B.A. of Church Ministry Program

B.A. of Church Ministry is a three-year program taught in Russian.

Goal of the Program: Program (B.A. + Specialization” serves to train ministers of Baptist churches of the U.S. The format of training is hybrid of in person and online.

The program takes 3.5 years to complete and consists of 95-100 credits. One third is lectures by the instructors. Blagovest Institute of Ministry guarantees qualified faculty. During the 2/3 of the credits, students learn independently through reading books and completing required assignments. For one credit, it is necessary to read 200 pages and write 5 – 6 pages. The assignments are to be turned in to the instructors who are accountable to academic part of BIM. The credits for each subject will be validated upon the following: completing the necessary lectures, reading the required material on each subject, writing the papers according to the requirements of the instructors, and passing the corresponding examinations. The reading and writing assignments must be completed by the due date of the instructor. If the student fails to complete the requirements for those subjects, he will not receive credit for that course. 

If a student does not complete one of the subjects, he will not receive a diploma affirming the completion of the program, but will receive a certificate that he listened to the given subjects as a volunteer. In that situation, the student will not be awarded a degree.

In order to receive a degree, the student must successfully master the classes of the program and complete the required assignments for each subject. He must complete the church practicum with the documentation of his ministry experience, indicate the types of ministry he has completed, and write a dissertation.

By fulfilling the academic and financial obligation, which the student agreed to, the student will be awarded a B. A. degree of Church Ministry.

In case the student does not complete the program, the incurred expenses will not be reimbursed.

Class schedule in the on campus-online format of education.

During the academic year, the student will have 12 “academic sessions”, which will take place on Friday and Saturday once a month (for example, second week of the month).

In Class – Maximum of 42 sessions at 12 credit hours each = 504 hours = 20 credits. 

Independent Study (reading and writing of homework) – 30-40 credit hours between sessions (2 hours per day, 7 – 10 hours per week) = 65-67 credits. During the last year, there is an addition of the dissertation project consisting of 50 weeks of 3-4 hours per week for a total of about 180 hours. (Academic reading pace is 5 minutes per page; 2.5 hours per one page of written work). 

Practice - 90 hours = 4 credits 

Dissertation (Project of 30-40 pages.) – 180 hours – 7-8 credits 

Exam – One credit. 

Academic Credit - In total, over 3.5 years, it is possible to complete about 95-100 academic credits. The estimation is calculated based on the assumption that academic credit is equivalent to 25 actual hours (1 hour = 60 minutes.)

Schedule of the Weekly Session

Notice: The schedule of weekly session may be adjusted to fit the schedule of the students.

BIM is responsible for organizing the education process and the selection of instructors. The local church is responsible for financial support and for hosting instructors during the time when they lecture.

Description of Sections of the Program

The B.A. of Church ministry of BIM for training the ministers consists of the following sections:

1. Bible Knowledge. This section introduces the students to the biblical text and its authors who recorded the biblical text through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. While studying this section, the student will get to know the history of each of the Bible book’s writing, various approaches to preserving the biblical text, and the problems of translations and preservation of copies. This section also teaches about the revelation of Christ and His presence in the books of the Bible. The main subjects of this section are Survey of Old and New Testament, and the theology of Old and New Testament.
2. Hermeneutics. Studies the methods of interpreting the biblical text, how to discern the various literary styles, which are used in writing the Bible, and what approaches of interpretation to use in each. It also studies grammatical outlining of text in both sentences and words, teachers how to find the main and secondary ideas in the text and sentences, what the foundation is and what describes this foundation. It is impossible to preach historico-grammatical expository sermon without studying the principles of proper biblical interpretation methods.
3. Theoretical Theology. This section studies the theory of biblical doctrines and their systematization. It also focuses on historical development of these doctrines. The main subjects of this section are Systematic Theology and Dogmatic Theology.
4. Practical Theology. This section studies the influence of ministers and each church member in church and social actions by acting on the biblical principles. The main subjects of this section are Homiletics, Pastoral Ministry, Apologetics, Discipleship, Marriage and Family.
5. General Disciplines.This section consists of Psychology, Pedagogy, and History of Philosophy. These disciplines study different aspects of society and man through many periods of humanity’s history. People’s perceptions of God, their own self-perception, and passing of knowledge to the next generation. Studying these disciplines is helpful to analyze biblical and popular perceptions of God, man, origins, and other important questions pertaining to humanity’s life on earth. This section also covers historical subjects such as the U.S. History.  
6. Missiology and Evangelism.This section focuses on the design of the church on earth and its mission, which it received from Christ. Methods of evangelism in a given culture also presented, as well as how to plant churches in unreached areas. The main subjects are Missiology, Evangelism and Discipleship. Church Planting, Inter-Denominational relationships, and Intercultural Communication in America.
7. Language Study.This section of the program consists of Greek language study. Greek helps a student to study and understand the text of the New Testament much better.
8. Practice. This section of the program is designed to help a student apply the newly acquired knowledge of practical ministry. The student is to be plugged into the life of the local church where he will systematically minister in the area of their specialization.
9. Historical Theology.This section consists of studying the History of Christianity, History of Dogmas, and History of Baptism. This section allows the student to trace the development of Christianity in different historical times. The study of the origin of Baptism in the world and in their own country will also be covered.

Next period of admissions for 2019 is in September.