Online Bachelor's Degree in Bible/Theology from a Reformed perspective? Any?

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newperthpastor

Puritan Board Freshman
Hi all. I have a church member who wants to take some Bible and Theology courses for personal edification, but wants the courses to help him work towards finishing a Bachelor's degree which he began but never finished. He also wants the classes to be online, as he is older and unwilling to relocate. And he wants the classes to be from a Reformed perspective, too.

1. Bachelor's Degree in Bible/Theology
2. Online
3. Reformed

So far I'm not finding anything that fits the description.
Are there any programs out there that fit the bill?
Thanks,
Dan
 
I'm 22, just got an Associate's in "Science and the Arts", and am currently in some kind of limbo. I want to teach high school or college, but I've vacillated between history and biblical studies as my field of focus for a few years now. For a while my interest has been heavier on the Bible side, and I've been looking for a means of getting a BA in theology/biblical studies myself. ...I'll be watching this thread with interest (but trying not to get my hopes up)!
 
Here's what I've found so far, going through the list of calvinistic colleges on wikipedia
List of Calvinist educational institutions in North America - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Calvin College... no?
Central College... not for bible/theology
Covenant College... no online degrees
Dordt College... no
Erskine College... NO
Geneva College... not for bible/theology
Grove City College... NO
Hope College... has some online courses, but don't know about a full degree yet
Kuyper College... NO

Master's College... will soon, in November 2015 (projected). From their doctrinal statement, they seem to be Calvinistic, but Pretrib Dispensational Millenialists. Weird. Oh, wait. John Macarthur is president, I see.

New Saint Andrews College... I don't think so.
Northwestern College... not for Bible/Theology
Providence Christian College... no
Redeemer University College... no
Trinity Christian College... only criminal justice
Union University... masters in Christian Studies, but no Bachelor's
Ursinus College... no
Whitefield College... no
 
If he only wants the courses for personal edification, then why the requirement that it also lead to a Bachelors degree? If you remove the degree requirement, you would likely open the door for many more options. With that said, I think The North American Reformed Seminary (TNARS) would meet all of the requirements.
 
If he only wants the courses for personal edification, then why the requirement that it also lead to a Bachelors degree? If you remove the degree requirement, you would likely open the door for many more options. With that said, I think The North American Reformed Seminary (TNARS) would meet all of the requirements.

I think your right Andres but I am not sure if they are accredited they look like a very promising online school though.
 
If he only wants the courses for personal edification, then why the requirement that it also lead to a Bachelors degree? If you remove the degree requirement, you would likely open the door for many more options. With that said, I think The North American Reformed Seminary (TNARS) would meet all of the requirements.

I think your right Andres but I am not sure if they are accredited they look like a very promising online school though.

I didn't see where the OP had accreditation as one of the requirements so that's why I suggested it.
 
If he only wants the courses for personal edification, then why the requirement that it also lead to a Bachelors degree? If you remove the degree requirement, you would likely open the door for many more options. With that said, I think The North American Reformed Seminary (TNARS) would meet all of the requirements.

I think your right Andres but I am not sure if they are accredited they look like a very promising online school though.

Andres also mentioned personal edification.
 
I'm 22, just got an Associate's in "Science and the Arts", and am currently in some kind of limbo. I want to teach high school or college, but I've vacillated between history and biblical studies as my field of focus for a few years now. For a while my interest has been heavier on the Bible side, and I've been looking for a means of getting a BA in theology/biblical studies myself. ...I'll be watching this thread with interest (but trying not to get my hopes up)!

Dan and Emily, part of the issue for the two scenarios I am assuming is accreditation as well. I am sure there stuff out there for a bachelor degree, but I been waiting for 3 years to find a 3 unit systematic class that will transfer so that I can complete my HT degree from WSC. And as a high school teacher, summers or online is the only way I can do it unless a school is willing to work with me. Which I have not found one yet that is willing, and that includes WTS (which I email twice a year on this issue for three years) and any other accredited reformed seminary I have contacted. So I can understand the frustration.
 
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From Reformation Bible College's FAQ:

Are any of your degrees offered online or through distance learning?
RBC is beginning to offer select courses online. We have plans to grow our online course offerings; however, we are moving forward carefully as we want to make sure that the quality of education is not decreased in our efforts of making it available online. We do not offer degrees online. Please contact us to learn more.
 
I'm 22, just got an Associate's in "Science and the Arts", and am currently in some kind of limbo. I want to teach high school or college, but I've vacillated between history and biblical studies as my field of focus for a few years now. For a while my interest has been heavier on the Bible side, and I've been looking for a means of getting a BA in theology/biblical studies myself. ...I'll be watching this thread with interest (but trying not to get my hopes up)!

