Department of Religion and Theology

Transcription

1 Department of Religion and Theology Private Bag X17 Bellville 7535 South Africa Telephone: (021) Fax: (021) January 2017 To all post-graduate students and applicants in the Department of Religion and Theology (Honours, Structured Masters, Masters by Thesis, Doctoral) Invitation to a meeting with post-graduate students in the Department of Religion and Theology: Monday 20 February 2017 at 18:00 in C3 (venue to be confirmed) The Department of Religion and Theology wishes to welcome you as a postgraduate student in the department. We hereby invite you to a meeting to be held on Monday 20 February 2017 at 18:00 in C3 (if uncertain, meet us in front of D11). You will meet the members of the department at this meeting as well as your fellow students and have an opportunity to introduce yourself. Meeting you and learning something about you, your plans and your interests, we shall also be in a better position to advise you. During the meeting we shall deal with some more formal matters around issues of application, admission and registration, the formal requirements of the different programmes (Honours, Structured Masters, Masters by thesis, Doctoral) and scholarships. The lecturers will provide a brief summary of the various coursework modules offered in We will also make arrangements for the first classes in each first semester module. You will have an opportunity to put questions to any of the lecturers. By the end of the session, you should be in a position to select the modules which fit your interests the best. In addition, we will comment on the various research projects initiated by members of the department and encourage you to engage with that. You will be informed about the weekly departmental seminars on Tuesdays at 13h00. For that we would want to ensure that we have your address for regular notifications. After the meeting, there will be an informal session with refreshments. This will give us all a chance to get to know one another. You will also be able to enter into conversations with the lecturers about any aspects of the modules. In the interim, please also attend to the following aspects: Applications, admission, registration a) Most of you will have received an official notification (a letter of admission ) that your application for postgraduate studies has been accepted. We are, however, still receiving and processing applications, therefore some of you may still be awaiting an answer. Please attend the meeting if you have any reason to believe that your application will be successful. You do not have to be registered as a student to attend the meeting. Some applications for post-graduate studies may also lead to some form of bridging (e.g. by offering you a package of third year modules to bridge the gap to postgraduate studies during 2017). Even in such a case attending the meeting will be worthwhile. b) Registration is an official process that takes place through the Arts Faculty office. You can only be registered on the basis of paying appropriate fees, a portion of which needs to be paid upfront. This depends on the degree you are registering for, the modules that you select and the year of

2 registration. The purpose of the meeting on 20 February is not registration but to offer you advice on registration and to get the academic year going. c) Please note that Honours students have to be registered timeously in order to avoid a penalty. You may, however, change your registration for particular modules during the week after the meeting without paying a penalty. See also the steps and procedures on application, admission and registration below. Postgraduate Modules offered in 2017 a) A list of the postgraduate modules offered by our department in 2017 appears as an attachment to this letter. Please look through it beforehand. You may want to make notes of questions you wish to ask. It should also help you to come to the meeting with a basic idea of what you plan to do. b) Please remember that as from 2013 Honours students have to complete 4 modules of 30 credits each in order to complete the programme. The research essay is now compulsory. c) Honours students who are registered on a full-time basis will do two modules per semester with the research essay being one of the second semester modules. d) Honours students who are registered on a part-time basis may spread these modules over a period of two years. If you are returning to university studies after a long period we strongly advise you not to attempt too much, especially in the first semester of To be overly eager and attempt to do too much may well be a recipe for failure and even for health problems or tensions at home. Although there are relatively few classes at postgraduate level, you will be required to do a lot of reading and a number of assignments. Each module carries 30 credits which suggest the need for 300 hours of work by an average South African student over the semester (i.e. 20 hours per week per module). It would be foolish to attempt to get away with less than that at postgraduate level. Weaker students may well require more than the 300 notional hours to complete the requirements while students who do very well typically also put in more effort than what is required. e) Structured Masters students have to complete three modules and a mini-thesis. If you are registered on a full-time basis you would complete the coursework requirements in the first year of studies and start working in the second semester of the first year of registration on the mini-thesis. If you are registered on a part-time basis you would register for one coursework module per semester for the first three semesters and start working on the mini-thesis in the fourth semester in order to complete the requirements in the third year of registration. You would need to submit a research proposal for approval by the department, Faculty and Senate by October of your second year of registration. f) You will note that the modules offered have different codes, namely Ethics, Religious Studies (including Islamic Studies) and Theological Studies. In your letter of admission it would be indicated which modules you are allowed to register for. This depends on your formative studies towards a previous qualification. Students who have done modules mainly in the field of Ethics may do some modules in Religious Studies but not in Theological Studies. Students with previous qualifications in Islamic Studies may do other modules in Religious Studies but would not be equipped to cope with modules in Theological Studies (with a Christian orientation). Inversely, students with a degree in Christian theology may not have the necessary background to select modules in Islamic Studies. If you are nevertheless interested in doing modules outside your previous area of studies, you may submit a letter of application in this regard to the departmental chairperson. g) A wide variety of postgraduate modules is offered in other disciplines in the Faculty of Arts and in other faculties, for example in the Institute for Social Development. Honours and Structured Masters students are entitled to do one such module outside the department in which they are registered. The permission of the departmental chairperson is required in this regard to ensure that the modules selected would form a coherent package on the basis of a sound academic rationale.

