Curriculum

You may earn the Master of Arts in theology by completing 30 semester hours of coursework, or you may choose (with the approval of your advisor) to earn the degree by completing 24 semester hours of course work and writing a thesis, which earns six hours of credit.

The graduate program in theology is flexible so as to accommodate a wide variety of interests, while providing a firm foundation in the Christian tradition. The following courses are required of all students:

• THEO 504 Foundations of Scripture Study
• THEO 520 Survey of Christian Doctrine I
• THEO 524 Survey of Christian Doctrine II
• One course in ethics
• One course in systematic theology

For a complete listing of theology course descriptions click here.

The remaining five courses are theology electives. You may discuss course selection with the department chair, Dr. Marie Giblin.

Students engaged in or preparing for professional ministry in church and society may choose to complete a concentration in pastoral and social ministry. Students pursuing this concentration complete: (1) the five core courses required of all M.A. students, (2) two additional required courses, THEO 630 Theology of Ministry and THEO 632 Ethics, Ministry and Ministers, (3) six semester hours of ministerial skills courses, drawn from a menu of courses and workshops offered both inside and outside of the department, (4) three semester hours of a ministerial internship, which requires passing a ministerial assessment and evaluation as a prerequisite, 100 clock hours of supervised experience, meetings with an on-site mentor and faculty advisor and an integration paper reflecting on the experience, (5) nine semester hours of elective courses and (6) a final research paper.

For further information about the M.A. in theology, including an application, please complete the web inquiry form. Questions regarding the application process may be e-mailed directly to the office of graduate services at xugrad@xu.edu.