Admission requirements

You must meet one of the following educational requirements:

• You have an accredited Bachelor’s degree in Theology. Your degree was provided by a recognised academic institution. Your Bachelor in Theology should be equivalent to a research-based Bachelor’s degree in the Netherlands. The Admissions Board will assess the level and general content of your prior education.
• Or: You have an accredited Bachelor's degree in a field related to Theology. Your degree was provided by a recognised academic institution. Students with another educational background (such as Religious Studies) should have completed at least a course load of 6 ECTS in biblical studies, 6 ECTS in systematic theology and 6 ECTS in practical theology, at a research-based Bachelor's level. One ECTS is equivalent to a study load of 28 study hours. 

If you do not meet one of these two basic requirements, chances of you being admitted to the programme are very low. 

Additional educational requirements for Old Testament or New Testament studies

In applying for the Living Texts track, you must have a proven Bachelor's level of Hebrew or Greek. For Hebrew this means a study load of at least 15 ECTS, for Greek a study load of at least 20 ECTS (15 ECTS normal Greek studies and 5 ECTS New Testament Greek). One ECTS is equivalent to a study load of 28 study hours.

Is my degree sufficient?

The comparability of your degree is verified by consulting distinctive independent sources. 

To apply to our programme, you must be able to show you have a sufficient command of the English language. This can be demonstrated by sending us the results of your English language test. We accept only the following recognised tests: TOEFL, IELTS, TOEIC, and Cambridge ESOL. You must submit your test results before 1 April, so make sure you take the test in time.

What test score do I need to be admitted?

You will need at least the following scores on your English language test:

• an IELTS score of 6.0
• a TOEFL test score of 550 (paper based test) or 79/80 (Internet based test)
• a TOEIC test score of 670 for listening and reading and score of 290 for speaking and writing
• a Cambridge English First (FCE) - Grade B (scale 173 - 175) score or First (FCE) - Grade C (scale 169 - 172) score

If your score is below the scores listed above you will not be admitted as a student of the PThU. If you did not send in test results even though you were required to do so, you will not be admitted to the programme.

Do I need to take the English language test?

In some cases we can forgo the requirement for an English language test. You can be exempted from this requirement if one of the following applies to you:

• You are a native speaker and a citizen of a country where English is the only official language, and you have completed a full secondary education in a country where English is the only official language.
• You have completed a fulltime Bachelor's programme (at least three years) in one of the following countries: Canada, USA, UK, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia.