Date: June 19, 2023
Today we welcome on our campus VTS doctoral students for their annual summer residency. People often ask what makes VTS doctoral programs distinct, especially compared with other Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) and Doctor of Educational Ministry (D.Ed.Min.) programs. In addition to our curriculum which focuses around three tracks—Ministry Development, Educational Leadership, and Christianity Spirituality—there are three things.
First, the level of faculty engagement in our doctoral programs is first rate. In many theological schools, D.Min. and D.Ed.Min. courses are taught largely by adjuncts. At VTS, our full-time faculty teach most of the courses, along with an outstanding group of longtime Senior Lecturers who ably bridge the church and the academy.
Second, our program is highly contextual. Our students continually craft their writing and research based in their ministry context, putting it into careful conversation with theological scholarship.
Finally, our program’s residency component builds deep community and relationships. Students spend three weeks together every summer—learning, worshiping, and sharing fellowship over meals. These friendships become relationships that last a lifetime and sustain one’s ministry for years to come.
If you know anyone interested in VTS’s doctoral programs, encourage them to apply! Reach out to admissions@vts.edu. We’d be delighted to talk more about our programs.
The Rev. Ross Kane, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Theology, Ethics, and Culture
Director of Doctoral Programs