About Placement

During their time at LST, students will complete a combination of one or more of the following:

-    Level 4 (first year): placement is weekly, through term-time (or continuously for students in a home church). This is for THEOLOGY students (with a total minimum requirement of 72 hours) and THEOLOGY & WORSHIP students (with a total minimum requirement of 60 hours)
-    Level 5 (second year): placement can be either weekly through term-time or intensively in a vacation for THEOLOGY students (with a total minimum requirement of 82 hours) and weekly for THEOLOGY & LIBERAL ARTS students (with a total minimum requirement of 50 hours from January onwards)
-    Informal Placement

Level 4 Placement (term-time)

Each student who enrols at LST for our undergraduate programmes in Theology (TH) and Theology & Worship Studies (TWS) is required to do a practical placement. The process of allocating students to churches is one of prayer and discernment, matching  students' giftings to the needs of our church partners. It is our aim that the placement experience will help students identify, develop and pass on their practical gifts and skills, whilst growing in Christian character, exploring leadership potential and being shaped for future life and ministry.

TH4 students must complete a minimum of 72 placement hours during term-time (an average of about <4 hours per week, over 20 term-time weeks from October to May), whilst TWS students must complete a minimum of 60 placement hours in the same timespan. There is no upper limit to placement hours, as long as neither the student’s studies nor well-being are compromised. These hours comprise 70% of a core first year module, worked out alongside a blend of acquisition activities (plenary sessions and practical ministry), which provide an effective training environment for students to apply in the ‘real world’ what they are learning at LST. 

Level 5 Placement (term-time or vacation)

Level 5 differs from Level 4 placements in that they are more intentionally linked to vocational preparation. Each placement is unique and can be carried out in a range of contexts: church, social action, mission, education, and the secular workplace. Individual placements have ranged from chaplaincy at Heathrow Airport to masterminding a worship conference; from teaching in a school in Jerusalem to working with victims of hate crime. Placements can be carried out in different ways, according to the needs of the placement provider and student.

Placements are an integral part of the Level 5 programme. 

1. For Theology students placement comprises 70% of the core module Practical Placement II (TH5008) for Theology students, who must complete a minimum of 82 hours, which can be done as a:

• term-time placement (an average of 4-4.5 hours per week over 20 term-time weeks from October to May).
• vacation placement (flexible: either intensively over 2-3 weeks or, for example, one 8-hour day per week over 11 weeks. 

The vacation can be completed at three points during the year:

• In the summer BEFORE entering Level 5
• In the Christmas vacation
• In the Easter vacation (though this is generally not advised, due to proximity to exams).

3. Informal Placement: in Level 6 (third year), students are not required to carry out a formal practical placement, nor is placement part of the core syllabus for some of our programmes. However, all students are encouraged to do an informal placement. By completing the paperwork required for typical placement and recording hours, informal placement can act as valuable work experience. It also often results in strong recommendations and referees for future employment opportunities.