EGST 23nd Graduation
July 29, 2023, the Ethiopian Graduate School of Theology
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
The Board of the Ethiopian Graduate School of Theology (EGST) in its meeting held on July 25, 2023 approved the graduation of all the 61 candidates recommended by the Faculty Council.
On July 29, 2023 EGST awards Post Graduate Degrees to these 23rd batches in its campus. The 61 graduates are composed of five programs: Biblical and Theological Studies, Leadership and Management, Development Studies, Post-graduate Diploma in Biblical and Theological Studies and Master of Theology.
With the current 61 alumni included, EGST has achieved a total of 819 Post Graduate and Masters Graduates in its 26 years of service. EGST is currently in its extended admission and expect to accept new students in its six programmes for the next academic year 2023/2024.
On their messages to the prospective graduates, EGST leaders made remarks for the graduates to faithfully serve the Lord amid difficult situations in holistic manner. In his congratulatory message to the graduates EGST Board Chairperson, Prof. Teketel Yohannes remarked that ‘as the Board of Governors, we are committed to supporting the vision and mission of EGST, which is to provide quality, relevant, contextual, and holistic theological and related education, and stimulate research for the service of the church and society in Ethiopia and beyond.’
EGST Director, Rev. Dr Misgana Mathewos in a message published at the 2023 Year Book noted the achievement of the graduates evokes manifold feelings of joy and challenge. ‘We acknowledge that your stay at EGST has been a blessing to the EGST community in many ways. You have been here not only to receive but also to give. A treasure of knowledge, wisdom, and expertise from your educational, ministerial, and professional backgrounds reflected in curricular and extracurricular activities have had their immense role in our academic and research development. Your coming from different ecclesial backgrounds yet standing for common goal made us cherish our values of ‘unity in diversity’ and ‘ecumenical relations’. EGST is truly an academic and ecumenical community,’ he remarked.
EGST exists to equip Christ-like women and men through theological and related studies and stimulate research for the service of church and society in Ethiopia and beyond. The main areas of work are teaching, research and community engagement.
EGST currently offers post- graduate studies ranging from Post Graduate Diploma (PGD) to Doctor of Philosophy (PhD).Post Graduate Diploma in Biblical and Theological Studies (PGD), Master of Arts in Biblical and Theological Studies (MABTS), Master of Arts in Leadership and Management (MALM), Master of Arts in Development Studies with specialization areas in Community Development and Theology and Gender, Health and Theology (MADevS), Master of Theology (MTh). EGST is also offering doctoral studies programme in partnership with the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VUA) which was launched in October 2017.
In 2010, EGST has been awarded accreditation by the Association for Christian Theological Education in Africa (ACTEA), recognizing the teaching standards and contextual relevance of EGST’s programs as well as the overall administration and resources of the school.
Furthermore, on March 14, 2019 after an extensive international peer review of its programmes, EGST has also received validation to all its programmes from the Free University of Amsterdam (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), founded by former Prime Minister of Holland Abraham Kipper.
EGST is registered in Ethiopia according to Proclamation Number 691/2003 by the former Ministry of Federal Affairs currently renamed as Ministry of Peace to serve church and society with the objective of teaching, research and community engagement.
(EGST Public Relations Communications, July 28, 2023 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.)
We seek to subject our thoughts and actions to God’s Word and affirm the power of Scripture to effect change in individual lives, churches and society.
We come together as a community of learners not for our sake only but also for the sake of others. We seek to grow in our understanding of God and his ways, so that we may help others to acknowledge his governance over the world with its rich possibilities for both individual transformation and for social and cultural renewal.
We believe that theological education speaks to and out of its local context as a dynamic interaction between the local context, the global context and Scripture.
We strongly believe that unity among the churches of Ethiopia is important and can be fostered through cooperative, inter-denominational graduate-level theological education. We also seek to partner with individuals, institutions, churches and organizations within and outside Ethiopia.
We value learning alongside people from different traditions and churches. Exposure to varying traditions challenges thinking about God and the diversity of his work in the world. While EGST promotes unity, it also appreciates and respects diversity.
We value the importance of worshipping God with our minds and strive for excellence both in our rigorous study of Scripture and in our critical analysis of context.
We seek to be people who model Christ’s values such as love, humility, compassion, justice, integrity, self-control, and holiness.
We seek to promote ecumenical relationships among churches in Ethiopia in order to enhance mutual understanding.
