Master of Divinity in Interreligious Chaplaincy—Islamic Focus

This program prepares you to provide interreligious and intercultural spiritual care with a focus on serving Muslims in interreligious contexts. Graduates of this program can pursue careers in chaplaincy in a variety of contexts as well as pastoral and spiritual care within religious and spiritual communities. This program is offered in partnership with The Islamic Seminary of America.

CONCENTRATION LEARNING OUTCOMES

In addition to achieving the core MDiv degree learning outcomes, a graduate of the Interreligious Chaplaincy—Islamic Focus program will be able to:

• demonstrate an informed understanding of the fields of ʿulūm al-Qur’ān and ʿulūm al-Ḥadīth;
• demonstrate an informed understanding of the sīra, Islamic law and Usul al-Fiqh, Islamic spirituality and Aklaq, and the history of Islam in America;
• articulate a constructive theological proposal that is conversant with core theological categories and addresses a social or political issue that relates to students’ vocational context;
• demonstrate skills for effective, professional, ethical, and compassionate pastoral and spiritual care to a diversity of persons;
• craft, deliver, and reflect on a sermon or public address that demonstrates effective speaking form/style and content based on a selected context;
• articulate effective strategies for pastoral/spiritual care and counseling with a person or group of a given cultural identity that demonstrate an informed understanding of the student’s own culture(s) and theology, as well as the behavioral and social sciences;
• articulate effective strategies for providing spiritual care in a given interreligious setting; and
• demonstrate skills and articulate strategies for providing effective spiritual care for those experiencing trauma in a variety of given situations.

United’s MDiv at a Glance

• 72 credits
• Twenty-four 3-credit courses, including one field experience
• Final thesis or project not required, but you can use an elective to pursue either
• Can be completed in three years if you take a full-time course load (24 credits per year)
• Most MDiv concentrations, including Interreligious Chaplaincy—Islamic Focus, can be completed entirely via distance learning

Employment as a chaplain requires completion of additional CPE units beyond United’s degree requirements and endorsement by a recognized religious authority. BCCI certification, which is a common employment requirement, requires a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution and an additional 2,000 hours of chaplaincy work experience after CPE.