For information on the Doctor of Ministry program please contact:
Office of the School
718-817-4800
gre@fordham.edu
Overview
DOCTOR OF MINISTRY Curriculum (36 CREDITS beyond the MDiv or its equivalent)
1. PASTORAL MINISTRY SPECIALIZATION (Coordinator, Dr. Tom Beaudoin)
A. Core Studies (21 credits):
B. Electives (15 credits):
2. CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY
A. Core Studies (21 credits)
B. Electives (15 credits)
3. LATINO STUDIES CONCENTRATION (36 credits) (Coordinator, Fr. Claudio M. Burgaleta, S.J., Ph.D.)
A. Required Courses (21 credits)
B. Electives (15 credits)
C. Dissertation or Project
Program Objectives
The goal of the Doctor of Ministry degree offered at Fordham University is to provide advanced understanding of the nature and purposes of religious ministry, increased competencies in pastoral analysis and ministry skills, sustained theological reflection on the practice of ministry, and new knowledge about the practice of ministry. The program, combining theory and pastoral practice, strives for the integration of theological and social science knowledge to advance excellence in religious ministry. The purpose of the program is to enhance the general practice of ministry in its many forms as well as provide expertise in specialized areas of ministerial practice.
In keeping with Fordham University’s Jesuit mission the program gives special, though not exclusive, attention to the Christian and Catholic religious tradition. A major concern of the program, in keeping with the mission of Jesuit education, is to explore the social role that religious ministry can play in dealing with cultural and theological issues.
The D.Min. degree is designed to prepare reflective and competent professionals for positions of leadership in religious ministry. The program strives to discover and nurture sound scholarship, meaningful research, and the interdependence of theory and practice. The D.Min. is conferred on the basis of scholarship, research skills and practical application demonstrated by the student’s course work, examinations, doctoral dissertation and ministerial experience.
Curriculum
The D.Min. program offers an advanced level of study in pastoral and practical theology and involves their integration with religious ministry. The curriculum also focuses on the acquisition of skills and competencies in pastoral practice and research. A doctoral level dissertation serves as the capstone for the student’s program.
Various kinds of learning comprise the program of studies: lectures, readings, community, discussions, self-directed learning, peer learning, library research, workshops, experiential learning and E-learning. Close attention is also given to the various contexts in which students exercise their religious ministries.
The D.Min. program includes the designing, writing and presentation of a doctoral level dissertation or project that deals in a significant manner with theory and practice of ministry. This work should reach the level where it contributes to the practice of ministry and is applicable to other ministerial situations. To complete this work each student identifies a ministerial issue, conducts the necessary research using appropriate methodology, and presents a practical proposal for dealing with the issue. Doctoral dissertations are evaluated by a committee, presented orally, placed in the university library, as well as in Dissertation Abstracts.
The D.Min. program requires that students take a minimum of 36 advanced credits beyond the Master of Divinity or its equivalent as well as complete a doctoral dissertation or project. Twenty one credits are taken in a required core of courses; 15 credits are in either additional required courses or electives. Normally, the degree requires not less than two and no more than six years to complete.
All D.Min. students are required register to register for the D.Min. “Maintenance of Matriculation” after they complete their coursework. They must enrolleach semester until they defend their dissertation or present their project.
Admissions
Admission to the D Min. program requires the possession of Master of Divinity degree or its educational equivalent. Generally, equivalency is assessed as tantamount to 36 graduate credits in theological or religious studies (typically 15 credits in Scripture, 15 credits in doctrinal or systematic theology, and 6 credits in other areas of theology or religious studies). Students who do not have this background are advised to take such courses in the GSRRE, the Department of Theology of Fordham University, or other graduate theological programs. The practice of ministry is not considered an equivalent substitute for the Master of Divinity degree.
To be admitted to the program applicants should normally have had three years of experience in ministry after their first theological degree. They should also manifest the capacity for an advanced level of competence in and reflection on religious ministry. Admission of candidates to the D.Min. is determined by the D.Min. Committee, which is comprised of the dean, director and D.Min. faculty members. Admission to the D.Min. is selective and offered only to those students who have demonstrated the requisite intellectual ability, academic and ministerial preparation, and motivation.
Those applying for admissions are expected to have a B+ average in their Master’s program. They must supply a copy of their college, seminary, and graduate school transcripts as well as two letters of recommendation, one from a professor with whom they have studied and one from a ministerial supervisor. Applicants must also submit a statement of purpose for seeking the degree; an outline is provided in the online application. Application is done fully online and is accessed through the "Apply Now" icon is at the top right of this page.
The admissions deadline has been extended this year to April 20th 2013. Each student accepted into the program is assigned an advisor who guides the student in academic and career matters. Students are expected to maintain a B+ grade point average during the entire period of their doctoral studies. Mentors and readers for doctoral dissertations and projects are decided upon by students in consultation with prospective mentors and readers. The mentor must be chosen from the D.Min. faculty. Readers may be chosen from within or outside of the D.Min. faculty.
Doctor of Ministry Faculty
Tom Beaudoin, PhD (Boston College), teaches courses in practice-based theologies.
Kirk A. Bingaman PhD, Assistant Professor of Pastoral Counseling. B.A., Messiah College; M.Div., Princeton Theological Seminary; Ph.D., Graduate Theological Union (Berkeley). Fellow, American Association of Pastoral Counselors, director of the pastoral counseling program, teaches courses in pastoral counseling and human development.
Claudio Burgaleta, S.J., PhD. (Boston College) teaches courses in Hispanic ministry, church and society, and pastoral and pastoral theology.
Lisa Cataldo, PhD, (Union Theological Seminary, New York) teaches courses in pastoral care and counseling.
