DMin - Doctor of Ministry Degree Program
Doctor of Ministry Program
Purpose of the DMin degree Program
As part of its overall mission to educate persons for service in the ministry and marketplace, Beulah Heights University offers the Doctor of Ministry (DMin) degree. The purpose of the DMin degree is for qualified persons to increase their effectiveness by acquiring advanced competencies in various disciplines. The DMin degree focuses upon professional leadership development for the Church and society, and is intended for persons preparing for Christian leadership within the church, para-church organizations, and civic positions.
General Description of the Curriculum:
The DMin curriculum seeks to further develop a student’s leadership competencies required for Christian ministry in contemporary society. Therefore, the Beulah Heights DMin focuses on holistic ministerial and leadership preparation. All dimensions of DMin study encompass the environment and realities of the modern world in which ministry must take place. Much of the coursework involves in-service projects of direct benefit to the student’s ministry. In addition, regular classroom time provides occasions for disciplined study, critical reflection, and evaluation concerning ministry issues.
The program also emphasizes learning from group interaction among peers. The faculty cultivates interaction among students, thus promoting openness, caring, and cross-fertilization of ideas. Beulah’s classes typically contain people from many denominations, ethnic and cultural backgrounds, locations, and points of view, a fact, which makes the sharing among peers a desired and recognized feature of the DMin program.
The focus of the Beulah Heights University DMin program is ministry in general, but the school conducts the program with sufficient flexibility that it can easily be tailored toward more specialized interests. There are several particular interests that the program accommodates. Those specializations are Leadership, Worship Studies, Women’s Studies, Preaching, and Pentecostal – Charismatic Ministry. Elective courses in these areas are often cross-listed with Master’s level courses and offered regularly on the schedule.
Potential Career Options
- Senior Pastor
- Educator – Church, Christian School, or Higher Education
- Missionary
- Para-church Leader
- Civic or Community Executive
- Chaplain
Relation to Other Degrees
In contrast to a research terminal degree such as the PhD, the DMin is a professional degree that builds upon the basic foundation of at least three years of post-MDiv degree experience and that is intended as a means of increasing one’s effectiveness in ministry. An MDiv degree or its equivalent (see MDiv Equivalency Template) from an accredited seminary or graduate school is a prerequisite for admission into the Doctor of Ministry program.
If you do not wish to pursue a Doctor of Ministry degree but desire to have the experience of advanced study at a doctoral level, you may apply for admission into the Advanced Certificate in Applied Theology (ACAT) program. The admission requirements of the ACAT program are essentially the same as those of the DMin degree program. To qualify for the advanced certificate, you must complete at least 18 semester hours of DMin level coursework with a cumulative grade point average (Cum. GPA) of at least a “B” or better. The certificate program does not include the project/dissertation requirement. At any time during the ACAT program, you may request admission into the DMin program without loss of earned academic credit for doctoral level work completed, provided the grade for each course is a “C” (2.0 on a scale of 4.0) or better, and provided the cumulative grade point average (Cum. GPA) is a “B” (3.0) or better. The Post-Graduate Committee must consider all requests for admission into the DMin program from the ACAT program.
Johnathan E. Alvarado