Certificate of Biblical Studies

The Bible College of Malaysia (BCM) traces its humble roots to an American missionary couple, Delmer and Eleanor Guynes, who were sent to Malaysia to serve God in the 1950s. Initially established as the Bible Institute of Malaya, the college officially opened its doors in 1960 and in 1962, the first batch of students consisting of four men and three women became the first graduates.

As an education institution, BCM’s primary mission is to equip and provide holistic training to men and women called by God so that they may advance the gospel of our Lord effectively with their God-given gifts – in Malaysia and beyond.

In 1982, the college was renamed the Bible College of Malaysia with the introduction of the Bachelor of Theology program. Seeing the need for more lay leaders, the Certificate of Biblical Studies was introduced in 1986. As demand grew for higher-tertiary Christian studies, a suite of Master programs was introduced in 2004.

All programs were initially in English. Between 1968 and 1972, under the leadership of Rev David and Alice Nyien, certain programs were made available in Chinese. In 1980, a full-fledged Chinese faculty was established. Today, the Chinese faculty offers a full suite of programs from Bachelor to Master to Counseling programs. 

Strategically located in Malaysia, the paramount focus is to equip more local native speakers. As the need arose, Rev Peter Wong, Rev Ng Kok Kee and Rev Wendy Ching established the Bahasa Malaysia faculty in 2003. The faculty offered a Diploma of Theology and subsequently, a Bachelor of Theology. 

Our experienced and caring teaching faculty come from diverse backgrounds of ministry and missionary experience. Not only will their academic expertise stretch and deepen your biblical knowledge and thinking, but their life experience in the field provides practical application for holistic learning. See our Academic Team.

In the 60 years since its establishment, BCM has trained over 1000 ministers for Christ. Among them are 700 full-time ministers, 200 bi-vocational pastors or lay leaders in the workplace, 14 missionaries, 9 parachurch workers, 31 social concern workers and 5 evangelists. 

Tapping into the robust network and ecosystem at BCM, some alumni are itinerant preachers. Among the people trained at BCM, many of them go forth to fulfill their calling in different parts of the world; Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, Cambodia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Japan, China, Hong Kong, USA, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Africa, and the United Kingdom.

BCM graduates are highly regarded in the Christian community. Graduates work nationwide and overseas as church pastors, missionaries, in university ministries and para-church organizations, or return to the workforce for ministry opportunities and are more equipped to serve in the local church.