Online Professor Questions
I'm asking a few of my online professors these questions, but I am also posting this here just in case any of you know any online professors that can answer these questions as well.
I am currently attending LRU and am a semester away from my BARM degree. After I complete my bachelor's degree program, I want to work at getting both my master's degree and my doctorate.I have been discussing with John Roland at LRU about career opportunities, and I explained to him that I feel that the Lord is calling me to do professor work primarily online as an adjunct professor. I also plan to serve in the church possibly on a church's media ministry, but that will probably be more volunteer work. I do not feel called to be a full time pastor of a church. With a few health issues I have, I know that being a full-time pastor would be overwhelming and lead to burnout quickly.
On the other hand, I am a gifted teacher, and feel strongly that I could serve as a seminary and Bible college professor, especially online.
My primary question is, as I continue my studies toward becoming a professor, what degree track as I pursue a master's and doctorate do I need to look into, as well as are there any specific courses, electives, or anything else I need to do during the process that will better qualify me as a seminary professor? I want to ensure the time I spend in college and seminary better equips and qualifies me for the task as a seminary professor, and I simply do not wish to take courses just for the sake of being there. I want my studies to really mean something and better enable me for the work the Lord has called me to do.
Another question I have is, do I need to start with an MA track and progress toward an MDiv? Would that be a stronger degree track to pursue? On the MA track, would I need to look into Christian Studies or Leadership?
After my master's is completed, do I need to look into a DMin for my doctorate, or do I need to look into some other form of doctorate better geared toward teaching?
Since I also own my own IT firm, I am also looking at going for an MBA to further my business/administrative skills as well.
A little background on my specialities:
My main area of expertise would be geared toward Theological courses (Theology Survey, Eschatology, Christology, Ecclesiology, etc., Bibliology is a major passion of mine when it comes to textual comparison, etc.). I am also deepening my knowledge of the church and Church Planning, Church Administration, etc. I have knowledge in administration/legal information. I could also teach courses in: Hermeneutics, Leadership, OT/NT Surveys, Life of Christ, Spiritual Formation, Personal Evangelism, and Bible Book-related classes. I am also wanting to learn the Biblical languages and become proficient enough in Hebrew and Greek where I could teach it if need be.
Other possible courses/fields I could teach if need be are: Music Appreciation (I was a member of the NFSM for 10 years at the national level and earned my Paderewski gold medal the 10th year), technology/computer related courses, Physical Science (depending on the curriculum), English Composition, Christian Education (if it has to do with ministry foundations), Apologetics (While not a subject I would major in, I could minority teach Apologetics on the side as building upon Theological courses), and Creationism.
Additionally, I feel that I would be well suited for the online environment as an adjunct professor, and I could even work alongside a college's IT department as a "technologically knowledgeable professor" if need be. In addition to owning Mallard Computer, Inc., I have had years of experience with both Windows and Macintosh (both Mac OS X and the classic Mac OS, both on PowerPC and Intel processors), I am increasing my knowledge in Linux (both RPM and Debian/Ubuntu-based distos), I have had years of experience on iOS and am beginning to learn Android OS now, I am increasing my knowledge of web services, web applications, HTML, XML, CSS, and JavaScript as I can (fairly limited for now, but I'm learning). Currently, I have built a Moodle installation successfully on a server once, as well as have proficient experience with WordPress and NING, some experience with Drupal, and increasing my knowledge on Oxwall, OwnCloud, and a few other web services. I have had years of experience with DSL and setting up Ethernet and Wireless networks, am beginning to go into learning how to build computer hardware, have some knowledge of cloud-based PBX systems, and have knowledge of the major cloud infrastructure services and wireless chipset and computer microprocessor design. I could also record my lectures in video format easily and could work with live streaming services as well.
That is a little background of me and my skills and what direction I feel the Lord is calling me in to be an online professor. If you have any information you could provide me that would be of a benefit to me, as well as if you wish to share this with anyone else or point me toward someone else I could talk to as well that would benefit me, I would really appreciate it.
