You can — and some people do — but it makes the whole process a lot longer. Waiting until you’ve completed your studies may result in you needing to do further supervision or additional study, when you could have simply woven it into your studies at the start.

The purpose of supervision is to provide candidates with real-time feedback, guidance, and advice. You’ll be learning from seasoned professionals and have the opportunity to ask questions while you gain practical, life experience as you prepare for pastoral ministry. In the Accreditation journey, there are three types of supervision. Depending on your personalised Pathway, you may not need all three.

• Workplace Supervision: Occurs for day-to-day duties in a workplace context. You’ll be supervised by whoever you report to in your ministry context.
• Supervised Field Education (SFE): This takes place in your study program (if studying), if you’re completing the relevant units. The unit will run for one semester and the purpose of this supervision is goal-setting and reflection through group and individual supervision.
• External Supervision: This is a requirement for Accreditation and actually includes two sub-types of supervision — Tier 1: Professional or Clinical Supervision, and Tier 2: Pastoral Supervision. Tier 1 is provided by a professional, such as a Counsellor, Social Worker, or Psychologist. Tier 2 is provided by someone who has pastoral experience, or experience supervising Pastors.

As long as you’ve been a member of a BCWA church for at least two years, you can still apply without a placement. As a part of the application process, your church will provide a report on your activities within the church, including how your Pastor has observed your ministry, even if it’s in a volunteer capacity (e.g. on the Welcoming Team or as a Youth Leader).

Of course, Accreditation can’t be recognised until you have completed studies and gained two years of fulltime, supervised pastoral ministry in the Baptist context. As such, some applicants prefer to wait to apply until they have a definite placement. If you’re studying, check whether your study course fulfils the pre-requisite unit required for Accreditation.

Yes, you should still apply — ideally within 12 months of your ministry appointment or in the second year of your studies (whichever is soonest). If already working, your Accreditation Pathway will be developed in cooperation with your church. If studying, your study course will be taken into account.

If you’re ministering within a Baptist organisation — such as Baptistcare, Baptist Mission Australia, Baptist World Aid, etc. — but not a member of a Baptist church affiliated with BCWA, you may be granted an Interim Accreditation.

As an example, this means that, if you work at Baptistcare but attend your local Uniting Church, you may still be Accredited.

It depends on the BCWA relationship with that organisation. For example, whether Accreditation or Ordination is a pre-requisite for the position, and whether you are a Baptist Representative within the organisation. For example, this would be suitable for a Chaplain within the Defense Force, Police Force, or Hospital, but wouldn’t extend to you if you were a Pastor of a church unaffiliated with BCWA. If you’re not sure, it’s best to contact us so we can take a closer look at your circumstances.

Full Accreditation can’t be granted until the two years at a member church is complete. However, as the Accreditation process often takes two years itself, you should apply as soon as your ministerial position has been appointed (as long as you’ve completed or are completing theological study). By the time the Accreditation Process has finished, it’s likely your two years at a member church will have as well.

This is quite a common scenario, some of our now-Accredited Pastors initially completed their studies 20, 30, even 40 years ago! Just like they did, you should apply for Accreditation as soon as possible. A review of your qualification, experiences, references, supervision arrangement and professional development will all be considered for your personalised Accreditation Pathway. In most cases, you’ll move through the Accreditation Process much faster.

No — you’ll need to have, or be commencing, some form of theological training in order to be eligible for Accreditation. But remember, every Accreditation Pathway is unique. Even if your past studies aren’t theological, they’ll still be considered in your personalised Pathway.

Yes, you’re still eligible, and may even be eligible for Provisional Accreditation. You can include Denominational Distinctives in your Professional Development Plan and need to provide academic transcripts, references, and a statement of your pastoral experience.

It’s important to note that “Accreditation” means different things in different States and Denominations, so there may not be as much overlap as you’re hoping. As these circumstances vary from person-to-person, yours will be discussed with you in detail during the Accreditation Process.