ICAS-Accredited Degree Program
Master of Theology in Theological Research
Th.M. credential
Build on your graduate studies through advanced theological research, with a focus on preparation for doctoral study or teaching.
Master of Theology in Theological Research: Your Grant Price
Applications are free. Eligible applicants receive their admission and Grant decision before any one-time program fee is requested.
Published tuition
$14,900.00
$599.00 Registry & Assessment Fee
$99
Master's Degree
2026 Life in Christ Grant is active
Ministry Experience, Evaluated Against Academic Standards.
Documented prior learning may be considered when it aligns with program outcomes; every credit decision follows academic review.
Program Overview
About this program
The Master of Theology is a research degree for those preparing for doctoral work or for theological teaching. The Th.M. is a research degree: one question, pursued properly, with the method made explicit and the sources handled to disciplinary standard. This ICAS-accredited Kingdom of Life University pathway covers advanced theological method, research design, primary sources and languages, seminars in historical, systematic and biblical study, academic writing, and a thesis.
Competency-Based Ministry Assessment
Recognition of demonstrated learning in theology and ministry
Experienced ministry practitioners demonstrate competencies developed through years of service, theological study, and continuing learning. The assessment connects that learning with the published outcomes of the Master of Theology in Theological Research through biblical understanding, theological reflection, research, and ministry judgment.
70
Audited questions in this pathway bank
30
Questions drawn for each sitting
60 minutes
Time available for the knowledge component
24 hours
Interval before reassessment
Theological knowledge and degree outcomes
- Published bank title
- Master of Theology: Theological Research - Master Competency-Based Ministry Assessment
- Credential
- Master of Theology (Th.M.) in Theological Research
- Question construction
- 14 pathway subject-bank sources contribute 5 questions each, producing the complete 70-question bank.
How completion is reported
- The knowledge component contributes 40% and assessed ministry experience contributes 60% to one weighted result.
- The reported result is no lower than 80%, matching the 80% degree pass mark.
- Reassessment draws a fresh question set and is included in program access, with no additional fee or limit on sittings.
- The integrated assessment covers the published degree plan; separate course assessments, a capstone paper, and a dissertation defense are not required.
Program Objectives
What you will achieve
Integrate advanced theological study, spiritual maturity, and ministry wisdom for Christian leadership
Form a research question that is significant, answerable, and appropriately bounded
Work with primary sources to the standards of the discipline
Evaluate the state of a scholarly question and locate your own contribution in it
Sustain a written argument at thesis length
Learning Outcomes
Skills and competencies you will develop
Synthesize advanced biblical and theological evidence for clear teaching, leadership, and ministry judgment
Produce a research proposal with question, method, sources, and timeline
Write a literature review that assesses rather than summarises
Construct a chapter-length argument to publishable standard
Defend a thesis argument against informed objection
Career Opportunities
Where this degree can take you
Doctoral candidate
Theological instructor
Research assistant
Teaching pastor
Major Subject Areas
The fourteen subjects you study, and the ones the ministry assessment draws on
Foundational and Major-Core Subjects
Four foundations every pathway shares, then four that belong to this field.
Advanced Biblical Interpretation
Exegesis at research standard, where every claim about a text has to be supported in a way a specialist reader will accept.
Advanced Old Testament Theology
Old Testament scholarship as a field: its current questions, its methodological disputes, and how to locate yourself within them.
Advanced New Testament Theology
New Testament scholarship as a field, with the same demand to know what is settled, what is contested, and on what grounds.
Advanced Christian Doctrine
Doctrine as an object of research, including the historiography of how a doctrine's development has been narrated.
Advanced Theological Method
Theological method at an advanced level, covering the criteria by which claims are warranted and the presuppositions that govern a research programme.
Advanced Research Design in Theology
Designing a research project, covering question formation, scope, feasibility, literature mapping, and the difference between a topic and a question.
Advanced Primary Sources and Languages
Working with primary sources in their original languages, covering editions, apparatus, translation, and the standards for citation and quotation.
Advanced Historical Theology Seminar
A seminar in historical theology, covering close reading of primary texts, historiography, and the construction of a historical argument.
Specialization Subjects
Six more that take the field into the places it actually gets used.
Advanced Systematic Theology Seminar
A seminar in systematic theology, covering a contested doctrine, its literature, and the making of a constructive contribution.
Advanced Biblical Studies Seminar
A seminar in biblical studies, covering current method, the state of a scholarly question, and the evaluation of competing positions.
Advanced Academic Writing and Publication
Academic writing and publication, covering argument structure, style, peer review, revision, and the conventions of theological publishing.
Advanced Thesis Development
Developing the thesis, covering proposal, supervision, chapter drafting, and the defence of a sustained argument at length.
Advanced Spiritual Formation and Christian Vocation
The scholar's formation, and the specific spiritual risk of studying God as a research object for several years.
Advanced Integrative Theology and Ministry
The thesis: a sustained original argument, supervised, defended, and written to publishable standard.
Admission Requirements
What you need to apply
- Bachelor's degree from an accredited or recognized institution
- Official transcripts showing preparation appropriate to graduate theological study
- Statement of theological, academic, and ministry goals
- Current resume or curriculum vitae
- Two ministry, professional, or academic recommendations
Degree Completion Requirements
Requirements for the Master of Theology
Graduation Requirements
- Complete at least 36 graduate semester credits in the approved degree plan
- Pass the Competency-Based Ministry Assessment for the degree
- Satisfy every graduate-core, specialization, elective, and comprehensive requirement group
- Integrate theological knowledge with assessed ministry experience under the published result-weighting policy
- Recognize demonstrated learning against every published degree-plan requirement
Culminating Experience
Demonstrate graduate theological understanding and ministry judgment through Competency-Based Ministry Assessment, recognizing advanced learning developed through prior study and service.
Credit Distribution
| Requirement Area | Credits | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Graduate Core | 21 | 7 courses. Required advanced theory, methods, and professional competencies of the discipline. |
| Graduate Specialization | 9 | 3 courses. Focused graduate study in an approved concentration or practice area. |
| Graduate Elective | 3 | 1 course. Any master-level major course from any school that is not already part of this degree plan. |
| Competency-Based Ministry Assessment | 3 | 1 course. Integrated graduate theological knowledge and assessed ministry experience, recognizing demonstrated learning across the published degree plan. |
| Total Degree Credits | 36 | All requirements must be completed within the approved degree plan. |
Program Details
Program Length
Self-Paced
Self-Paced Learning
Total Credits
36 credit hours
Up to 18 Transfer Credits
Published Degree Plan
12 courses
Across 4 required curriculum groups
Format
Flexible Study
Assessment Format
Competency-Based Ministry Assessment
Selected Degree
Master
School
School of Theology and Ministry
Institutional Status
ICAS Accredited
Ready to Begin Your Accredited Theological Research Degree?
Applying costs nothing, and the work you have already done may count. Have a look at what this pathway asks for before you decide.