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Yale Divinity School
409 Prospect Street, New Haven, CT 06515YDS Home>Admissions
Master of Divinity Program (M.Div)
| Back to Academics | Denominational Programs |
| Course Requirements | Berkeley Divinity School |
| Assessment and Evaluations | Lutheran Studies Program |
| Cooperative M.Div program | 2009-2010 Online Bulletin |
The Degree
The degree of Master of Divinity (M.Div.) certifies completion of a program of theological studies designed primarily, although not exclusively, to prepare the candidate for ordination to the Christian ministry. The requirements reflect the intention of the School to provide an education that is theologically informed, professionally competent, academically rigorous, and oriented to the life of the church.
The minimum requirement for the M.Div. degree is the successful completion of seventy-two credit hours, and a three-year residence with the following exceptions:
- Students with heavy responsibilities outside of school are strongly advised to reduce their course load, but the total program of study for the M.Div. degree shall not be expanded beyond six years.
- The residency requirement of three years may be reduced when credits, up to a maximum of twenty-four hours, are transferred. In order to receive the M.Div. degree, students who transfer credits must complete at least two years of resident work at this School, one of which must be the final year.
Students are encouraged to elect courses in other schools or departments of the University. Any student who takes more than nine hours in another school or department of the University comes under the regulations for interdisciplinary study.
Minimum requirements for graduation include the following distribution of courses in the curriculum:
- Area I: Twelve credit hours distributed between Old Testament and New Testament. Elementary Hebrew and Greek do not meet this requirement, but are counted toward the total number of hours needed for graduation.
- Area II: Twelve credit hours including at least one course in Theological Studies and one in Christian Ethics. Only three hours toward the Area II requirement may be counted for work listed under Denominational Courses.
- Area III: Nine credit hours in Historical Studies, including at least one of the following introductory courses: 700a, 700b, or 701a. Only three hours of Denominational History courses may be counted toward the Area III requirement.
- Area IV: Twelve credit hours, including three hours in preaching or communication.
- Area V: Nine credit hours. (The three credit hours of Ethical Studies may be taken in this area rather than Area II.)
- Supervised Ministries: Three credit hours.
Additional Requirements
- Every M.Div. student is required to take one course (three term hours) in a non-Christian religion or one course in the relationship between Christianity and other religions.
- All M.Div. students are additionally required to complete a sixteen-hour seminar on preventing ministerial misconduct.
- No course may be counted toward meeting the requirements simultaneously in more than one area or toward meeting more than one of the distributional requirements within a single area.
- For students with special and clear vocational plans, the Professional Studies Committee may approve a course of study that differs from the indicated area minimum requirements.
The first year of study should provide general orientation in the various areas of theological education. Toward that end, each first-year student should be present for the orientation program.
Requirements of Supervised Ministries
Students who enroll in the M.Div. program must complete a supervised ministry as part of their degree requirements. Students may elect to meet this requirement in several ways. For definitive information about requirements and policies regarding supervised ministries, please consult the Office of Supervised Ministries web page.
Assessment and Evaluation Requirements
Students in the M.Div. program are expected to grow in their understanding of the community of faith; to come to understand the cultural realities and social settings within which religious communities live and carry out their missions; to grow in emotional maturity, personal faith, moral integrity, and social concern; and to gain capacities for growth in the practice of ministry. In order to measure progress toward these goals, all M.Div. students beginning with the class entering in 2007 are required to participate in a program assessing their progress toward the degree. This program includes, but is not limited to, the following requirements: participation in an entrance evaluation, preparation of a portfolio of items indicating progress toward the degree, participation in an evaluation at the end of their second year in the program, and participation in regular conferences with an assigned academic adviser. For more information on this program please contact Rev. Bill Goettler, assistant dean for assessment and ministerial studies.
As a seminary of the Episcopal Church, Berkeley affiliated with Yale Divinity School in 1971, making it the only Episcopal seminary to be fully associated with a major research institution such as Yale University. While Berkeley retains its distinctive Anglican identity and retains an independent board of trustees and administration, its students are admitted by and fully enrolled as members of Yale Divinity School. As Episcopalians, Berkeley students are formed by the centrality of daily corporate worship, deliberate attention to the spiritual life, and a concentrated course of study in Anglican history and theology. At the same time, they are incorporated into the rigorous academic program of a divinity school with a world-renowned faculty and library, and also have available to them the full resources of the various professional schools, departments, and extra-curriculuar programs of the University. Yale Divinity School students who enroll through a program of study at Berkeley Divinity School will earn either a Certificate of Anglican Studies or a Dipolma of Anglican Studies. For more information please visit the Berkeley Divinity School web site.
In 1995 the Lutheran faculty at Yale Divinity School, in cooperation with Berkeley Divinity School at Yale (an affiliated Episcopal seminary), established the Lutheran Studies Program. In 2003 the program was reconstituted as a standing committee of the Yale Divinity School faculty. Membership on the oversight committee includes Lutheran members of the faculties of Yale Divinity School and the Institute of Sacred Music, Yale Divinity School's academic dean, representatives of Lutheran students and staff, and, as advisory members, representatives of the wider church. The program provides two avenues of study: a Certificate in Lutheran Studies and a Diploma in Lutheran Studies.
The Lutheran Studies Program provides Lutheran students wtih an integrated approach to theological education and pastoral training, encompassing both their programs of study and their spiritual formation for ministry. The former is addressed by a required curriculum with distributional requirements similar to those of Lutheran seminaries. The latter is addressed by a program of formation for the ministry that includes retreats, colloquia on the practice of ministry in the Lutheran tradition, and opportunities for worship and social interaction.
For more information please contact Paul Stuehrenberg, Divinity School Librarian and coordinator of the Lutheran Studies Program.
Cooperative M.Div Program with Hartford Seminary
Hartford Seminary has a cooperative agreement with Yale Divinity School. This cooperative program allows qualified Master of Arts (M.A.) students to begin their studies at Hartford Seminary and, if accepted to proceed to the cooperating seminary (YDS) to pursue a Master of Divinity (M.Div) degree. Students may take advantage of this special cooperative relationship and agreement by following the process and procedure outlined on the Hartford Seminary web site.
--Last updated: August 5, 2009