Dan and Emily, part of the issue for the two scenarios I am assuming is accreditation as well. I am sure there stuff out there for a bachelor degree, but I been waiting for 3 years to find a 3 unit systematic class that will transfer so that I can complete my HT degree from WSC. And as a high school teacher, summers or online is the only way I can do it unless a school is willing to work with me. Which I have not found one yet that is willing, and that includes WTS (which I email twice a year on this issue for three years) and any other accredited reformed seminary I have contacted. So I can understand the frustration.

Seminaries have quite a few things available online when it comes to Master's degrees... but for BACHELOR's degree, I'm not finding anything.

Yes, I'd bet that trying to find something specifically as a Historical Theology degree would be impossible. My friend isn't looking for any specific degree, just something generally Bible/Theology/Christian which is a Bachelor's degree online. I don't know if he cares about accreditation; that wasn't something I thought to ask him about.
 
If he doesn't care too much about accreditation I'd say check out Whitefield College. That's where I am currently studying and I'd be happy to answer questions.
 
If he doesn't care too much about accreditation I'd say check out Whitefield College. That's where I am currently studying and I'd be happy to answer questions.

I've looked at Whitefield's website, and it doesn't seem to offer online education. Does it?
 
If it is just for personal edification only, why not download 30 courses from RTS Itunes U, download the syllabi, and get busy? It's free (excepting cost of textbooks).
 
Belhaven University has a fully online B. A. in Biblical Studies

I hadn't thought of Belhaven. Probably a better bet than Liberty. I wouldn't want the historic ties to PCUSA scare me off - it probably has more direct ties to First Presbyterian in Jackson (PCA) than it does to the liberal denomination.
 
Belhaven University has a fully online B. A. in Biblical Studies

I hadn't thought of Belhaven. Probably a better bet than Liberty. I wouldn't want the historic ties to PCUSA scare me off - it probably has more direct ties to First Presbyterian in Jackson (PCA) than it does to the liberal denomination.

I know someone who has studied at the Dalton, GA extension. I know she had Sproul and some other good reading assigned. But the Dalton extension borrows several professors from Covenant College, so it might be stronger than the others. I don't know much about the online program.

As with many schools, the instructors determine how solid the doctrine is going to be.
 
If he doesn't care too much about accreditation I'd say check out Whitefield College. That's where I am currently studying and I'd be happy to answer questions.

I've looked at Whitefield's website, and it doesn't seem to offer online education. Does it?

Everything Whitefield does is online; they don't have a brick-and-mortar campus. That being said, they aren't accredited, so the degree may not even be recognized (provided he wants to use the degree in some professional line of work); also, I doubt they would accept many of his previously earned credits.
 
I'll be looking into Belhaven. I have a good friend and fellow pastor who attended there, and sent his son there, too. I see it has a lot of RTS grads teaching in its program, so that's something positive.

Tell me some more about Whitefield... quality, faculty, cost, etc.

What about Northwestern Seminary? It doesn't seem to have accreditation, but does have an online degree... I'm wondering about the quality, as I'm unfamiliar with it.
 
I'll be looking into Belhaven. I have a good friend and fellow pastor who attended there, and sent his son there, too. I see it has a lot of RTS grads teaching in its program, so that's something positive.

Tell me some more about Whitefield... quality, faculty, cost, etc.

Whitefield College is connected with Whitefield Theological Seminary, which is affiliated with the RPC(GA) (particularly with Christ Presbyterian Church in Lakeland, I think). They are very sound doctrinally, the RPC(GA) allowing a limited number of exceptions to the Westminster Standards (which are enumerated in their constitution).

The lectures are pre-recorded, and not all of the "faculty" are available for questions (nor even alive, in some cases), but they probably have some of the best lecture series available for their subjects. Some of the professors include Jay Adams, Gordon Clark, Francis Schaeffer, J. G. Vos, and Greg Bahnsen. There will certainly be contact with faculty, but not necessarily with the lecturer for the particular course being taken.

It's very inexpensive ($80 per credit hour).
 
If it is just for personal edification only, why not download 30 courses from RTS Itunes U, download the syllabi, and get busy? It's free (excepting cost of textbooks).

He's hoping to also get a Bachelor's degree out of it.

Is the Bachelor's degree to meet requirements from a church board or like agency?

I think one day he would like to get a Masters degree, possibly. Gotta have a Bachelors first.
 
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