The Master of Divinity degree program at Meadville Lombard provides the academic and experiential grounding you need to minister effectively in our multicultural, multiracial, and interfaith world.
A liberal religious minister is required to be many things: a public speaker with a strong heart and a sharp mind, a community leader, a compassionate presence, an effective navigator and administrator of institutional system and structures, and a wise teacher. Meadville Lombard’s rigorous academic courses and integrated internships are designed to help you cultivate all of these attributes and fully bring out your gifts in ministry.
Our MDiv degree program prepares students for ordained ministry in a variety of contexts, including fellowship with the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), in roles ranging from parish ministry and chaplaincy to nonprofit leadership. Students seeking credentialing within the UUA are guided step-by-step to ordination. The program is accredited by the Association of Theological Schools and satisfies the requirements of the Ministerial Fellowship Committee of the UUA.
The MDiv degree requires 90 completed credits. The program can be completed in three years by full-time students but is flexible to accommodate students who plan to study part-time.
Below is an outline of the three-year, full-time MDiv pathway. Our Contextual Learning model of theological education allows you to learn and gain experience in your own community and/or congregation and travel to Chicago only for the Intensive classwork portion of the courses for about one week during each Fall and Spring term.
You’ll complete coursework every semester with peers and faculty via Meadville Lombard’s low-residency education platform, and you’ll get hands-on experience through an internship at a congregation, which is integrated into the curriculum, as well as a basic unit of Clinical Pastoral Education. Our Senior Director of Contextual Ministry will work with you to find the best internship site and supervisor for your personal formation.
Master of Divinity students complete 90 units of credit (1 full course = 3 units of credit), divided between required courses (33 credits), Clinical Pastoral Education (6 credits), Signature courses, electives, and 500 hours to 1000 hours of Internship (6 – 12 units of credit). The specific number of credits for the internship and electives will depend on whether students elect the Rooted Path or the Flexible Path for their MDiv studies.
At Meadville Lombard, leadership formation in the MDiv degree programs is anchored by our Signature Courses: multidisciplinary classes that help students move from discernment to leadership. These courses are designed to give you an opportunity to integrate your academic learning with real-world experience in community and congregational settings.
The Signature Courses incorporate academic learning, service through internships, and the support of a cohort of peers.
Signature courses gather in person for a one- or two-day meeting in Chicago each term, and also meet by videoconference throughout the semester. Cohorts meet via videoconference periodically to check in with each other and deepen their learning. The cohort is also divided into smaller groups that meet weekly via video chat or by phone to work on projects and reflections.
Other classes taken each term align with your degree program, the Signature Course being taken, and your individual learning goals. Many semester-long classes include a one-day Intensive on-campus portion. The on-campus days combine for about one week of on-campus time each Fall and Spring term. Other classes are fully online, requiring no on-campus time.
In 2009, Meadville Lombard significantly changed the way we organized and delivered our curriculum. We moved from a residential format to a low-residency, integrated education model rooted in contextual learning—learning by doing.
This approach is followed and informed by many different philosophical, religious, and cultural traditions the world over, including feminist theory, engaged Buddhism, and many Indigenous cultures, which teach that transformational learning is not grounded in thought, but in action.
It is also informed by research from the Alban Institute and Auburn Seminary, whose studies on the effectiveness of theological education have shown that ministers often feel well prepared in theology, scripture, and ethics, but not in hands-on aspects of congregational life such as creating worship and church administration, because these skills can’t be fully learned in a classroom.
So our curriculum integrates theory with practice, providing opportunities to study theology while leading worship, learn best practices in pastoral care while tending to souls, and deepen understandings of human diversity while actively engaging with others across lines of difference. Our students benefit from academically rigorous coursework, immersion learning, and the support of a student cohort, faculty, and teaching pastors and mentors.
All students pursuing a Master of Divinity (MDiv) degree spend their first year taking foundational coursework, including the Fall Grounding course which offers theological grounding and supports students’ ability to read and appreciate communities of difference—key skills for religious and spiritual leaders.
All new students also complete Ministry in Context, a year-long course that introduces students to Contextual Ministry and prepares them for the process of formation and selecting Clinical Pastoral Education and Internship placements.
After their first year, most students complete their required unit of Clinical Pastoral Education in the summer before their second year. Then students begin a congregational or community internship in their second year, learning the bedrock of ministry from being immersed in it and doing hands-on work. The internship is completed alongside the Vocational Studies Signature course and other required and elective courses. For students on the Rooted Path, that internship will continue alongside the Leadership Studies Signature course and other required and elective courses in their third year.
Students on the Flexible Path may choose to complete a one-year internship, or to otherwise vary their internship structure from the Rooted Path’s 2-year 1000-hour internship. More details about specific course requirements and the options available to students on the Flexible and Rooted Paths can be found in the Student Handbook.
Rev. Jules Taylor
Meadville Lombard’s MDiv program provides a web of practical experience and personal support that gives our students unparalleled opportunities to deepen spiritually, grow academically, and mature vocationally.
In their first year of study, as part of our Signature Courses, students in our Master of Divinity program develop theological grounding and the ability to read and appreciate communities of difference—key skills for religious and spiritual leaders which equip them for their internships and Clinical Pastoral Education units. MDiv students then go on to serve as interns in a faith-based community (most often a congregation), typically over a period of two years.
We uniquely knit these experiences into the fabric of our curriculum. Our students learn through practicing religious and community leadership in everyday, hands-on ways. These practical experiences are brought into the classroom in the way that assigned readings are used in other, more traditional, schools. They provide a basis for theological and spiritual reflection as students “act ourselves into new ways of thinking and being.”
Students proceed through our programs with the guidance of internship supervisors. These are congregational and community leaders who supervise, mentor, provide spiritual guidance, coach, and act as role models for students during the programs’ practical site work.
Meadville Lombard understands that the best religious and spiritual leaders are formed by many voices and many perspectives. They are shaped by teachers who excel in academics, seasoned practitioners, organizers and activists, and mentors who possess pastoral and spiritual wisdom. A Meadville Lombard education lends all these voices and perspectives to each and every student.
We look forward to welcoming you into Meadville Lombard’s Master of Divinity degree program. In order to apply, prospective students must hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution.*
For applicants residing outside the United States, before an application can be submitted for review, a conversation with our Sr. Director of Contextual Ministry is required to discuss if and how degree requirements could be met in your location.
An on-campus interview is not required; however, a member of the admissions committee may request one.
Meadville Lombard utilizes a rolling admissions model. All applications are reviewed in chronological order according to the date they were completed, and applicants are notified of their acceptance status via email as soon as possible.
*Note: Accredited institutions are those recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation or holding membership in the Association of Universities and Colleges in Canada. Prospective students may alternately hold a documented, educational equivalent of a bachelor’s degree from courses taken at an accredited institution. Exceptions to this policy may be allowed, depending on circumstances. Contact the Admissions Office with questions or to discuss your situation.
