Master of Christian Studies

Master of Christian Studies (M. C. S.) is a post-B.C.S/B.D program, primarily meant for laity and Christian ministers who wish to continue theological studies through external programs. It is designed to provide Christian professionals, Church workers and laity with in-depth theological knowledge to facilitate the lay leadership in the church and society. It is a post graduate professional degree course for the laity who cannot enroll for a postgraduate regular course like M. Th. MCS is not equivalent to M. Th, neither will be accepted for teaching in theological Seminaries. M. C. S. is a three year program in which first two years the candidates study the courses and write the examinations while the third year is given for the project work/thesis which is compulsory.

Objectives

The objectives of the programme are:

  • To provide an opportunity for ongoing learning for spiritual (Both individual and communitarian) and vocational growth of the candidate within his/her context;

  • To develop necessary skills and tools to understand and interpret the socio-political, religio-cultural context of the Church and society and to identify the issues of the times;

  • To equip the candidate for rendering services to the Church and society through a particular ministry of his/her choice.

  • To provide an opportunity to bring about an ongoing integration of theological understanding and practical ministry in varied contexts.

Admission Requirements for the MCS degree

A candidate at the time of admission to M. C. S. degree course must satisfy one of the following conditions:

  • At the time of registration a candidate should have passed BCS, B.D or any degree equivalent to BCS from a university recognized by the Senate of Serampore College.

  • The candidate should have a minimum of one year ministerial experience after BCS or B. D.

 

Registration for the Course

Application for registration must be made in the appropriate form obtainable from the Registrar and sent to the Registrar together with the registration fee as indicated in Section 27 below. This must reach the Registrar as stipulated in Section 28. An applicant must provide.

  • attested copies of academic certificates or certified copies of academic transcripts
  • migration certificate from the university last attended (if not submitted earlier)
  • certificate of birth or other acceptable evidence of date of birth
  • a satisfactory certificate of character from his/her appropriate church authorities
  • any additional information and references that may be considered desirable in support of his/her application

  • the registration fee must be sent by Demand Draft drawn in favor of “Senate of Serampore College” to reach the Registrar on or before the prescribed date

Migration Certificate

All students registering for Serampore courses are expected to submit migration/school leaving certificate General rules followed are as follows:

  • Migration certificate from the students who hold degree from secular universities may be exempted by the Senate.

  • A declaration from all the students who hold a degree from secular institutions that they will not register themselves for any other degree/diploma course with any secular institution/university shall be obtained and submitted to the Senate along with the registration from.

  • Any student violating this rule shall be liable for disciplinary action amounting to nullifying of Serampore degree of the student

  • Migration certificate of BTh and BD students who have submitted their school leaving certificate shall be issued by the Senate as per rule

  • Candidate who lost certificate and require duplicate certificates be required to submit an affidavit signed by a judicial magistrate to that effect and

  • No duplicate migration certificate shall be issued

External Studies

The M.C.S. degree course is available for external (non-residential) study only through SCEPTRE and colleges affiliated to the Senate of Serampore College (University), if so permitted.

Medium of Instruction

The medium of study and examination for the degree course is English or any regional language as approved by the Senate

Duration of Study

Minimum time to complete the course shall be three years, and the maximum shall be five years from the time of registration

Mode of Study

Senate will provide the detailed syllabus for the course. The course will start with an orientation seminar, maximum of 10 days in which a group of qualified faculty will deal with the subject related to the course. The second year will start with a seminar on the methodological issues for 10 days. The methodology seminar will provide a basic knowledge of the thesis/dissertation writing and related field. The Seminars will be conducted by the Senate Centre for Extension programs of the Senate of Serampore College (SCEPTRE) or colleges affiliated to Senate of Serampore College. Candidates will be required to attend both the seminars.

Scheme for the Courses at the MCS Level

Candidate shall be required to finish all the course work by the end of second year and third year shall be left for the thesis/dissertation project work

The candidate shall write altogether 10 papers: Five papers on Foundational and Contextual Study Course and Five papers on Specialization Course.