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
Comments
-
OK, first of all, this is really just a forum for discussing Logos Bible Software, and there is not really a forum here for this type of discussion. With that said, for you to be credibly marketable in teaching you would need to get an MDiv, and then you would need a doctorate (if you want to be an actual professor). The school you attend should have counselors (John Roland?) who can answer these questions.
If you are not interested in preaching, and you would rather teach, then you would need to major in Old Testament, New Testament, Apologetics, etc... You can't really say that you specialize in anything until you have a degree in it when it comes to teaching. You wouldn't be allowed to teach something in most cases that is not directly related to your degree. For instance, when you say that you could teach English, but you have a degree in something like apologetics, then you would most likely not be allowed to teach English, unless you were at an unaccredited institution or something similar. If you are really serious about being a professor, then you would be required to learn the biblical languages. You would also need to learn at least two research languages other than English at most schools, which would be something like German, French, Latin, etc...
Disclaimer: I hate using messaging, texting, and email for real communication. If anything that I type to you seems like anything other than humble and respectful, then I have not done a good job typing my thoughts.
0 -
Also, be aware that it is very hard to read your post if it is not broken up into paragraphs.
Disclaimer: I hate using messaging, texting, and email for real communication. If anything that I type to you seems like anything other than humble and respectful, then I have not done a good job typing my thoughts.
0 -
Joseph Turner said:
be aware that it is very hard to read your post if it is not broken up into paragraphs.
There is apparently a forum bug which causes the loss of paragraph breaks from time to time, which may explain this post.
macOS, iOS & iPadOS |Logs| Install
Choose Truth Over Tribe | Become a Joyful Outsider!0 -
Logos blog has several articles about Knox Theological Seminary => http://blog.logos.com/?s=knox&submit=Search
One blog article => http://blog.logos.com/2012/06/is-your-school-a-logos-bible-software-partner/ lists a number of schools that use Logos Bible Software.
One idea is contacting schools that offer online courses for their requirements to be an adjunct professor.
Keep Smiling [:)]
0 -
alabama24 said:Joseph Turner said:
be aware that it is very hard to read your post if it is not broken up into paragraphs.
There is apparently a forum bug which causes the loss of paragraph breaks from time to time, which may explain this post.
It's definitely a bug. When I posted it, I broke my paragraphs, and I just tied editing it now to re-break the paragraphs. Problem is, paragraphs are already broken for me in edit mode. Not sure what's going on except it's definitely a bug.
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
0 -
Joseph Turner said:
OK, first of all, this is really just a forum for discussing Logos Bible Software, and there is not really a forum here for this type of discussion. With that said, for you to be credibly marketable in teaching you would need to get an MDiv, and then you would need a doctorate (if you want to be an actual professor). The school you attend should have counselors (John Roland?) who can answer these questions.
If you are not interested in preaching, and you would rather teach, then you would need to major in Old Testament, New Testament, Apologetics, etc... You can't really say that you specialize in anything until you have a degree in it when it comes to teaching. You wouldn't be allowed to teach something in most cases that is not directly related to your degree. For instance, when you say that you could teach English, but you have a degree in something like apologetics, then you would most likely not be allowed to teach English, unless you were at an unaccredited institution or something similar. If you are really serious about being a professor, then you would be required to learn the biblical languages. You would also need to learn at least two research languages other than English at most schools, which would be something like German, French, Latin, etc...
Thanks for the information!
I do understand that this is mainly a Logos Bible Software forum, but I also realize that there are probably some excellent people in the field who frequent this site, so I would love to get the opinion of those people as well as the other places I look for research. Since I have been a longtime Logos user and a longtime member of the Logos forums, I trust the information more from people here than other more random sites I could post at (not that I will not utilize other avenues as well, but I wanted this to be one avenue I asked for information and advice).
I have also been discussing this with my counselors at my Bible college (John being one), and they are encouraging me to also ask around in addition to asking for their advice. They recommend I build a solid network of people I can talk to and ask for advice anywhere I can.
