- Licentiate in Theology
The Licentiate in Theology or the Licence in Theology (LTh is the usual abbreviation) is a theological qualification commonly awarded for ordinands and laymen studying
theology in theUnited Kingdom ,Malta ,Canada ,Australia andNew Zealand . The academic rank varies from undergraduate degree to masters degree.A qualification similar to the LTh is the two-year postgraduate
Licentiate of Sacred Theology (STL), available from the Milltown Institute,Ireland .United Kingdom
The
University of Wales, Lampeter LTh, introduced in1940 , was intended for graduate ordinands, and is a one year full-time, or two years part-time qualification. TheUniversity of St Andrews offered the LTh (Licence in Theology), a three-year course open to non-graduates. A three-year LTh is available from theUniversity of Edinburgh .Canada
In Canada, a four-year LTh is offered by Emmanuel College, Toronto
Australia
In Australia in former years, theological colleges that were not associated with Universities offered programmes which led to the award of a Licentiate in Theology, abbreviated ThL. For many years the ThL was a prerequisite to ordination as an
Anglican priest, however nowadays the ThL is a "non award" course: i.e., it is not recognised by other institutions for entry to higher degrees, and persons wishing to be ordained usually complete aBachelor of Theology at an accredited university, to enable them to later take an advanced degree if desired.New Zealand
In
New Zealand the LTh is offered by theEcumenical Institute for Distance Theological Studies and was the standard avenue toordination in the Anglican Church; it remains the standard for part-time distance ordinands.
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