apply
financial aid
enroll
phone-a-thon
Bachelor's Degree
Why do we call it Excel? It affords students who are unable to attend day classes an opportunity to excel and complete a Bachelor's degree program. Excel majors are 131-credit-hour Bachelor's Degrees in the following areas: Biblical Counseling, Biblical Studies, Children's Ministry, Organizational Leadership, and Urban Studies. Students in the bachelor's program may earn up to 22 hours of lifelong learning credits pending proper documentation. Students may develop a professional portfolio in their first semester to document credits.
Description
The EXCEL program is a fixed set of 16 courses. These are required, in addition to 83 college credit hours, to complete a Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Arts degree. Five majors are available: Biblical Counseling, Organizational Leadership, Biblical Studies, Children's Ministry, or Urban Studies. Ten of the courses are considered a core for all the majors. Another set of six courses is added to the core to make each major unique.
Classes meet for a total of 70 sessions over approximately a 22-month period. Classes are taught using a seminar method, with each student sharing experiences and ideas. There are four courses in each semester and four semesters in the program.
In addition to these specific, required courses there are General Education, Biblical Education, and Professional Education course requirements. There is no limit on the number of college-level correspondence courses that may be used to meet EXCEL program graduation requirements.
Applied Learning Paper
Students are to submit an applied learning paper (ALP) at the beginning of class the night it is due. Late ALPs will automatically receive a full letter grade reduction the first night. For each additional week that the ALP is not turned in, the student will receive another letter grade reduction. ALPs handed in more than four weeks late will result in a failing grade for the course.
Portfolio Assessment
Portfolio Notebook
During the Professional Core, students assemble a Portfolio Notebook summarizing their formal academic education and professional work and/or life experiences. The student will receive detailed instructions for compiling his portfolio notebook in the Portfolio Manual section of the EXCEL Student Notebook.
Each student is required to write a Documented Experiential Learning Analysis (DELA) essay as part of the requirements for the portfolio. If additional portfolio assessment credit is needed, this and/or other DELA's may be submitted to the Non-Traditional Studies Office to petition for portfolio assessment credit anytime.
Portfolio Credit
Up to 22 of the 131 total semester hours required for the degree may be earned from writing DELA's and providing documentation of professional school attendance or training not already transcripted. The number of portfolio assessment credits needed, not to exceed the maximum of 22 semester hours, varies with each student and is listed on the student's program planner along with his other completed degree requirements.
Credit hours earned through portfolio assessment are recorded as transfer credits on the student's transcript. The Non-Traditional Studies Director will advise the student in completing this phase of the program. Assessment fees are charged for each portfolio credit hour earned.
Course Requirements for the B.S. Degree
- Biblical Education Division-18 hours [up to 8 hours portfolio]
- BI110-I Introductory Bible Study (3 hours)*
- BI224-I Gospel of John (3 hours)*
- BI334-I Romans (3 hours)*
- BI343-I Genesis (3 hours)*
- BI249-I Advanced Bible Study/Hermeneutics (3 hours)*
- TH110-I Spiritual Life (3 hours)*
- TH116-I Evangelism (3 hours)*
- TH346-I Apologetics (3 hours)*
- * suggested, not required, to fulfill the requirements (only 6 courses needed)
- General Education Division-45 hours
- English (6 hours)
- Humanities (3 hours)
- Natural Science & Mathematics (6 hours)
- Religion and Philosophy (9 hours)
- RP111A-I Survey of Old Testament Literature I (3 hours)^
- RP111B-I Survey of Old Testament Literature II (3 hours)^
- RP112-I Survey of New Testament Literature (3 hours)^
- Social & Behavioral Science (9 hours)
- General Education Electives (12 hours) [up to 4 hours portfolio]
- ^ suggested, not required, for the needed 9 hours of Religion & Philosophy
- Professional Education Division-68 hours
- EXCEL Core-30 hours
- EN300-I Communication Concepts (3 hours)
- TH301-I Goals, Priorities, and Attitudes (3 hours)
- TH210-I Dispensational Premillennialism (3 hours)
- MI303-I Theology of Missions (3 hours)
- EN264-I Portfolio (3 hours)
- SS249-I Conflict Management (3 hours)
- BI/CM/CO/OL/406 Senior Project (3 hours)
- TH220-I Theological Foundations I (3 hours)
- TH221-I Theological Foundations II (3 hours)
- TH222-I Theological Foundations III (3 hours)
- Choose a Major-18 hours
- Biblical Counseling Major (18 hours)
- CO244-I Introduction to Counseling (3 hours)
- CO245-I History of Psychological Systems (3 hours)
- CO345-I Family Counseling (3 hours)
- CO432-I Crisis Counseling (3 hours)
- CO Electives (6 hours)
- Biblical Studies Major (18 hours)
- BI110-I Introductory Bible Study (3 hours)
- BI249-I Advanced Bible Study/Hermeneutics (3 hours)
- HP336-I Church History (3 hours)
- RP339-I Introduction to Philosophy (3 hours)
- BI/TH Electives (6 hours)
- Children's Ministry Major (19 hours)
- (courses taken through Children's Ministries Institute)
- CM101 Teaching Children Effectively I (2 hours)
- CM102 Understanding Today's Child (2 hours)
- CM201 Progressive Methods of Child Evangelism
- (3 hours)
- CM202 Teaching Children Effectively II (2 hours)
- TT201 Dynamics of Teacher Training (3 hours)
- LD101 Distinctives of CEF (1 hour)
- LD201 Ministry Strategies and Development (3 hours)
- LD202 Dynamics of Christian Leadership (3 hours)
- Note: Children's Ministry Majors are required to take CO244 & RP341. These courses may fit into Bible, General Education, or Professional Education electives.
- Organizational Leadership Major (18 hours)
- OL333-I Case Studies in Leadership (3 hours)
- OL435-I Organizational Behavior (3 hours)
- OL446-I Leading and Managing (3 hours)
- RP341-I Ethics (3 hours)
- OL Electives (6 hours)
- Professional Education Electives-20 hours [up to 10 hours portfolio]
Total Hours for the B.S. Degree: 131 Hours