It seems I am on the right path for the MDiv and doctorate. That is good to know.
Thanks for the tidbits on the degree programs. I will keep all that in mind as I narrow down my degree track. What I posted above was mainly brainstorming the subjects that I am most comfortable in and that interest me (along with a list of subjects that I am not as interested in but still am somewhat comfortable in). I can definitely narrow down the list and become more focused when choosing a degree program, but I wanted to start broad and narrow down my list instead of starting narrow and having to expand. I would rather be over prepared and have to cut things then under prepared.
I definitely want to learn the Biblical languages and get a solid handle on them. On the other research languages, would Spanish count as one? I had two years of Spanish in high school and still remember much of it, so I could easily deepen my training there, then work on a secondary language such as German (I'm of German descent so that personally appeals to me).
I am still very new to all of this, so I appreciate any advice or information anyone can give me. I know my calling and know I have much to learn along the way, but I am very willing to learn and listen to counsel.
Thanks again for the information! I appreciate it!
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
0 -
Logos blog has several articles about Knox Theological Seminary => http://blog.logos.com/?s=knox&submit=Search
One blog article => http://blog.logos.com/2012/06/is-your-school-a-logos-bible-software-partner/ lists a number of schools that use Logos Bible Software.
One idea is contacting schools that offer online courses for their requirements to be an adjunct professor.
Keep Smiling
Excellent idea! I will look over those links and start contacting some colleges. Thanks for this!
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
0 -
Logos blog has several articles about Knox Theological Seminary => http://blog.logos.com/?s=knox&submit=Search
One blog article => http://blog.logos.com/2012/06/is-your-school-a-logos-bible-software-partner/ lists a number of schools that use Logos Bible Software.
One idea is contacting schools that offer online courses for their requirements to be an adjunct professor.
Keep Smiling
Excellent information! I will definitely look over these links and contact some colleges. Thanks for this!
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
0 -
Nathan Parker said:
I do understand that this is mainly a Logos Bible Software forum,
Not mainly - that is the sole purpose for which Logos provides the forums. I am uncomfortable with your using the forums for this purpose because the educational standards of the churches represented on the forums varies greatly. Further, the credentials needed (or not needed) depends upon subject domain and where you wish to teach. Again the options range from personal enrichment offered through a personal site to Coursera type classes through fully accredited institutions.
It sounds to me like you need to concentrate on finding the research topics you are passionate about before you starting planning a career around them. So relax, read broadly and critically.
Orthodox Bishop Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."; Orthodox proverb: "We know where the Church is, we do not know where it is not."
0 -
MJ. Smith said:
It sounds to me like you need to concentrate on finding the research topics you are passionate about before you starting planning a career around them.
I agree. Nathan, that is true no matter what level you plan to teach at. A teacher who is passionate about his or her subject matter will make a good teacher and pass on that love of the subject to the students. One who studied some subject just to get necessary credentials to teach it will likely not inspire students, nor enjoy the work. As the saying goes, do what you love and the money will follow.
0 -
Probably some of the best answers you will get will be online based institions. Suggest you drop a note to Dr. Calvin Smith at http://kingsdivinity.org/ He is well known for his work in developing online studies.
0 -
alabama24 said:Joseph Turner said:
be aware that it is very hard to read your post if it is not broken up into paragraphs.
There is apparently a forum bug which causes the loss of paragraph breaks from time to time, which may explain this post.
Ah, I did not realize that. That makes sense.Disclaimer: I hate using messaging, texting, and email for real communication. If anything that I type to you seems like anything other than humble and respectful, then I have not done a good job typing my thoughts.
0 -
Nathan Parker said:
I am currently attending LRU and am a semester away from my BARM degree.
OK, perhaps I'm not up to date on the latest alphabet soup of degrees, but what is "BARM"? Also, what is "LRU"? Is it a recognized and accredited school? Don't settle for "Joe Blow's Online School" for the acquisition of an easy (and meaningless) degree.
