How to Select Courses to Take in London
Using the Biola/RU Historical List of Courses
Students interested in applying for Biola London should first explore whether the available courses at RU will be approved by their advisors and will work to complete their major or general education requirements and other academic goals.
Students are required to select three (3) Roehampton courses for nine (9) Biola units for study at Roehampton. In addition to the nine (9) Biola units, there will be a mandatory 3-unit Biola HIST 305 English History course; as well as a mandatory 3-unit BBST 465 Biola course held on the Roehampton campus and taught by a believing instructor from the London School of Theology. The above-listed units bring the total to fifteen (15) Biola credit units. Additionally, Biola London applicants will select nine (9) alternate Biola units (three (3) alternate Roehampton courses) from Roehampton's study-abroad catalogue, in the event some/all of the first choices selected are unavailable.
Nine Biola units are equal to three (3) Roehampton courses. Each Roehampton course returns as 3 Biola units. Thus, to cover both primary and alternate choices, the applicant must select 6 Roehampton courses (equal to 9 primary units, plus 9 alternate units of Biola courses). With the inclusion of the HIST 305 course and the BBST 465 course, the number of Biola units is 15. One step towards determining which courses might work for interested students is the Biola/RU Historic List of Courses.
Biola London's historical list of courses chronicles the RU courses in the past that academic advisors from the various disciplines at Biola have approved for credit. From this list, students will get an idea of what courses previous students in their major took, and what Biola courses these counted for.
Please Note: This list does not guarantee that your academic advisor will, in your case, approve the same RU course for its Biola equivalent. This is only to give you an idea of what credits have been issued in the past. Also, you are not limited to the courses on this list. See RU's Course Catalog on the web to see if other courses interest you.
To use the historical list, go to the section that lists your major, and note the course names and numbers from both the Biola and RU's Study-Abroad Course catalogs. Then, take these to both RU's Course Catalog on the web and Biola's catalog for a description of these courses and to determine whether they will work for your curriculum. Make sure and read Exploring RU's Study-Abroad Course Catalog first to help you interpret what courses RU offers in the Fall and how many units they are worth.
Exploring RU's Study-Abroad Course Catalog
The Roehampton website for the Study-Abroad Course Catalog(ue) is as follows:
http://studentzone.roehampton.ac.uk/programmedetails/ug/studyabroadcatalogue/
This is the only website for international study-abroad students to choose correct modules from, as it is especially formatted for them.
Roehampton modules with a “C” in the number indicates an introductory-level course (such as a Biola 100 or 200 level class); modules indicating “N” or “X” in the number indicates advanced courses (such as Biola’s 300 or 400 level courses). If you are looking at courses outside your major discipline, you will want to select “C”level modules (although Biola students should be able to handle “N” and “X” modules in Biblical studies, regardless of their Biola majors).
Any Roehampton module returns to Biola as three (3) credit units, regardless of whether that module is listed as a 10-unit or a 20-unit module. This change is effective as of the Fall 2012 Biola London semester.
Only modules with the letter “A” (Autumn) at the end of its number are to be selectable by Biola London students, inasmuch as our program is only during the Autumn (Fall) semester.
To determine whether a certain Roehampton module may be approved for Biola credit, click the module number and read its description. If it resembles a course in the Biola catalog, print out the description and discuss it with your advisor. Your advisor will be the one to determine whether the RU module can stand in the place of a Biola course in your major. For any course outside your major, the chair of that department must approve the selection.
The Biola London application will require an applicant listing 6 Roehampton module choices, which is the equivalent of 18 Biola credit units (listings being 3 Roehampton primary choices and their Biola counterparts of 9 Biola units; and, 3 Roehampton alternate choices and their Biola counterparts, in the event primary choices are unavailable).
The mandatory Biola courses of HIST 305 English History and the BBST 465 @ 3 units each, added to the 9 units selected from the Roehampton Study-Abroad Course Catalogue make for a total of 15 Biola units.