What is distinct about St. Stephen’s University?  This question could be more accurately phrased—What is not distinct about St. Stephen’s University?!

SSU is an extremely unique university, which has often been referred to as “one of the best kept secrets in Canada.”  At SSU we are privileged to offer excellent academic programs in Arts and Ministry that are consistently interactive, international, intercultural, and interdenominational in scope.  While engaging in challenging academic work, students are also given the opportunity to live at the centre of a Christian learning community.  This experience of community—of living, studying, worshipping, cooking, cleaning, and traveling together—not only broadens students’ worldviews (and those of staff/faculty members!), it also teaches invaluable life lessons, strengthens and stretches character, and brings new meaning to Jesus’ command to “love one another.”

STUDY THE CLASSICS

SSU offers two streams of education—Arts & Ministry—both providing strong academic grounding and travel experience in a Christian setting.  All of our programs feature small class sizes, study abroad components, and an emphasis on interaction with challenging ideas. 

Our Liberal Arts Program offers a Foundation Year Diploma as the first year of a four-year Bachelor of Arts degree. In this program, students can major in disciplines such as Philosophy, Religious Studies, Interdisciplinary Studies, Literature, History, etc.  The second and third year of this program includes study abroad terms in Europe and Asia, and in their fourth year students have the opportunity to earn an Honours degree by completing an undergraduate thesis.

Our Ministry Program offers training for professional and lay ministry. We offer a Bachelor of Ministry, and a Masters in Ministry degree (residential or by module) as well as several Diplomas. Students in this program spend two weeks studying and traveling in the Middle East, and a Master’s thesis is required for all students enrolled in the Masters of Ministry program.

VISIT THE PROGRAMS PAGES FOR MORE INFORMATION >>>

READ A DETAILED, COLOUR OVERVIEW OF ALL SSU PROGRAMS (PDF, 10.04MB) >>>

DOWNLOAD A PRINTABLE OVERVIEW OF ALL SSU PROGRAMS (PDF, 11.0MB) >>>

TRAVEL THE WORLD

Have you ever wanted to travel the world, and to find a university that offers you more than textbooks, lectures, and exams?  Wouldn’t it be exciting to live in diverse cultures, to stand next to Leonardo and Michelangelo’s masterpieces, to walk the streets where the Apostle Paul preached, or to study at a university in Northern Thailand?  Students enrolled in the Liberal Arts program at SSU spend two full semesters traveling through Western Europe and Southeast Asia, while students in the Ministry program spend two weeks traveling in the Middle East.  These study abroad terms serve to illuminate and further ideas discussed in the classroom, and to broaden students’ worldviews, allowing them to see God in other cultures, and to learn more about themselves and their Christian faith in the process.

VISIT OUR STUDY ABROAD PAGES FOR MORE INFORMATION >>>

WORSHIP THE ONE

Community worship at SSU is characterized by a thoughtful approach to Scripture, and a love of praising and serving God through diverse expressions of personal and communal worship such as visual arts, music, community involvement, etc.  The SSU community maintains an openness to the work of the Holy Spirit, and has a deep love and concern for the world at large. Students, staff, faculty, and friends of SSU gather for an informal time of worship several times each week, and all are encouraged to actively participate in local churches.

 

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

At SSU we have discovered that there is a direct connection between success in academic studies and one's spiritual and emotional well-being. Our student body is small (under 100 students) intentionally. It enhances close relationships among students, faculty, and staff, which in turn fosters a maturity of character and faith that expresses itself both inside and outside the classroom. Students come to SSU in order to acquire an integrated body of knowledge and to develop their ability to reason, reflect and understand. This vital process takes place in the midst of their life together.

SSU is a place where people grow in their Christian discipleship. Each member learns to live and work with others, develops gifts and skills in a supportive atmosphere, and prepares to exercise leadership in society through a deepening awareness of what God is doing in the world.  To find out more about life in the SSU community,

READ OUR STUDENT HANDBOOK >>>

 

 

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