Giuseppe Turner was correct in stating that you will need to have two languages other than biblical languages (which you had better get if you really want to teach in the field of theology), but Latin won't serve (I would, however, encourage you to learn Latin as well). What you need is two MODERN languages which are of importance for the study of the secondary literature in the field. German and French or Italian are recommended. Most grad schools require German and French. Dutch is also quite helpful.
george
gfsomselיְמֵי־שְׁנוֹתֵינוּ בָהֶם שִׁבְעִים שָׁנָה וְאִם בִּגְבוּרֹת שְׁמוֹנִים שָׁנָה וְרָהְבָּם עָמָל וָאָוֶן
0 -
alabama24 said:Joseph Turner said:
be aware that it is very hard to read your post if it is not broken up into paragraphs.
There is apparently a forum bug which causes the loss of paragraph breaks from time to time, which may explain this post.
<enter><enter> usually solves the problem.
george
gfsomselיְמֵי־שְׁנוֹתֵינוּ בָהֶם שִׁבְעִים שָׁנָה וְאִם בִּגְבוּרֹת שְׁמוֹנִים שָׁנָה וְרָהְבָּם עָמָל וָאָוֶן
0 -
George Somsel said:
what is "LRU"?
I assumed http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luther_Rice_University
BARM : Bachelor of Arts in Religion – Ministry.
Orthodox Bishop Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."; Orthodox proverb: "We know where the Church is, we do not know where it is not."
0 -
[Y]Rosie Perera said:MJ. Smith said:It sounds to me like you need to concentrate on finding the research topics you are passionate about before you starting planning a career around them.
I agree. Nathan, that is true no matter what level you plan to teach at. A teacher who is passionate about his or her subject matter will make a good teacher and pass on that love of the subject to the students. One who studied some subject just to get necessary credentials to teach it will likely not inspire students, nor enjoy the work. As the saying goes, do what you love and the money will follow.
0 -
MJ. Smith said:Nathan Parker said:
I do understand that this is mainly a Logos Bible Software forum,
Not mainly - that is the sole purpose for which Logos provides the forums. I am uncomfortable with your using the forums for this purpose because the educational standards of the churches represented on the forums varies greatly. Further, the credentials needed (or not needed) depends upon subject domain and where you wish to teach. Again the options range from personal enrichment offered through a personal site to Coursera type classes through fully accredited institutions.
It sounds to me like you need to concentrate on finding the research topics you are passionate about before you starting planning a career around them. So relax, read broadly and critically.
That is a good point. I have somewhat of an idea of the topics I'm most passionate about, as well as I plan to do some extensive reading in Logos over the summer and as I complete my bachelor's degree on a broad range of Biblical topics to better refine my interests. Good news is I'm already making a list of topics I'm not heavily passionate about, so I know which ones to eliminate.
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
0 -
MJ. Smith said:George Somsel said:
what is "LRU"?
I assumed http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luther_Rice_University
BARM : Bachelor of Arts in Religion – Ministry.
That would appear to be correct since Nathan seems enchanted by Stanley who apparently also went there. When I was in the cemetary they were dishing out BDs though some were issuing MDivs. I think an MDiv is a degradation of the BD since many no longer require the biblical languages. As a mug I bought from Eisenbraun's says (in Akkadian) "The scribe who cannot read Sumerian, what kind of scribe is he?"
george
gfsomselיְמֵי־שְׁנוֹתֵינוּ בָהֶם שִׁבְעִים שָׁנָה וְאִם בִּגְבוּרֹת שְׁמוֹנִים שָׁנָה וְרָהְבָּם עָמָל וָאָוֶן
0 -
Rosie Perera said:MJ. Smith said:
It sounds to me like you need to concentrate on finding the research topics you are passionate about before you starting planning a career around them.
I agree. Nathan, that is true no matter what level you plan to teach at. A teacher who is passionate about his or her subject matter will make a good teacher and pass on that love of the subject to the students. One who studied some subject just to get necessary credentials to teach it will likely not inspire students, nor enjoy the work. As the saying goes, do what you love and the money will follow.