3 The permission of the chairperson of the department in which you want to do the module is also required in order to ensure that you have the necessary background to cope with such a module. Research Modules a) All students registered for one of the following modules in 2017 for the first time should contact the Postgraduate Coordinator (Prof Conradie) in order to make a formal appointment, within the first three weeks of the academic year: Honours Research essay (TST 701 or ETH 701) Structured masters mini-thesis (various codes) Masters by thesis (various codes) PhD thesis (various codes) The purpose of this meeting will be to inform you about workshops on research methodology, to identify the sub-discipline in which you will work, to identify a suitable theme for your research and to allocate a departmental supervisor for the project. b) We strongly recommend that part-time Honours students do not register for the Honours research essay (TST 701 or ETH 701) in their first year of study, but only in the second year of study. You may and should commence with your research in this regard in the first year of study but you will have a much better chance of success by registering for that only in the second year. This will also be financially prudent as you would need to pay for the tuition fees twice if you fail to complete the module in the first year of studies. Finally We are glad that you have decided to study in the Department of Religion and Theology and look forward to seeing you at the meeting. We also welcome back students who have been studying with us in 2016 or before. Sincerely Prof Ernst Conradie Post-graduate Coordinator: Department of Religion and Theology A Reminder: Steps in the Application, Admission and Registration Process 1. Informal consultation with the members of the department is encouraged: to speak about options, to explore areas of interest, to find out about requirements and to understand what postgraduate studies entail. 2. The real process, however, only starts officially when you submit an application on-line, by going to the University website and fill in the on-line application in as much detail as possible. Be sure to indicate for which level (Honours, Masters, Doctorate) you apply, and whether you apply for full-time or part-time studies. When applying for Masters you must choose between Masters by thesis only or the Structured Masters programme. 3. You must attach supporting documentation to your application. This includes a motivational letter, certified copies of the previous highest qualification (especially if done outside of UWC) and your study record indicating the marks obtained for previous qualifications. Students who

4 obtained degrees outside of South Africa also need to apply for SAQA clearance in order to establish how your previous qualification is measured against the National Qualification Framework in use in South Africa. Your application simply cannot be processed without such documentation. 4. Such documentation should be attached electronically to applications through the UWC website (it would lead to unnecessary delays without attaching that incomplete applications are typically not even forwarded to the department for assessment). We need such documentation to establish whether you meet the minimum requirements for postgraduate studies, namely a suitable degree (or equivalent), in an appropriate field / discipline, with at least 60% but preferably 65% (measured in terms of the UWC grading system) in the final year of the previous qualification. Students with a Diploma in Theology (i.e. not a degree) may be asked to submit samples of their best independently written research essays. In cases where you do not have such a prior qualification from a recognised tertiary institution it would be possible to consider an application on the basis of recognition or prior learning (RPL). It would be best to consult with the department in such cases as it is necessary to submit a prescribed form to the committees of Faculty and Senate. This is a time-consuming process that would delay registration. 5. Students who have applied for admission to the Structured Masters, Masters by thesis or Doctoral programmes in Religion and Theology are also required to submit a brief research proposal to indicate the discipline and sub-discipline in which you wish to work and to describe the more particular theme on which you plan to work. In the case of Structured Masters students only a brief description is required since this may be fine-tuned following the completion of coursework modules. In the case of Masters by thesis or Doctoral students a 2- page document is required. The aim of such a brief proposal is to establish whether you have a clear sense of direction for your research project (so that you would not need a year or so to find such direction). There is no need for a longer, detailed research proposal as this will be developed in the first year of studies. Another important aim is to establish whether the department has the necessary expertise and the staff capacity to offer supervision for such a project. The department needs to be able to allocate a provisional supervisor for such a project before the student can be admitted. The staff members in the department do not have expertise in all possible areas of interest (e.g. Asian religions) and in some cases would need to solicit assistance from other departments (e.g. in Islamic Studies) or from part-time lecturers (e.g. Pastoral Counselling). In other cases the capacity of an individual staff member may be restricted (in terms of the number of students per supervisor). The submission of the proposal may be understood as part of the contract that the university signs with a student, i.e. you are admitted to the programme on the basis of the theme indicated in the proposal. If you wish to change the theme at a later stage, that can be done, but the university then cannot guarantee that it could offer supervision for such a research project. 6. You will then receive a reference number with the confirmation that your application has been received (which is not yet your student number). Use this reference number in all correspondence and transactions until you have received your student number. You will receive a student number when you have formally been accepted as a student (in the letter of admission see below). 7. In some cases, especially where a students has obtained a prior qualification outside the South African National Qualification Framework (including public universities and accredited private service providers), students may be admitted on the basis of Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL). In all such cases an interview with the Department is required and a form needs to be completed which then needs to serve at the Higher Degree Committees of Faculty and Senate. Since the result of this process takes time, such students often need to register late. Such students should nevertheless attend classes in the interim so as not to fall behind.

