Student Story: Carolyn
Growing in Faith, Knowledge, and Confidence: My Time at Mary Andrews College
New graduate, Carolyn Hallam, recently shared some of her journey with us.
Q: Can you tell us a little about yourself?
I’m married to Paul, and we have four teenagers. For the past six months, we’ve been attending Lower Mountains Anglican Parish in Glenbrook, where my husband works.
Q: What have you been studying at Mary Andrews College?
I started my Diploma in Christian Studies in 2020 and am graduating in March 2025.
Q: What inspired you to pursue theological study?
I’ve always been pretty involved in church ministry and also have a deep love for reading. A woman at my church was studying at Mary Andrews College, and we'd often chat about books, then, she started encouraging me to study and invited me to an orientation day. And immediately I knew, ‘Oh yes, I want to come.’ I loved it from then.
I had also been reading 2 Peter 1:8-9 which talks about how God has given us everything we need for life and godliness and then says to add to our faith things like self-control, knowledge, and goodness so that we won’t be unfruitful. So, I thought, "Well, I should go and study to learn more and be fruitful and less useless!"
Q: What were some of the highlights of your time at college?
Studying at college was, I feel, life-changing. Like Trish mentioned, it became my favourite day of the week!
Studying the Bible more deeply and learning more about God has just really increased my love for Him and His Word and my desire to know Him more.
Meeting Christian women from all over the place has been amazing. God has given me new friends to be encouraged by and to learn from. Being able to do serious study in such a loving and encouraging community has been a wonderful balance.
I also loved formation group. This is a weekly small group on Zoom where we read and discuss a Christian book. I did it throughout my studies, and it was such a great opportunity for reflection and growth.
Q: What was the most challenging part?
The assignments!
I actually loved them because I learned the most through researching and writing, but they were also really tough. There were moments when I felt completely stuck, staring at a blank page, feeling like I couldn’t start. And no matter what I was doing, I always had that lingering awareness of an assignment deadline! It was a challenge but a really worthwhile one.
Some assignments even helped me work through big things in my life, creating space for God to work and change me and opening my heart in new ways. I am very grateful for those times, this really been a transforming experience for me.
Q: What advice would you give to someone just starting out?
Definitely ask for help whenever you need it! Sometimes, you might feel like your question is silly or that you should already know the answer, but the lecturers are just abundantly helpful. You’ll get so much more out of your studies if you take advantage of that support.
Also, bring a cardigan—the classroom can get a bit cold!
Q: How have you seen God use the study you’ve done?
Carolyn and Kate at Orientation Day 2025
Studying here has grown me so much personally and that has played out across all my life - at home with my kids, with friends at church.
But probably the biggest change has been in my confidence.
I've always been a bit hesitant to step up in ministry, I've just tended to hold back a little but being at college, discussing ideas with people I didn’t know, and even going through the process of having my work marked and experiencing that bit of vulnerability has increased by confidence to have a go at things. I’ve learned to trust that God can use me in these ways.