General Requirements and Advising

The Master of Arts in Religion (MAR) requires a total of 16 credits.  Meadville Lombard grants a single credit for full graduate level courses.  In addition to the total credit requirement, MAR students must fulfill thesis/project concentration and distribution requirements.  Upon admission into the MAR program, the Director of the MAR program becomes the student's Academic Advisor.  In addition to working with the Director of the MAR program, the student must eventually choose an Area of Concentration and a Thesis / Project Advisor.  The Thesis / Project Advisor should be a Meadville Lombard Theological School faculty member with expertise in the student's Area of Concentration.  The student consults with the Thesis / Project Advisor throughout the research, drafting, and writing of the proposal and the final thesis or project.  If the MAR student chooses an Area of Concentration in which the Director of the MAR program has expertise, then the Director of the MAR program serves as the student's Academic Advisor and Thesis or Project Advisor.

Thesis / Project Requirement

The Thesis or Project consists of 4 credits. These credits may be registered for in a single semester or in sequence across two semesters. The sequencing of work on the Thesis or Project includes the drafting of a proposal, research, writing, and submission of final documents.

• The Proposal consists of a thesis statement, a summary and outline of the thesis or project, a description of research methods, a bibliography, and a work calendar.  This document should be no more than 10 pages in length and should be approved by the student's Thesis Advisor no later than December 1 before the student's anticipated semester of graduation.
  
  
• The Thesis should be submitted to the Thesis Advisor and Director of the MAR program in a condition ready for approval (final draft) no later than March 15 of the spring semester of the student's anticipated graduation. The thesis should be approximately 50 pages (double-spaced, 12 pt.), with footnotes and a bibliography. The students should refer to the Chicago Manual of Style for proper methods of scholarly documentation. 
  
  
• The Project is an option for students whose needs and purposes are not best served by a standard research thesis.  Students choosing this option might, for example, create Religious Education curricula; write, produce, or direct a theatrical production; or develop and implement a significant community service project.  A brief scholarly Commentary (10-20 pp) must also be submitted by students choosing the Project over the Thesis.  The Commentary is a brief interpretive paper that situates the Project culturally, pedagogically, and theologically.  This is a formal scholarly document and thus should be footnoted and include a bibliography.  The Project documentation and Commentary must be submitted to the Project Advisor and the Director of the MAR program no later than March 15 of the spring semester of the student's anticipated graduation.

At least four courses must be taken in the student's chosen Area of Concentration. Possible concentrations include Theology, Ethics, Religion and the Arts, Religious Education, or Pastoral Care. These courses can be taken at Meadville Lombard Theological School or through a combination of Meadville Lombard Theological School courses and courses from other accredited institutions of higher learning.

Residency Requirement

Of the 12 course credits needed for the degree (in addition to the four required for the thesis), at least 10 must be taken at Meadville Lombard Theological School or at another seminary in the Association of Chicago Theological Schools (ACTS). These courses may include courses taken in the student's concentration and / or in other areas. Up to two courses may be transferred into the MAR from prior graduate work.

Distribution Requirement

In addition to the minimum of four courses in a concentration, and four credits for the thesis, students must take courses in at least four other disciplinary areas of the Meadville Lombard Theological School curriculum. The distribution areas include Theology, Ethics, Religion and the Arts, Religious Education, Pastoral Care, History, and Ministry and the Arts.