Novi Sad Theological College
Novi Sad Theological College (NSTC) (Serbian: Teološki fakultet - Novi Sad) is a Serbian language theological educational institution in Novi Sad, Serbia. NSTC seeks to equip emerging and current Christian leaders for ministry service in South East Europe, and is the only Protestant/Evangelical theological post-secondary educational institution in Serbia. NSTC has an interdenominational board of directors, faculty, and student body. The school building and library are owned by the College's host, the Baptist Union of Serbia.
History
The Novi Sad Theological Seminary formally opened in 2000, but its roots go back much further. A Baptist Bible school was opened in 1940 in Belgrade. It was reopened in 1954 in Zagreb, Croatia. In 1957, the school was moved to Novi Sad, where it occupied the current NSTS facility in 1965. The school operated until 1994, when the Baptist Union split according to the new national boundaries in the Former Yugoslavia. The new borders left Protestants and Evangelicals in Serbia without a theological educational institution in their country. Only a few Evangelical leaders were able to receive training, because it involved leaving their churches to study abroad for years at a time.
Realising the need for theological education in Serbia, the Baptist Union of Serbia offered the use of their vacant facilities to begin a new interdenominational theological school. The Seminary spent its first year renovating the building which had been severely neglected. Under the leadership of Dr. Dimitrije Popadić, NSTS was founded in 2000, offering both undergraduate and graduate programmes. As of November 2005, over 80 degrees and certificates have been awarded.
As of 2008 the Seminary is no longer under the Baptist Union of Serbia, and has changed its Serbian name to Protestantski Teološki Fakultet (Protestant Theological Seminary).