Course Options

Auditing

Regularly matriculated students, as well as those with a high school diploma or at least 18 years old who are not enrolled in the Seminary, may audit a course upon the written permission of the course professor. The required audit application is available at the Registrar’s Office (or click here).

It has been the practice of GGBTS to encourage alumni to continue their education after commencement. As such, alumni have the opportunity to audit, at no charge, one traditional course a semester, provided space is available. Alumni must register as auditors through the Registrar’s Office. Regularly matriculated students are required to pay the audit fee as outlined in the Student Fees and Expenses section.

Auditors are enrolled in a course provided room is available after students who are taking the course for credit have been registered. To obtain the required professor approval, auditors must attend the first class session and have the professor sign the completed audit form.  Regional campus students should contact the campus office for more information before attending the first session.  Auditors are then registered in the order in which applications are received. Submission of an audit form and fees does not guarantee enrollment.  In addition to the audit fee the student will be responsible for any additional class fees required.

Bypass Request

Students who have completed undergraduate and/or non-accredited work elsewhere that is comparable to required courses may be allowed to bypass those courses and substitute others from the curriculum. Students desiring to bypass a required course should download the Bypass Request form found on the My Forms and Policies Page in MyGGBTS.

Course Substitution

Students wishing to substitute one GGBTS class in place of another must submit the Course Substitution form to the appropriate department chair.  A request to substitute a required course in a GGBTS degree program is evaluated critically and only granted for compelling casue, not as a matter of routine.  The student submitting the request must identify a specific situation and/or compelling rationale for the request to be approved.  
The only exceptions to this are the following courses, for which no substitution form is required.  For any course substitution not listed below the required Course Substitution form can be found on the My Forms and Policies Page.

Required Course	Approved Substitute
I1211 Introduction to Missions	E2719/I2270 World Missions and Collegiate Ministry
I1311 Basic Evangelism	I2316 Cross Cultural Evangelism or I2330 Basic Evangelism and Collegiate Ministry
P1115 Spiritual Formation	L2131 Classics of Christian Devotion or P2561 Personal and Spiritual Growth Groups or P3113 Spiritual Formation and the Arts
P1121/P1122 Leadership Ministry Practicum	I2361/I2362 Church Planting Apprenticeship
P1512 Christian Counseling	E1114 Counseling for Church Leaders

Credit by Exam

Up to 1/6 of the student's degree program may be earned by proficiency examinations. Requirements that cannot be satisfied by exam are P1111 Foundations for Ministry; P1116 Integration into Ministry; and P1121 and P1122 Leadership Practicum I and II. Elective courses cannot be satisfied by exam. Credit by Exam request forms are available on the My Forms and Policies Page in MyGGBTS. In addition to the tuition for the course, a $15 fee is charged for each exam. Payment is due at the time of the exam and is non-refundable.  Interested students should contact the Registrar’s Office or Department Chair for further information.

Independent Study

Independent Study courses are designed to take advantage of unique specialized study opportunities for students with need for such work and who have demonstrated qualifications to pursue independent study. Required courses cannot be met by Independent Study. Exceptions to this policy must be approved by faculty.

To be eligible, a student must be in a degree program, have completed 27 credit hours of study at Golden Gate, and have a minimum GPA of 2.7 (B-). Generally, one to two credit hours will be given for each independent study course, with a maximum of three hours. No student may take more than a total of nine hours as independent study.

Trustee-elected Faculty generally are limited to one Independent Study per semester, and Adjunct Faculty are usually not permitted to offer Independent Study courses.

Independent Study request forms are available on the My Forms and Policies Page in MyGGBTS. The completed form must be submitted to the Registrar's Office no later than the last day to add classes for any given term.

Prior Coursework

ATS Standards stipulate that coursework completed more than 10 years prior to the completion of a degree will not fulfill graduation requirements. Any student wishing to appeal this policy must do so through the Student Relations Committee as soon as possible following admission, and no later than the date by which his/her graduation application is due.