Accelerated Programs of Study
Accelerated Masters
Directed by Dr. Charlie Ray III
Students who have graduated from Leavell College within the last 5 years may have the opportunity to earn up to 27 hours of their MDiv, 15 hours of their MA in Counseling, or up to 9 hours of their MA, MTS, or MMCM through advanced standing or advanced placement with the Accelerated Program. Thus, qualified students could earn their degree in less time and at significant savings.
How Do I Apply?
The Accelerated Program is not a separate degree program and requires no special application process. Students will declare their specialization through the Registrar’s office (i.e., MDiv in Christian Ministry or their chosen specialization) and contact the Accelerated Program office for a transcript evaluation. In addition, students must submit a research paper to the Accelerated Program office or write a paper demonstrating an ability in research and writing. The student’s transcript will be evaluated to determine what credits he/she is eligible to receive through the Accelerated Program. The student will then receive a record of the credits he/she is eligible to receive. Students qualifying for more than the maximum allowable hours for their degree program must contact the Accelerated Program office to select the courses for advanced standing.
How Do I Receive These Credits?
Advanced standing credits will be added to the student’s transcript only after the student has applied and been approved for graduation, while advanced placement credits in biblical languages may be added once the student has completed an upper-level language class with a B or better. No fees are assessed for advanced standing credits, so students will not have to pay anything to have these credits added to their transcript once they have applied for graduation. For advanced placement credits in biblical languages, students are charged 1/3 tuition for each bypassed course. In other words, a student who qualifies to move directly into Greek 2 must earn a B or better in that course, then pay 1/3 tuition for the bypassed Greek 1 course. Students will need to keep track of these credits throughout their degree program to ensure they do not repeat courses and/or have completed all other necessary courses before applying for graduation. While the Accelerated Program office will keep a record of all student
qualifications, evaluation and approval for graduation is handled through the Registrar’s office alone.
Courses Available for Advanced Standing
Currently, the Accelerated Program offers advanced standing credits at NOBTS for the following courses. To qualify for advanced standing credit, students must have completed equivalent courses at the undergraduate level with a grade of B or better.
NOBTS Courses | Leavell College Qualifying Courses |
|---|---|
OTEN5351 Interpreting the Old Testament 1 | LCCF1320 Old Testament Survey AND LCCF1310 Hermeneutics |
OTEN5352 Interpreting the Old Testament 2 | LCCF1320 Old Testament Survey AND 3 additional hours of Old Testament |
NTEN5351 Interpreting the New Testament 1 | LCCF1330 New Testament Survey AND LCCF1310 Hermeneutics |
NTEN5352 Interpreting the New Testament 2 | LCCF1330 New Testament Survey AND 3 additional hours of New Testament |
BBBW5300 Encountering the Biblical World | LCBS2310 Biblical Backgrounds |
COUN5300 Counseling in Ministry | LCGE2390 Introduction to Counseling |
CEAM6320 Church Leadership & Administration | LCCM1354 Church Leadership & Administration |
EVAN5300 Evangelism | LCCF2350 Practice of Evangelism |
HIST5300 History of Christianity: Early - Med | LCGE2352 Survey of Church History I |
HIST5301 History of Christianity: Ref - Modern | LCGE2354 Survey of Church History II |
ETHC5300 Christian Ethics | LCTH3342 Christian Ethics |
THEO5300 Systematic Theology I | LCCF2340 Christian Doctrine AND 3 additional hours of Theology |
Advanced Placement in Languages
Students who have significant hours in Greek and/or Hebrew at the undergraduate level may also qualify for advanced placement in languages. For every six hours of undergraduate credit in Greek or Hebrew (with a B or better), students may qualify to proceed into the next logical class (e.g., six hours of Greek or Hebrew qualifies the student to bypass Greek 1 or Hebrew 1 at NOBTS and enroll in Greek 2 or Hebrew 2; 12 hours qualifies a student to bypass both Greek/Hebrew 1 & 2 and enroll in an Advanced or Exegesis course). Students who bypass one or more courses in either language must earn a B or better in the course they take at NOBTS. In addition to tuition for the class taken students will pay 1/3 tuition cost for the bypassed classes (i.e., you pay for one hour and receive three).
The following is the list of courses students may be eligible to bypass based on their undergraduate studies:
Advanced Placement into NOBTS Courses Leavell College Qualifying Courses
NTGK5352 Greek 2 LCBS2330 Greek I AND LCBS2332 Greek II
NTGK6351 Advanced Greek for Exegesis OR
NTGK63-- Greek Exegesis LCBS3330 Greek III AND LCBS4330 Advanced Readings from the Greek NT
OTHB5352 Hebrew 2 LCBS2320 Hebrew I AND LCBS2322 Hebrew II
OTHB6351 Advanced Hebrew for Exegesis OR
OTHB63-- Hebrew Exegesis LCBS3320 Hebrew III AND LCBS4320 Advanced Readings from the Hebrew OT
How to Contact Us
For more information about the Accelerated Program, you may contact the office directly via phone at 1-800-NOBTS-01 ext. 8073 or via email at accelerated@nobts.edu. You may also visit our website at https://nobts.edu/accelerated-program/.