Course – Family Studies

Next school: Starts April 2024

Are you considering work with families, couples and/or children? Have you done a YWAM DTS and want to equip families in your church, ministry or base? This foundational school will get you started with a Biblical understanding of family and provides tools to strengthen families and marriages. This accredited program is suited for both single and married people with a heart for transforming families.

(Although you can read this page in many languages, courses are only offered in certain languages.¹)

This school will require online participation, a time commitment of about 8 hours per week, and at least one physical meeting (a couple of weeks or perhaps some other format) known as an intensive¹. The school runs for fourteen months, finishing the lecture/online phase the following year. The intensive will probably be toward the end of the course, but this could vary with the different cohort groups.

The Foundations for Family Studies (FAM251) introduces students to the Biblical foundational concepts of family life. It presents a model for the study and understanding of the dynamics of family life, and introduces basic tools for working with individuals, couples and families. You will emerge equipped to provide resources for families in your locality. The lecture phase is broken down into these major topics.

Worldview and Biblical view of family
Introduction to the Family of Origin model and Genograms
Marriage relationships
Parenting
Basic seminar skills
Christian family in today’s world
Basic skills for coaching
Families in ministry

…and you will do this mostly from your home! All you need is a computer and a good internet connection!

Students can anticipate a challenge to grow and develop their Christian character traits. You will increase their competence in ministering to families. The FFS will, apart from strengthening your own family and relationships, prepare you to reach out to families in your sphere of influence i.e., the church, community, YWAM base.

This program is essentially on-line, but you benefit from a personal 1-on-1 tutor, group discussions with each module, individual feedback on your assignments, and regular contact with other students through student trios and group “coffee times”. Teaching content is offered via pre-recorded sessions, and these are designed to be short and easily understood. For many modules you will be able to meet with the teacher on-line for an interactive session. You will submit work in the form of written materials or sometimes short videos. You are also required to have a local personal coach who you can choose.

This school will be registered as 12 credits with the College of Family Studies (extension studies) of the UofN. All modules combined may be recognised as the second level FFS school FAM 251 (conditions apply). We expect you will also find opportunities for application (or outreach), during of after the school. ( Residential UofN courses include an outreach phase. In the case of the FFS online, it is possible to integrate outreach with your studies, or to compete outreach credits through application after you have finished the modules. Certain conditions apply). The details are to be confirmed with the school leader.

If you are interested in pursuing a degree in Family Studies, please indicate this when registering for this school, so we can discuss the requirements.

The online tuition fee for the FFS online is 490² euros in Europe. This excludes costs for books (usually available as e-books at a minimal cost). The price includes access to all the online modules (as long as your work submissions and participation are up to date), personal staff tutoring and of course credit registration with the UofN.

The intensive (planned toward the end of the school) is estimated at 650 euros in Europe³, including accommodation and meals (the final price will depend the location, cohorts may be able to participate in an intensive locally).

1.This could vary in form depending on the location. Cohorts are currently anticipated in Europe, India, Brazil (Portuguese) and Madagascar (French).

2. A €22 non-refundable registration fee is included. It is possible to apply for a % bourse for the module tuition fees if your situation merits consideration. Your local cohort leader will be able to inform you about this after you have applied.

3. The cost for the intensive may vary significantly depending on the location and the modality of the intensive.

For questions contact us or email ffs@familystudies.online
Ready to apply? Fill out this form.

Are you ministering to families regularly? Have you done prior training* and want to deepen your knowledge & skills to work effectively with Families, yet you can’t leave your ministry for 3-5 months to do a University of the Nations school?

* If you have completed a YWAM DTS and a Foundations in Family Studies course or an FMS, then you qualify. If you have only completed a YWAM DTS and now have experience working with families and couples, you may also qualify to join. Please ask.
If you have not studied Family Systems or Genograms, you will be able to take two short courses as a prerequisite before starting the program.

TOPICS

In the Online Advanced Family Studies (AFS) you will take your skills to the next level :

Genograms and Family Systems
Motivational interviewing coaching skills
Parenting
Sexuality and Gender
Contemporary Family & Marriage issues
Theology of marriage
Dysfunction, stress and trauma in families
Developing culturally appropriate courses

…and you will do this mostly from your home! All you need is a computer and a good internet connection!

ONLINE & INTENSIVES

This school will be run mostly online, ending with an on-site intensive. The online modules will run in a cohort, meaning that we work through each module connected to a group of students. This program is essentially on-line, but you benefit from a personal 1-on-1 tutor, group discussions with each module, individual feedback on your assignments, and regular contact with other students through student trios and group “coffee times”.

The intensive is planned to run each year. The online modules will take place over the course of 14 months and require self-study, online teaching and Zoom (small) group meetings. These require about 25 hours (5 – 6 hours a week) each and will become available ever 5 or 6 weeks. You can choose to do 8 to 10 online credits, plus 3 credits during the intensive.

LANGUAGE OPTIONS

The Course material & lectures are offered in English. Depending students and staff there will be language groups, so you can do the processing and written work also in, for example, Korean, French or Portuguese. A minimum of 6 students is required to start a language cohort.

EXTENSION STUDY CREDITS & DEGREE

This school will be registered as 11 – 13 credits with the Family Resource Centre of the UofN. All modules combined may count towards the third level AFS school (FAM 351), building upon the existing Foundation for Family Studies. We expect you will do outreach or module application, details to be confirmed with the school leader. If you are interested in pursuing a degree in Family Studies, please indicate this when registering for this school, so we can discuss the requirements.

COST

The online tuition fee for the AFS is 490** euros (Europe) . This excludes costs for books (usually available as e-books at a minimal cost). It does include access to the online modules (as long as your work and attendance is up to date) and of course credit registration with the UofN.
The intensive (planned during the school) is estimated at 650** euros (Europe), including accommodation and meals (the final price will depend the location, cohorts may be able to participate in an intensive locally).

** Prices may vary depending your location and the courses taken. A non-refundable registration fee of €22 is included.

APPLICATION

Via this form you can indicate your interest and ask further questions.

To apply go here.

Click on the module content below to find out more about each topic.