5 8. You will be asked to pay an application fee (usually R150.00). This you can do in one of three ways: digitally, at the cashiers, or at the bank. The University bank details will be given on-line. 9. The Faculty Office will send a letter of admission to students whose applications were successful. In some cases you may receive a provisional letter of admission, for example when you still have to complete a previous degree or where a SAQA certificate is pending. 10. When you have received such a letter of admission you are ready to register. In order to be properly registered you also need to pay registration fees and a proportion of your tuition fees upfront. Post-graduate students can register together with the senior students (2 nd and 3 rd years), but they usually have a separate day set aside on the registration time-table. 11. Students who applied late, or who may have to follow the route of recognition of prior learning (RPL), may have to register late (with a small penalty). They must take it upon themselves to stay in close contact with the Department to help speed up the processes. This group may also include international students, some of whom may still be sorting out travel documents or study permits (also accommodation). Such students can only register when those details, especially the study permit and visas) have been dealt with successfully. 12. The process between application and admission can take quite long since many sections of the university administration are involved. Documents have to pass from IT, to Student Administration, to the Arts Faculty Office, to the Department of Religion and Theology and back to the Arts Faculty Office. The letter of admission is then sent to you as an applicant. It is therefore in your own interest to inquire about the status of your application as it may be delayed at various points in the process, often as a result of a lack of documentation. To make such inquiries, please contact Ms Griffiths and provide her with your application reference number. 13. Attendance of our department s information session for postgraduate students is very important. This meeting will take place on Monday 20 February 2017, at 18:00. At this meeting we shall deal with all the details of the 2017 Post-graduate programmes. You can meet the lecturers and ask all your questions. The time-table for the 1 st semester will also be finalised. 14. Changes to your registration can still be made in the week after registration, without penalties, if you have registered on time. Feel free to discuss this with any of the staff members in the department.

6 Modules offered in 2017 The Department of Religion and Theology is not able to offer all the modules on our rather extensive list each year. Those of you who intend to continue your studies next year may then be able to take modules not on offer in Please enquire about this. Where no details are provided on a particular module, it is not offered in The fourth column ( Semester ) indicates the semester during which the module will be offered in Module code Module title Lecturer(s) Semester Theme for 2017 Contact sessions Hons/Masters offered ETH 731/831 Ethical Theory Dr Jessica Lerm 1 A survey of major ethical theories ETH 732/832 Theories of responsibility Not 2017 ETH 733/833 Virtue theory 1 ETH 734/834 Public Morality Prof Sarojini Nadar 1 Mondays, 17h00-19h00 D20 ETH 735/835 Contemporary issues in ethics Mr Demaine Solomons (convener) 2 An exploration of issues regarding justice and Second semester reconciliation in South Africa ETH 736/836 Professional ethics Not 2017 REL 731/831 Theory of religion Not 2017 REL 732/832 Religion and society Not 2017 REL 733 The Text and Major themes of the Qur an (Qu ran and Tafsir) Dr MR Gallant 1 Tuesdays, 17h00-19h00 D111 REL 734 Science of Hadith Not 2017 REL 735 Critical issues in Contemporary Islam Not 2017 TST 731/831 Old Testament Studies Prof Douglas Lawrie 1 Wednesdays, 17h00-19h00 D20 TST 732/832 Old Testament Exegesis Not 2017 TST 733/833 New Testament Studies Not 2017 TST 734/834 New Testament Exegesis To be confirmed 2 Second semester TST 735/835 Biblical Hermeneutics Not 2017 TST 736/836 The History of Christianity Prof Ernst Conradie & 1 An overview of 16 th Century reformations in Tuesdays, 17h00-19h00 D20 Rev Teddy Sakupapa Europe and their reception in South Africa TST 737/837 History of Christianity in South Africa Not 2017 TST 738/838 The History of Christian doctrine Not 2017 TS 739/839 Systematic Theology Not 2017 TST 741/841 Theological Hermeneutics Not 2017 TST 742/842 Homiletics and liturgics Not 2017 TST 743/843 Pastoral care and Counselling Dr John Klaasen 2 Second semester TST 744/844 Contemporary Christian Theologies Not 2017 TST 745/845 Theology and development Prof Ignatius Swart 1 Thursdays, 17h00-19h00 D20 TST 746/846 Contextual Christian spirituality Not 2017 TST 701 / ETH 701 Research Essay (Honours) Supervisors 1 & 2 Research Methodology Prof Ernst Conradie Three full day workshops, scheduled for Thursday 23 March, Friday 24 March (for Hons, M and D students), and 6-7 April (only M & D)