 Our Objectives
Trinity seeks to develop in students a mature understanding of the historic and biblical faith that is grounded in the reflective study of Scripture and critical engagement with the life and ministry of the church through an academically rigorous, spiritually and vocationally formative curriculum that reflects a variety of church traditions from an Asian perspective. Its postgraduate programme fosters collaborative research on issues that impact Christianity, especially those within the Southeast Asian context. Our Story Trinity Theological College opened its doors on 4 October 1948, at No. 7 Mount Sophia, as a union institution sponsored by the Methodist, Anglican and Presbyterian churches. The idea for such an institution developed out of conversations among church leaders interned in Changi Prison during the Second World War who felt the need to establish an institution to train pastors and church workers. The resources for Trinity in terms of sites, buildings, library, equipment and staff can be traced as far back as 1898 to the contribution of the Malaya Methodist Theological College, the successor to the Jean Hamilton Training School (for men), the Bible Training School and the Eveland Seminary (for women). The Methodist Church provided a secure tenure of the property to Trinity in the form of a long-term lease, later extended to St. Peter's Hall, the Anglican hall of residence, which was originally sited in St. Andrew's School, Woodsville. The Rev Dr Hobart Amstutz, at the time the Bishop of the Methodist Church in Malaya, served as Trinity's first principal. A Centre for Theological Studies Trinity initially offered a three-year theological course in English, leading to a Licentiate in Theology. A Senior Cambridge Certificate was then the main entrance requirement. In 1952, a parallel theological curriculum in Chinese was introduced. For those without the necessary academic entrance qualifications for the degree programme, a Certificate of Theological Studies Course was introduced in 1956. Later, the three-year programme was increased to four years. This led to the BTh degree, with the first such degree being awarded in 1960. In 1966, the College added a BD degree, also a four-year course, based upon university matriculation. The MDiv, a three-year programme offered to university graduates, was introduced in 1977. In 1975, to help pastors with a first theological degree to further enhance their professional skill, Trinity introduced the one-year MMin programme. From 1993 Trinity has conferred its own MTh degree. This residential programme focuses on training through reflection in one of the following areas of concentration: biblical, historical-theological and pastoral. From July 2002, a new integrated curriculum with various track options replace the four-year BD/BTh and three-year MDiv degrees. In 2005, the degrees of Master of Theological Studies (MTS) and MTS (Worship/Liturgy) / (Church Music) were launched. These programmes are meant to equip Christians, who are not considering fulltime ministry, to serve effectively as lay leaders in the Church as well as to bear witness authentically to the Gospel in the market place. Trinity Theological College is a founding member of the Association for Theological Education in South East Asia (ATESEA) which was established in 1957 in Singapore. Through this association Trinity continues to supervise ATESEA's DTh degree programme. Since 1 July 2001, Trinity commenced its own DTh programme. The College's current enrollment is over 200 in various degree programmes. One third of this total are post-graduate research students. There are also more than 1000 students enrolled in its non-degree evening courses and other programmes. The College has over 1800 alumni serving the churches of Singapore, Malaysia and in about 50 countries. back to top | 
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