Professional development (PD) is ongoing professional learning. It isn’t hard. It is not onerous. It is continuing to develop your ministry skills and learning. Full Gospel Australia is committed to providing opportunities for all our ministers so they can be the best they can be.
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Each Minister in FGA commits to engaging with continuing professional development, in order to maintain their credential, enhancing their standing in their community and ensuring their ministry is continually improving.
| Credential Held | Number of Professional Development hours required per year. |
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| Ordained Minister | 20 Hours |
| Associate Minister | 15 Hours |
| Community Chaplain | 10 Hours |
| Christian Worker | 5 Hours |
How are Professional Development Hours Accumulated?
Ministers accumulate PD points (1 Point = 1 Hour of Study or Development Activity) by engaging with studies or activities which further develop their ability to minister. The overwhelming majority of Full Gospel Australia’s ministers already accumulate far more than the standard 20 PD hours set.
For instance, reading a theological or ministry book may take on average 5 to 7 hours for a 250 page book. We allow five points for reading a 250-300 page theology or ministry book. A one day conference will likely include about five hours of teaching, ministry training or development activity: we allow five points for a one day conference. A training day for Child Safety in Organisations usually goes for one day of around five hours of mixed lectures, study and activities. We allow ten points for completion of a Child Safe Training day.
An example of how it could work
Julie is an Ordained Minister with Full Gospel Australia. She knows she should accumulate 20 points in the next year, so she decides to read a couple of books she has been wanting to read and attend a ministry conference she has really wants to go to. There are some other training days Julie’s church puts on, and coming up to her next wedding ceremony, she decides to refresh her Marriage Celebrant knowledge.
Julie easily accumulated her 20 points in that year in the following fashion:
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- July – August: 1 Theological book “Holy Spirit” by Anthony Palma (305 Pages) – 5 Points
- October – December: 1 Ministry book “Leading Small Groups That Thrive” by Hartwig, Sniff and Davis (272 Pages) – 5 Points
- March: 1 X One Day Conference – 5 Points
- February: Complete a one day Child Safety training – 10 Points
- May – June: Complete the Marriage Celebrant’s Assessment – 5 Points
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By the end of the 12 month period, Julie accumulated 30 Professional Development points. She didn’t even include the other training day her church put on, nor did she include the regular Pastor’s meetings held in her church. These other two things would have given Julie another ten points for the year.
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It must be noted that points do not accrue from one year to the next except in the case of Accredited Ministry or Theological study.
A minister who has completed a Diploma, Degree or Post Graduate Degree is deemed to have accumulated all their PD points for the next two years. A minister who is currently undertaking ministry or theological studies is deemed to have accumulated all their PD points for the year in which they have studied.
What Studies and Activities do we Allow to Accumulate Professional Development Points?
The following studies or activities are not meant to be an exhaustive list, they are indicative of what we count as Professional Development
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- Theological or Ministry book (250-300 Pages) – 5 Points
- For each Day of a Ministry Conference or Seminar, such as a FGA State Meeting or National Conference – 5 Points
- Attendance at a FGA webinar or Online Conference – 5 Points
- Successful completion of the
Marriage Celebrant’s Assessment – 5 Points - Child Safety One Day Training – 10 Points
- Completion of Child Safety Course at Child Safe Organisation
All Eleven Modules – 15 Points - Completion of the Alpha Marriage Course – 15 Points
- Undertaking an accredited course of Ministry or
Theological Study – 20 Points - Completion of an accredited course of Ministry or Theological Study – 20 Points for the subsequent two years.
- A Staff Training Day – 5 Points
- Attendance at a FGA online Pastor’s Meeting – 2 Points
- A Staff Meeting with a training component – 1 Point (Maximum of six points per year)
- A ministry magazine, per issue – 1 Point (Maximum of six points per year)
- First Aid Training – Provide First Aid & CPR – 4 Points
- First Aid Training – CPR Refresher – 2 Points
- First Aid Training – Child Care First Aid – 5 Points
- Mental Health First Aid – Full training – 10 Points
- Other Training, Courses, Activities – 1 Point for every hour of study.
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Other Examples of Endeavours which Qualify as Professional Development
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- Consulting – to assist clarification and address immediate concerns by following a systematic problem-solving process by engaging with external consultants.
- Mentoring – to promote awareness and refinement by providing and recommending structured opportunities for reflection and observation.
- Coaching – to enhance a specific skill area by providing a process of observation, reflection, and action.
- Professional Supervision – to support, develop, and ultimately evaluate performance that encourages understanding and articulation of the rationale for ministry practices.
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How Professional Development is Tracked
It is the responsibility of each minister to keep a record of their professional development. This can be in a filing system, journal or spreadsheet or some other record keeping system. We do not necessarily want to see the record, we only want to ensure that each minister has engaged with continued learning.
Starting with the 2022-2023 Renewal form, we will ask each minister to confirm that they have completed their Professional Development requirements in the previous 12 months, that is, from July 2021 to June 2022.
As Professional Development is deemed to be self-regulated, self-tracked and self-reported, this confirmation is normally the only evidence we need of each minister’s compliance.
