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Blog Interview – Rev Hector Morrison – Highland Theological College

htc-logo 1) Please introduce yourself and your role at Highland Theological College

Rev Hector Morrison 25Mar14 My name is Hector Morrison. I am Principal at HTC. I also teach some Old Testament modules and do some PG supervision. I am an ordained minister of the Church of Scotland.

2) Tell us a little about HTC.

HTC from crane HTC, situated in Dingwall in the north of Scotland, has been in existence since 1994 and is one of 13 autonomous Academic Partner colleges which constitute the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI). HTC offers courses in theological studies at every level from Access, through BA (Hons) and MTh, to PhD. Our main programme is the BA (Hons) with over 100 students; we have 30 on the Access Course, 10-15 doing PhD at any one time, and a small number on the MTh. HTC also functions as a local access point for other degree programmes delivered by the university.

3) Are the courses full time, part-time or a mixture of both?

All our programmes are available FT, most are also available PT. They’re very flexible so that students can fit their studies around other commitments.

4) How do HTC students fund their studies?

graduation 2013 Being part of a university, eligible Scottish students will have their fees paid by the Scottish Government, while eligible RUK students should be able to access student loans. Eligible Access students receive bursaries. Part-scholarships may be available for some postgraduate students.

5) Does HTC take students from overseas?

Our BA (Hons) programme is now validated for international delivery and we have a small number of overseas students. There is a higher percentage of overseas students on our MTh, while many of our PhD students are American.

6) What type of ministry is HTC intended to prepare students for?

morning worship We aim to equip students to think biblically and theologically, giving them an all-round theological education that will prepare them well for a whole variety of ministries, or for life in general. Students interested in a particular area of ministry (e.g., pastoral ministry, missions, counselling, etc) can choose appropriate modules and placements according to their interests. HTC is non-denominational, with staff and students from a variety of denominations. We are an accredited training centre for a number of Scottish denominations including the Church of Scotland.

7) When students leave HTC what kind of ministries / jobs do they go into.

A growing number of our graduates go into pastoral or other church-related ministry, others become RME teachers, or go into missionary work, or move on to other areas of work better equipped to understand their context theologically and to help out in their local fellowships. A number of our PhD graduates teach theology in seminaries or universities in a variety of countries.

8) What is distinctive about what HTC offers compared with other colleges in Scotland and overseas?

VC Classroom While we insist that students need to be exposed to a wide spectrum of theological viewpoints HTC does have an evangelical and also reformed ethos. Being a part of UHI, we are at the leading edge of the use of video-conferencing, with students able to access our teaching from many college and learning centre locations throughout the Highlands and Islands, but also from their own homes. We are also accredited to deliver internationally. HTC is in the privileged position of being an autonomous evangelical college within a Scottish university.

9) Please tell us about the library and other research facilities.

We have a well-endowed library of over 65,000 volumes, and many digital resources available through UHI. Our library contains a number of special collections (e.g., Migne’s Patralogia, Calvin Collection, etc.) which are of particular interest to research students.

10) Does HTC offer a distance or on-line learning option. If yes, please tell us more about it.

students in library All our courses are available on campus but distance or online learning options are of key importance for HTC and contribute to the flexibility of our courses. Our Access Course is available in distance learning mode. Our BA is also available in ‘blended learning’ mode, with students living at a distance from the college (e.g., Central Belt, England, Europe) able to take part in the classroom discussions from their own homes (assuming a reasonable internet connection). All lectures are video recorded and made available on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) for revision, or for those working during the day to catch up on at their leisure. Many resources are also made available electronically on the VLE, or through the university’s electronic resources.

My thanks to Revd Morrison for taking part in this series.

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