Good point as well. There are a few subjects I am deeply passionate about and wish to take both my knowledge much further on as well as would enjoy teaching the material to students. I will work to continue studying those subjects and begin to nail down which fields I want to teach.
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
0 -
Donovan R. Palmer said:
Probably some of the best answers you will get will be online based institions. Suggest you drop a note to Dr. Calvin Smith at http://kingsdivinity.org/ He is well known for his work in developing online studies.
Thanks for the link. I'll definitely check it out!
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
0 -
Joseph Turner said:
Ah, I did not realize that. That makes sense.alabama24 said:Joseph Turner said:be aware that it is very hard to read your post if it is not broken up into paragraphs.
There is apparently a forum bug which causes the loss of paragraph breaks from time to time, which may explain this post.
I didn't even realize it myself until it happened this time. :-)
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
0 -
George Somsel said:Nathan Parker said:
I am currently attending LRU and am a semester away from my BARM degree.
OK, perhaps I'm not up to date on the latest alphabet soup of degrees, but what is "BARM"? Also, what is "LRU"? Is it a recognized and accredited school? Don't settle for "Joe Blow's Online School" for the acquisition of an easy (and meaningless) degree.
Giuseppe Turner was correct in stating that you will need to have two languages other than biblical languages (which you had better get if you really want to teach in the field of theology), but Latin won't serve (I would, however, encourage you to learn Latin as well). What you need is two MODERN languages which are of importance for the study of the secondary literature in the field. German and French or Italian are recommended. Most grad schools require German and French. Dutch is also quite helpful.
Since I sent this out mainly to my professors at my college, I used abbreviations and should have definitely expanded them when posting here. Sorry for the confusion.
M.J. Smith is correct. LRU is Luther Rice University It is an accredited university, and alumni include Charles Stanley and Morris Proctor. It is a good university. I turned down some other good colleges that even though they had good training, they were not accredited. I definitely want my degrees to mean something.
BARM is Bachelor of Arts in Religion Ministry. Again, M.J. Smith is correct, and I should have expanded that abbreviation as well. :-)
Sounds good on the two additional languages. I have always wanted to learn German, so it would give me an excuse to do so. I have considered learning French as well, so maybe I should go for those two. I could study Latin as well for the extra benefit, and I definitely want to get a solid grip on the Biblical languages. Regardless if I was going to be a professor or simply work in other ministry fields, I want to get into the Biblical languages.
Thanks for this info as well!
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
0 -
George Somsel said:alabama24 said:Joseph Turner said:
be aware that it is very hard to read your post if it is not broken up into paragraphs.
There is apparently a forum bug which causes the loss of paragraph breaks from time to time, which may explain this post.
<enter><enter> usually solves the problem.
Nice to know! I was wondering if there was an HTML code I could use. I may give this a try later on.
By the way, if anyone wishes to message me concerning any of this further personally off the Logos Forums, my direct email can be reached here: http://mallardcomputer.com/about/contactnathan/index.php. Posting my contact form so as to not expose my email address. We're also about to re-design the website from the ground up on WordPress so it'll be more responsive and scalable. Looking forward to phasing out the older code. :-)
Thanks again everyone for your help!
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
0 -
Nathan Parker said:
I was wondering if there was an HTML code I could use.
Forum editor has HTML option. Have learned <p> and </p> keep paragraphs in replies while <div> and </div> do not.
Keep Smiling [:)]
0 -
Nathan Parker said:George Somsel said:alabama24 said:Joseph Turner said:
be aware that it is very hard to read your post if it is not broken up into paragraphs.
There is apparently a forum bug which causes the loss of paragraph breaks from time to time, which may explain this post.
<enter><enter> usually solves the problem.
Nice to know! I was wondering if there was an HTML code I could use. I may give this a try later on.
