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Bachelor of Theology or BA in Theology?

Hello!

I was wondering if anyone here has any insight into whether one degree is better than the other?

Could I study the BTh and still go down the route of academia or teaching etc?

Thanks guys!
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gjd800
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Academia, sure. But you'll need a doctoral level degree as well. I also think teaching would be fine provided you were going down the RE route.
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accio150
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Original post by FinleyA123
Hello!

I was wondering if anyone here has any insight into whether one degree is better than the other?

Could I study the BTh and still go down the route of academia or teaching etc?

Thanks guys!


I think there's more to it than only 'which one is better'.

BA and BTh are very different courses.

BA in Theology generally has more flexibility (depending on which university you want to go to) when it comes to what you study. You could potentially do anything from Pali and Sanskrit to religious art or religion and world peace. Your lecturers won't necessarily be religious people. I'd say it's more of a neutral degree (no religious extremism, but then again, depending on where you want to study it!).

BTh is often a degree for mature students who already have some undergraduate experience (hence some universities list it as a postgraduate degree). But again, not always the case (e.g. Regent's Park College at Oxford takes 18-year olds). BTh generally attracts people who want to go into ministry. The CoE considers BTh sufficient for formal ordination. Therefore your fellow classmates will most likely be religious people. There's also less flexibility when it comes to what you study. You'll definitely have to do New and Old Testaments for at least a year, do Biblical Greek or Hebrew (or both), Christian Doctrine etc. Generally much more "church-focused" subjects. Most of your lecturers will be ordained priests (male or female, unless your university/college is catholic, but then you might have nuns!). It is not a degree that suits everyone, so think twice before applying.

Therefore to answer your first questions - they're both good degrees. BA isn't better than BTh and BTh is not better than BA. They're different.

Now going to your second question. Would you be able to go into academia? Let me give you two examples:
- Professor Susan Gillingham, Worcester College, University of Oxford https://www.worc.ox.ac.uk/about/fellows/susan-gillingham
- Dr James Eglinton, Edinburgh University https://www.ed.ac.uk/profile/dr-james-eglinton
Of course, there are so many more academics who did the BTh course, check it out for yourself at Oxford, Cambridge, Edinburgh and so on.
BTh will certainly not stop you from continuing your education, either doing a Master or DPhil. At the end of the day, it's an academic degree and both Cambridge and Oxford teach BTh courses.

If you're thinking about both, academia and ordination, maybe check out the Durham ordination training. Durham University has 2 and 3-year courses all over the UK. They teach Theology at different higher education institutions (including Oxford Uni) and you end up having a degree from Durham Uni. I think it's either Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Theology, Ministry, and Mission (3 y) and Diploma in Theology, Ministry and Mission (2 y). But that's something you'll have to research yourself.

Hope it helps!

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