) will be required to meet with the supervisor at least monthly.

In addition to the re-enrolment procedure, an SRU Approval Template must be completed by the student and supervisor and submitted for approval to the SAC Academic Dean at least one week prior to the semester census date. Students may link this unit and its assessment tasks to an existing unit or participation or presentation in a scholarly conference during the semester in which the unit is taken.

In consultation with the supervisor, students may audit a coursework unit related to an SRU to guide their reading, thinking and writing.

Capstone Project
Capstone projects aim to support and encourage the integration of student learning across theological disciplines by means of the completion of a project that draws on the student’s prior learning and directs it towards an integrative treatment of a chosen topic. Projects must include explicit engagement with methodologies, concepts and content from more than one discipline and show awareness of the issues related to creative and effective communication of theological ideas. In consultation with their supervisor, the topics will be determined by the participants’ own interests and experience. Students will be expected to present their ideas to their peers and members of the Faculty.