By the way, if anyone wishes to message me concerning any of this further personally off the Logos Forums, my direct email can be reached here: http://mallardcomputer.com/about/contactnathan/index.php. Posting my contact form so as to not expose my email address. We're also about to re-design the website from the ground up on WordPress so it'll be more responsive and scalable. Looking forward to phasing out the older code. :-)
Thanks again everyone for your help!
The double <enter> seems to work for me and is faster than resorting to HTML though, as KS4J notes, that is available if it doesn't work for you since it seems that there are differing responses for different individuals.
george
gfsomselיְמֵי־שְׁנוֹתֵינוּ בָהֶם שִׁבְעִים שָׁנָה וְאִם בִּגְבוּרֹת שְׁמוֹנִים שָׁנָה וְרָהְבָּם עָמָל וָאָוֶן
0 -
Nathan stated that he had sent the same information to his professors, so I wonder if he copied and pasted from somewhere. Maybe it was something in the copy/paste that didn't pass the formatting. Is that possible Nathan?
Disclaimer: I hate using messaging, texting, and email for real communication. If anything that I type to you seems like anything other than humble and respectful, then I have not done a good job typing my thoughts.
0 -
Joseph Turner said:
Nathan stated that he had sent the same information to his professors, so I wonder if he copied and pasted from somewhere. Maybe it was something in the copy/paste that didn't pass the formatting. Is that possible Nathan?
Copied/pasted it from email, so it's highly possible something went awry during the copy/paste.
I'm trying to edit my post now and try George's suggestion, but now I'm not seeing the ability to edit my post. Am I overloooking it? I thought it was on the More Menu.
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
0 -
Nathan Parker said:
Copied/pasted it from email, so it's highly possible something went awry during the copy/paste.
I'm trying to edit my post now and try George's suggestion, but now I'm not seeing the ability to edit my post. Am I overloooking it? I thought it was on the More Menu.
It is on the "More" menu, but there is a time limit. It is possible that you have exceeded the time limit.george
gfsomselיְמֵי־שְׁנוֹתֵינוּ בָהֶם שִׁבְעִים שָׁנָה וְאִם בִּגְבוּרֹת שְׁמוֹנִים שָׁנָה וְרָהְבָּם עָמָל וָאָוֶן
0 -
George Somsel said:
It is on the "More" menu, but there is a time limit. It is possible that you have exceeded the time limit.Nathan Parker said:Copied/pasted it from email, so it's highly possible something went awry during the copy/paste.
I'm trying to edit my post now and try George's suggestion, but now I'm not seeing the ability to edit my post. Am I overloooking it? I thought it was on the More Menu.
Looks like it. I'm not seeing it. Oh well! At least I'll know how to resolve it next time.
Nathan Parker
Visit my blog at http://focusingonthemarkministries.com
0 -
Nathan Parker said:
I'm trying to edit my post now and try George's suggestion, but now I'm not seeing the ability to edit my post. Am I overloooking it? I thought it was on the More Menu.
Oh, I wouldn't worry about it now anyway. I was just interested in why it was happening. I think it is the copy/paste act that did it. It seems that the text window requires the manual "enter" function in order to provide the spaces, even if they were there in the original formatting from the previous source. That is good information to know for all of us!Disclaimer: I hate using messaging, texting, and email for real communication. If anything that I type to you seems like anything other than humble and respectful, then I have not done a good job typing my thoughts.
0 -
Nathan Parker said:
I'm trying to edit my post now and try George's suggestion, but now I'm not seeing the ability to edit my post. Am I overloooking it? I thought it was on the More Menu.
There's a time limit of a couple of hours to editing.
Joseph Turner said:I think it is the copy/paste act that did it. It seems that the text window requires the manual "enter" function in order to provide the spaces, even if they were there in the original formatting from the previous source.
Unfortunately not. I experience this bug quite often when simply typing in the editor (using IE or Chrome).
It sometimes seems to work differently (such as double paragraph marks "work" by collapsing into one paragraph mark), but not always.
Have joy in the Lord!
0
said:
