MATSEC AM Religious Knowledge

It is the Advanced Matriculation level award in Religious Knowledge offered within Malta's MATSEC system, normally studied over two years after the Secondary Education Certificate. It is an academic qualification in religious studies, not a confessional certificate, and it is distinct from the intermediate or ordinary-level versions of the subject.

The paper is written and essay-based, combining structured questions that guide you through a topic with extended-response questions requiring a sustained argument. Expect to interpret passages, explain concepts and evaluate positions in continuous prose. The MATSEC Examinations Board publishes the current paper structure, sections and weightings on its website.

Those details change and are set by the board for each session, so no reliable figure can be given here. Check the current syllabus and past papers on the MATSEC website before you plan your timing strategy, and practise under the exact conditions stated there.

The step up is substantial. SEC-level work rewards accurate recall of stories and teachings; AM work expects you to know how biblical texts were formed and interpreted, to compare scholarly positions and to judge them. Students who only memorise content tend to plateau at a middling grade.

Resit arrangements, session availability and any restrictions are set by MATSEC and can change, so confirm the current rules directly with the board. In practice many candidates resit to improve a grade for university entry, so plan your revision around the session you intend to sit.

Start with the Bible domain, because skills in genre, context and interpretation carry over into the Jesus, Church and ethics topics. Then take philosophy of religion, which trains the evaluative vocabulary essays need. Leave world religions and religion-and-society topics until your essay technique is secure.

Three recurring causes: describing a view without evaluating it, quoting scripture without explaining its literary context, and answering only part of a two-part question. Examiners reward a clear line of argument supported by specific textual and scholarly evidence, so always plan before writing and check that every clause of the question has been addressed.

No. You are expected to understand that translation shapes meaning and to discuss key terms where relevant, but the exam is in the language of instruction and does not test ancient languages. Referring to a disputed translation in an essay, however, is a cheap way to show interpretive awareness.

A study Bible with introductions and notes, one solid introduction to the Old and New Testaments, a history of the early Church, an ethics textbook and a philosophy of religion primer. Add the board's official syllabus and past papers. Read the set topics in primary texts where possible rather than relying only on summaries.

It is designed as a matriculation-level subject and is commonly used in applications, but specific entry requirements belong to each university and course. Check the admissions pages of the institutions you are applying to, and confirm the current recognition and grade requirements with them directly.