Harold Horell, PhD (Boston College), director of the MA/MS program in religious education, teaches courses in youth and young adult ministry, social ministry, and religious education.
Shannon M. McAlister, PhD, Assistant Professor of Spirituality. B.A., Thomas Aquinas; M.A., The Catholic University of America; Ph.D., The Catholic University of America
Francis X. McAloon, S.J., PhD, Assistant Professor of Spirituality. B.A., Stetson College; M.Div., Jesuit School of Theology; S.T.M., Jesuit School of Theology; S.T.L., Jesuit School of Theology; Ph.D., Graduate Theological Union.
Doctor of Ministry Curriculum (36 credits beyond the M. Div or its equivalent)
1. PASTORAL MINISTRY SPECIALIZATION (Coordinator, Dr. Tom Beaudoin)
A. Core Studies (21 credits):
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Foundations of Pastoral and Practical Theology |
Practical and pastoral theologies are engagements of theological thinking with social-cultural practices, including the practices that make up the life of the Church, with the intention of directing Christian living.
Pastoral and practical theologies typically inquire critically into social-cultural-ecclesial practices for the sake of “more faithful” practice, and also allow that inquiry to question how the Christian tradition understands itself. In these and other ways, practical and pastoral theologies are significant domains of theological inquiry today, and essential for those invested in questions of Christian practice. This course will provide an introduction to pastoral and practical theologies, with a particular interest in their reception and problematization for contemporary ministry.
Faculty: Thomas Beaudoin |
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Seminar in Pastoral Theology and Practice |
| Theological study of Christian experience and practice in their individual and community dimensions. History of pastoral/practical theology and its contemporary developments. Dialogue between present Christian communities and Christian tradition. |
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Theology of Pastoral Counseling and Spiritual Care |
This course addresses theological and spiritual issues in the field of pastoral care andcounseling and proposes atheological method for reflecting on these issues.
Faculty: Kirk A.Bingaman |
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Theology of Ministry |
An exploration of the theology of ministry as derived from biblical foundations, the history of theology, and contemporary theologians. Self-understanding and kinds of ministry within the tradition for laity, religious and clerics appropriate to the contemporary church.
Faculty: Fr. Anthony Ciorra |
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Ministerial Ethics and Identity |
| This course is designed to equip participants with a comprehensive understanding of professional ethics for pastoral ministers. Identity, roles, and responsibilities will be addressed in relation to a range of ethical issues faced in parish life and ministry, including issues around confidentiality, sexual misconduct, collegiality with professional peers, and the ethics of preaching, counseling, and social witness. A theological framework for ethical pastoral conduct will be developed with attention to issues of power and professionalism. Recognizing that graduate students arrive at class with diverse backgrounds, and a wide range of interests and knowledge, this course allows participants to share ideas, reflect on their own ministerial experiences, and clarify their values and vision for ethics in ministry. |
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Pastoral Planning and Evaluation |
Pastoral planning comprises the theological arts and techniques of the authoritative exercise of putting together a ministerial life for oneself and others. In other words, it asks: What ways of proceeding for Christians in specific institutional settings should be structured, and why? Such questions of planning have also entailed perspectives on "evaluation," in which gauges for assessing projects, programs, or procedures are developed. In contemporary pastoral planning literature and practice, questions about the governance of Christian life and identity continually surface, and we will track them as appropriate.
Faculty: Thomas Beaudoin |
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DMIN Mentoring Seminar |
B. Electives (15 credits):
Students are free to choose under advisement and according their interests, electives from the various courses offered in the GSRRE or other graduate schools of Fordham University. These may be from one or more areas of study such as pastoral counseling, spirituality/spiritual direction, pastoral counseling, religious education, or from a number of areas.
1. CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY
A. Core Studies (21 credits):
- Foundations of Pastoral and Practical Theology
- Seminar in Pastoral Theology and Practice
Or Supervised Spiritual Direction Practicum (6 credits)
- Theology of Pastoral Counseling and Spiritual Care
Or Theology and Practice of Spiritual Direction
Or the Study of Christian Spirituality
- Pastoral Planning and Evaluation
B. Electives (15 credits)
Students are free to choose under advisement electives from the various courses offered in the GSRRE or other graduate schools of Fordham University related to spirituality/spiritual direction, according to interests and prospective ministry.
REGR 8064 Pastoral Counseling &Spiritual Direction Skills
REGR 6804 History of Spirituality I
REGR 6806 History of Spirituality II
REGR 6811 Meditation: East &West
REGR 6818 Discernment of Spirits: Selected Mystics
REGR 8090 Advanced Seminar in Spiritual Direction
REGR 6694 PersonalIdentity
REGR 6692 Psychology & Religion /Spirituality
REGR 6649 Human Growth &Development
REGR 6675 Advanced Adult Development: Life Span Issues
REGR 6815 Ignatian Way
REGR 6821 Spiritual Quest with Guidance from Rahner
1. LATINO STUDIES SPECIALIZATION (Coordinator, Fr. Claudio M. Burgaleta, S.J., Ph.D.)
A. Core Studies (18 credits):
- Foundations of Pastoraland Practical Theology (3 credits) Seminar in Pastoral Theology and Practice (3 credits)
- Theology of Ministry (3 credits)
- Ministerial Ethics (3 credits)
- US Latino Christianities or an equivalent introductory course to Intro to Hispanic Ministry (3 credits)
- US Latino Theology (3 credits)
2. Electives (18 credits):
In addition to courses offered by the GSRRE, students, with the approval of their advisors, may take graduate courses offered by Fordham University's Latin American and Latino Studies Institute (LALSI). Consult their website for graduate offerings at www.fordham.edu/lalsi
3. Dissertation or Project:
On some topic related to Latino/Hispanic Ministry |