I Year Foundation and Contextual Courses
II Year Courses for specialization
III Year Thesis
Thesis

A candidate may be permitted to write a thesis for the completion of the required courses. s/he should submit the thesis proposal on a prescribed form for approval before the end of the academic year for second year as per the conditions laid down under Part III: Curriculum.

A candidate may permitted to write 2 papers (8 credit courses) in lieu of thesis; and 4 credit courses in lieu of a project

Plagiarism (copying, illegal use of others work, breach of copyright, etc.)

Independent research and writing play a vital part in the course requirements, examinations, thesis and project. Students, therefore, should be aware of the stong sanctions against plagiarism. If proven, a charge of plagiarism could result in an automatic F in the course and possible expulsion/cancellation of registration. If anyone has any questions or doubts about what plagiarism entails or how to properly acknowledge source materials and the works of others, be sure to consult the faculty concerned

Academic System

Academic session for M.C.S. will January to December

Examinations will be held in November-December

February to September is left for orientation seminars, contact classes and collegiums

Examination and Evaluation

Examination and evaluation are conducted by the Senate as per procedures and rules laid down by the Senate.

  • Examinations will be conducted by the Senate of Serampore College (in the initial years the course shall be directly conducted by the senate) in the month of November/December each year

  • Each paper, unless otherwise stated is of three hours’ duration and covers the subject matter indicated in the syllabus

  • Maximum marks for each paper shall be 100

  • After registration, application for admission to the examination must be made on the appropriate form obtainable from the Registrar and should reach the same on or before the time prescribed by the Senate. The examination fee, as indicated below, should also be sent to the Registrar, Senate of Serampore College on or before the prescribed date

  • All the Senate w/College examinations for the M.C.S. degree shall normally be evaluated by two examiners. The Senate will not entertain requests for re-evaluation of any script and/or permit an examination for improvement of grade

  • A candidate should give an undertaking at the time of registration that s/he will abide by all the rules and regulations of the Senate of Serampore College as applicable to the M.C.S. degree including the decisions of the Senate and its Academic Council

  • A candidate for the M.C.S. degree will normally appears for the course examination each year according to the sequence given.

  • Candidate will not receive credit unlessshe/he appears and passes in at least 50% of the courses at each sitting.

  • A candidate may appear for any referred paper in addition to the papers studied provided he/she does not appear for courses equivalent to 10 course-papers in any year. This rule may not apply to those who have less than five course papers to complete the degree programme

Maximum and minimum number of paper to be taken

A candidate for the MCS degree shall normally appear for five papers. He/she shall not receive credit unless he/she appears at least three courses at each sitting

Centre for Examination

Normally the Serampore College, SCEPTRE and its affiliated Colleges, offering post-graduate level courses,are centres for examinations. A candidate applying for permission to take his/her examination at another affiliated College, must obtain prior consent of the Principal and submit it along with his/her Examination Entry Form to the Registrar

If a candidate wishes to write the examination at any other centre, he/she should seek prior permission from the Registrar submitting a letter from the examination centre consenting to supervise the examination and pay the prescribed fee

Pass and failure in examination

A candidate who fails in any paper or papers is regarded as being “referred” in such paper or papers, and is permitted to offer himself/herself for re-examination in that paper or those papers, or in any other paper or papers that may be substituted in accordance with the Regulations, provided that he/she is able to complete the requirements of the Degree within the time allowed. Any change in the papers already taken but referred must be applied at the time of filling up the examinations entry form

Standard of pass and class

The pass mark in each paper in the examination for MCS Degree course is 40% or C-.

The final grading of candidates will be as follows:

First Class Second Class Third Class Failure
A+ (80% and above) B+ (65%) C+ (50%) D (30%)
A (75%) B (60%) C (45%) E (20%)
A-(70%) B- (55%) C- (40%) F (10%)
 Convocation of Serampore College (University)

The Convocation of Serampore College is conducted by the Council Serampore College, and held annually, generally in the first week of February. Every student who has qualified for the degree is expected to attend the Convocation to receive his/her degree in person from the Master of Serampore College.