Diploma in Preaching
The Cliff College Diploma in Preaching is designed to equip emerging preachers in the Methodist family of churches with knowledge and skills to lead worship and preach. Over 18 months, you’ll explore the building blocks of leading congregational worship and preaching in a variety of settings, inspiring your confidence as you follow God’s call to be an ambassador of the joyful news of Jesus today.
Our Diploma in Preaching has been carefully designed to cover key areas of knowledge and practice. You’ll gain a firm foundation in the call and craft of preaching, the text of Scripture and the Methodist theological tradition, and the building blocks of worship that communicate Jesus’ joyful news in the world today.
This Diploma combines flexible, independent study and opportunities for learning and growing together with others through three ways of learning:
- An 18-month online learning programme, packed with short, engaging tutorial videos and guided online resources and activities. You’ll complete this in four blocks, taking roughly four months for each block.
- Monthly online tutorials with Cliff College tutors. These evening drop-in sessions are a regular opportunity to ask questions, get support and deepen your learning with others.
- Four Saturday Diploma Gatherings that mark the end of each block. In these Gatherings you can expect to practise elements of leading worship and preaching in a supportive environment, and get constructive feedback from our teaching team.
Everyone learns in different ways, and we have designed the Diploma with a variety of learning preferences in mind. We recommend that you set aside five hours per week to get the most from this Diploma.
There will be different assessment tasks throughout your study, which will include multiple-choice quizzes, short written responses, creative activities and observations of practice. Successful completion of the Diploma results in the awarding of a Cliff College Diploma.
The Diploma has four blocks - A, B, C and D - that take roughly four months each to complete. Each block includes learning in the six key areas of knowledge and practice, so that students gain an understanding of how these elements fit together and build on one another.
| Call | Craft | Text | Tradition | Worship | World | |
| Block A | Sharing a personal faith testimony | Preaching styles | Making sense of the gospels | Jesus in Christian theology | Praying in public worship | Reflecting on life theologically |
| Block B | Faith journalling | Storytelling | Making sense of the Old Testament | The Spirit in Christian theology | Leading liturgy | Understanding contemporary culture |
| Block C | Local preaching | Planning and preparing a sermon | Making sense of the New Testament Letters | Making sense of Methodism | Leading worship and preaching online | Exploring worship across cultures and communities |
| Block D | Creating a preaching development plan | Preaching with more than words | Making sense of the Prophets | The future in Christian theology | Creating meaningful responses in worship | Preaching about contemporary issues |
This course starts in January 2027 and finishes in summer 2028, with teaching separated into four blocks (A, B, C and D). Each block lasts four months, and concludes with a Saturday Diploma Gathering where students will practice elements of leading worship and preaching in a supportive environment. The dates for the Saturday Gatherings for this cohort will be:
- Saturday 17 April 2027
- Saturday 3 July 2027
- 6 November 2027
- Saturday 22 April 2028
The total cost for the programme is £1500. This can be paid in one lump sum, in three instalments of £500 each or in 15 monthly instalments of £90 with an initial registration fee of £150.
Applications for this course are now open - apply here! The deadline for applications for a January 2027 start is Saturday 31 October. If you have any questions about the unit or application process, please contact enquiries@cliffcollege.ac.uk.
Entry requirements and English language proficiency
Applicants are not required to submit evidence of academic qualifications, but they must have a sufficient grasp of the English language to be able to read and understand course materials and complete written assessments. If you have any questions about this, please contact enquiries@cliffcollege.ac.uk.
Applicants whose first language is not English shall have achieved an overall IELTS score of 6.0 or equivalent in an equivalent recognised test. This must have been achieved no longer than two years before the date of enrolment on the unit.
Successful completion of the Diploma fulfils the learning requirements for accreditation as a Local Preacher in the Methodist Church in Britain (MCB) and the Methodist Church in Ireland (MCI). Cliff College acts as the Local Preacher tutor for your studies. To be accredited as a Local Preacher in MCB or MCI, you will also need to fulfil the requirements for accreditation through the completion of ‘trial services’ in your local Circuit and interview with your local Preacher Meeting. A local mentor will support you with these aspects of accreditation, in collaboration with the tutors at Cliff.
In order to undertake this course as the learning requirement for accreditation, you will need to be either 'on note' or 'on trial' when you commence studying.
For Ministers, Local Preachers’ Secretaries and Mentors
We would love to keep you up to date with information on how the course is developing and how often it is likely to run, so that you can share this with people in your churches and circuits who might be interested. Contact enquiries@cliffcollege.ac.uk, letting us know your role and the church and circuit you belong to, and we will keep you informed of all the latest developments.