General Admission Information
In addition to academic requirements for admission to any program, an applicant’s personal qualifications, references, etc. will be considered in the admission procedure. For a student to be admitted to St. Andrew’s College, the College must be satisfied of their academic, vocational and psychological fitness, and that their financial means are adequate. The College may place a student on probation or, if warranted, may discontinue a student for any of these reasons. In the case of students in the candidacy process for ministry, such actions will be taken only in full consultation with appropriate courts of the church.
Application Fee: $75 (non-refundable)
Application Due Date: Applications are accepted on an on-going basis, but in order to begin studies at the beginning of the academic year in September, the application and all supporting documents must be received by St. Andrew’s College by April 1. If the application and supporting documents arrive after April, there is not a guarantee that the application will be reviewed in time to admit the student for the fall term.
Transcripts: Official transcripts must be sent directly from the institution to St. Andrew’s College. They cannot be copies of the official transcripts.
Withdrawal Penalties and Tuition Refund Policy
Course Withdrawal
Upon deciding to withdraw from a class, students are responsible for the following:
- awareness of the academic and financial consequences of the withdrawal (see below)
- notification of the Registrar
- notification of the Course Instructor or Faculty
- completion and submission of the course withdrawal form to the Registrar
Program students must obtain the approval of their Faculty Advisor to drop a class. Students should ensure that they keep a copy of the approval document.
Occasional students should contact the Registrar directly.
Notification: Students choosing to withdraw from courses must notify the Registrar before the end dates specified below to be eligible for refunds.
Course cancellation due to insufficient registration will result in a full refund of the student’s course payment.
Course change: This policy also applies for students wishing to withdraw from one course and enroll in a different course. Students will be charged a $50 per credit unit transfer fee instead of a withdrawal fee.
Intensive Courses:
One-Week:
- Credit and audit – 100% refundable up to the end of class time of the first day of the course with a $150 withdrawal fee. No “W” on transcript.
- Credit and audit – 50% refundable up to the end of class time of the second day of the course with a $150 withdrawal fee. “W” on transcript.
- After the second day, there is no refund, and the transcript will show “Withdraw-Fail” for credit students.
Switching from credit to audit:
- up to end of class time of the first day of the course – 50% refund
- up to end of class time of the second day of the course – 25% refund
- after the second day of the course – no refund
Two-Weeks:
- Credit and audit – 100% refundable up to the end of class time of the second day of the course with a $150 withdrawal fee. No “W” on transcript.
- Credit and audit – 50% refundable up to the end of class time of the fourth day of the course with a $150 withdrawal fee. “W” on transcript.
- After the fourth day, there is no refund, and the transcript will show “Withdraw-Fail” for credit students.
Switching from credit to audit:
- up to end of class time of the second day of the course – 50% refund
- up to end of class time of the fourth day of the course – 25% refund
- after the fourth day of the course – no refund
Three-Weeks:
- Credit and audit – 100% refundable up to the end of class time of the third day of the course with a $150 withdrawal fee. No “W” on transcript.
- Credit and audit – 50% refundable up to the end of class time of the sixth day of the course with a $150 withdrawal fee. “W” on transcript.
- After the sixth day, there is no refund, and the transcript will show “Withdraw-Fail” for credit students.
Switching from credit to audit:
- up to end of class time of the third day of the course – 50% refund
- up to end of class time of the sixth day of the course – 25% refund
- after the sixth day of the course – no refund
Learning Circles (10-day):
- Credit and audit – 100% refundable up to the end of class time of the first day of the course with a $150 withdrawal fee. No “W” on transcript.
- Credit and audit – 50% refundable up to the end of class time of the third day of the course with a $150 withdrawal fee. “W” on transcript.
- After the third day, there is no refund, and the transcript will show “Withdraw-Fail” for credit students.
Switching from credit to audit:
- up to end of class time of the first day of the course – 50% refund
- up to end of class time of the third day of the course – 25% refund
- after the third day of the course – no refund
Full Semester Courses:
- up to Friday at noon of the second week of the course – 100% refund with a $150 withdrawal fee – No “W” on transcript
- up to Friday at noon of the fourth week of the course – 75% refund with a $150 withdrawal fee – “W” on transcript
- up to Friday at noon of the seventh week of the course – 50% refund with a $150 withdrawal fee – “W” on transcript
- up to Friday at noon of the eighth week of the course – 25% refund with a $150 withdrawal fee – “W” on transcript
- after the eighth week of the course – no refund – “Withdraw-Fail” on transcript for credit students.
- Auditing the course: Non-refundable after the second week
Switching from credit to audit:
- up to Friday at noon of the second week of the course – 50% refund
- up to Friday at noon of the seventh week of the course – 25% refund
- after the seventh week – no refund
Occasional Students
Some students may want to take courses for credit without registering in a degree program. Such students may register as “occasional students” and take up to a maximum of 12 credit hours of course work. There are three different options to meet the requirement to register as an occasional student. Occasional students must provide evidence that they have successfully completed a minimum of one year of study (ten one-semester courses) at a university level before registering in a St. Andrew’s College course. Such students are encouraged to apply for the Diploma in Theology program. Students are also eligible to register as an occasional student with St. Andrew’s if they are currently in a different program of study at a post-secondary institution or if they complete a ‘skills assessment’ which is evaluated by faculty to determine whether the student is capable of studying at St. Andrew’s College.
Pre-Theological Education
At St. Andrew’s we affirm the guidelines as they appear in Section 721 of The Manual of The United Church of Canada.
In selecting their undergraduate courses, candidates should have in mind the acquiring of knowledge of the world in which we live; that is, the world of people and ideas, the world of nature, and the world of human affairs. This could best be done by including such subjects as English literature, philosophy, history, political science, psychology, sociology, a modern language, a biblical language, and one of the physical sciences.
Students expecting to enter theology would, therefore, be wise not to choose a religious studies major but to major in one of the other recommended areas
Bachelor’s degrees of a vocational nature such as nursing, forestry, or education will be accepted if they contain a reasonable proportion of courses in the subjects recommended. Failing that, each case will be assessed on its merits. Allowance may be made for relevant experience and training and for late career decisions. Students on course at the college whose degrees are deficient in certain of the recommended subjects may be advised to take appropriate university courses if the deficiency proves a serious impediment to their theological studies.
Students admitted with a major in religious studies may be required to substitute university arts courses for those core courses in theology which would duplicate work already done.
Applications from students whose first degree is more than 15 years old and who have not undertaken further academic studies since then will be assessed on their merits. Relevant experience, professional training, and personal circumstances may be taken into account.
Prior Learning Assessment
Students may apply for academic credit for learning which was acquired prior to enroling in St. Andrew’s College. Students in the Master of Divinity program may apply for up to four (4) semester courses (12 credits); they may also apply for an assessment of learning equivalent to internship. Students in the Master of Theological Studies program may apply for up to two (2) semester courses (6 credits). Students in the Bachelor of Theology program are not eligible. Please contact the registrar’s office for a copy of the policy.