University in South Africa
Athlone, Western Cape, South Africa
University profile
Cape Town Baptist Seminary (CTBS) is a private theological institution in Bridgetown, Athlone, Cape Town, founded in 1974 and run as a non-profit company. It is one of the seminaries of the Baptist Union of Southern Africa and an affiliate of the Western Province Baptist Association, and it admits students from other denominations as well. Its stated mission is to train Christian leaders to transform lives and society biblically, with a ministry- and mission-focused curriculum in the Evangelical tradition.
The campus lies along the N2 highway in Bridgetown, about 12 km from the Cape Town CBD and 6.7 km from Cape Town International Airport. It has lecture halls, a chapel, a common room, a library of about 30,000 volumes with more than 14,000 indexed journal articles plus e-journals. Three apartment blocks provide on-campus accommodation for an average of 25 students and their families, in single units and two- and three-bedroom family apartments.
Teaching is organised around programmes rather than faculties. The Bachelor of Theology (BTh) and Bachelor of Ministry (BMin) are four-year full-time (five-year part-time) contact degrees of 480 credits that exit at NQF level 8 and articulate to a Master's degree. Full-time classes run in the daytime, and an evening school (18:00-22:00 on Tuesdays and Thursdays) serves students in employment. The Master of Theology (by thesis) and Doctor of Philosophy are offered through a cooperative partnership with the University of Pretoria, supported administratively and academically by the Seminary, with specialisations including Old and New Testament, Church History, Dogmatics and Christian Ethics, Practical Theology and Religion Studies. The PULSE short courses (Pulse 1, 2 and 3) are pre-tertiary certificates offered on campus or through partner churches.
Student life centres on chapel, ministry-integrated learning and mission weeks. The Office of the Dean of Students provides spiritual and emotional support, with referral to professional counselling where needed, and an elected Student Representative Council supports fellow students. The student body is racially diverse and drawn from several nationalities and denominations; the campus is wheelchair friendly. The institution has more than 600 graduates serving in more than 22 countries, and on average about 120 students are enrolled across full-time and part-time courses.
CTBS is registered with the Department of Higher Education and Training as a Private Higher Education Institution under registration certificate 2000/HE08/005, and its BTh and BMin programmes are accredited by the Council on Higher Education and registered on the National Qualifications Framework. It is registered as a non-profit company (2003/031148/08) and is a member of the Association of Private Providers of Education, Training and Development.
As a private higher education institution, CTBS students cannot access government funding schemes such as NSFAS. The Seminary makes bursaries available to qualifying students, depending on availability, typically to existing students according to its student financial assistance criteria and terms and conditions for awarding bursaries. Bursaries are funded by donors and generally reduce rather than cover tuition. Part-time student employment, such as library and facilities assistance, is also available as the need arises.
Pulse short courses carry no tuition cost, and applicants from Pulse partner churches are exempt from registration fees. Enquiries go to the Registrar, Ms Colleen Nourse, at [email protected] or +27 21 637 9020. More information: CTBS support and donations page.
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View scholarships for Cape Town Baptist Seminary NPC →Applicants need a National Senior Certificate (NQF 4), IEB qualification or equivalent with an endorsement for Bachelor's degree study. A pre-2008 Senior Certificate with exemption may also be considered. Applications are also considered from holders of School of Tomorrow, Accelerated Christian Education, GED, Cambridge International or NCV Level 4 qualifications, provided minimum requirements and subject combinations are met. Both degrees are 480 credits (NQF 8, SAQA IDs 62149 for BTh and 62150 for BMin), taking at least four years full-time or five years part-time.
Applicants who completed school outside South Africa must submit a SAQA verification of their qualification; a SAQA-verified NQF 4 qualification is the minimum. Instruction and assessment are in English.
Formal, informal and non-formal prior learning can be recognised under the RPL policy (evaluation fee R750), and prior accredited theology studies are evaluated for credit under the Credit Accumulation and Transfer policy (R450 per module). Applicants who do not meet entry requirements for higher education may be directed to the Pulse 3 programme (20 modules over 24 months), after which they may apply for RPL.
A relevant Honours degree or four-year Bachelor's degree, a weighted average of at least 65% at final-year level, and Hebrew and Greek passed at second-year level. International applicants need a SAQA-verified NQF 8 qualification. Tuition is R18,960 per annum.
A relevant Master's degree with at least 65% for the research component (63% to 64% may be considered for preparatory studies), English proficiency as determined by a test, and Hebrew and Greek at second-year level (a Greek admissions examination may be required). International applicants need a SAQA-verified NQF 9 qualification. Tuition is R20,315 per annum.
Applications are accepted at any time of year. Bachelor's tuition in 2025 is R4,620 per module, with a maximum of five modules per semester.
Main campus, 52-64 Tarentaal Road, Bridgetown, Athlone, Cape Town 7764. The only campus; all BTh, BMin and on-campus PULSE teaching takes place here, with Master's and PhD candidates supported from here while registered through the University of Pretoria.
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