Master of Arts in Practical Theology – MAPT

Columbia Theological Seminary is known for excellence in the teaching, research, and scholarship of practical theology. The purpose of the Master of Arts in Practical Theology degree program, or MAPT, is to equip persons for a broad array of ministries with rigorous, creative, interdisciplinary coursework. Guided by 14 faculty members with diverse research interests and denominational affiliations, the MAPT curriculum is designed around the conviction that theory, theology, and practice are inextricably connected to one another. Students can therefore expect to both deepen and broaden their understanding of faithful, informed practices of ministry in and across diverse contexts.

Did you know we have a Dual Degree program?

Dual Degree Program

This program may also be used as part of a dual degree option to add an area of specialization to a Master of Divinity degree. MAPT students can take advantage of additional supervised ministry opportunities – up to 12 hours in the MAPT and up to 24 hours in the MAPT/MDIV DUAL degree.  This honors the practical theology commitment to honor engagement with human experiences as a living laboratory for theological reflection.

Through the combined curriculum, students ask broad theological questions and prepare for ministry in the church and the world. Students also have an opportunity to delve more deeply into a particular area of focus. By pursuing the degrees concurrently, students can reduce by one year the overall amount of time required to graduate.

In the dual-degree program, students select one of the following concentrations:

• EDUCATIONAL MINISTRY focuses on teaching, learning, and spiritual formation of people and communities through liberative forms of education.
• PASTORAL CARE & PASTORAL THEOLOGY integrates therapeutic practices of care with attention to intercultural and global structures that affect and inform suffering and healing.
• WORSHIP, PREACHING, AND THE ARTS focuses on how the arts and aesthetics can inform and support transformational practices of worship and preaching.

CONTEXTUAL EDUCATION AND SUPERVISED MINISTRY

• Students in Columbia’s MDiv, MAPT, and MDiv/MAPT dual degree programs are required to enroll in a Supervised Ministry internship for which they receive academic credit. From congregation-based internships to specialized settings, students will work closely with mentors to hone their skills for ministry.

Areas of Concentration for the MAPT:

• Educational Ministries, which focuses on the teaching, learning, and spiritual formation of people and communities through liberative forms of education

• Pastoral Care/Pastoral Theology, which integrates therapeutic practices of care with attention to intercultural, global structures that affect and inform suffering and healing

• Worship, Preaching, and the Arts, which focuses on how arts and aesthetics support transformational practices of worship and preaching

Required Courses

7 courses – 21 credits

Each of these courses must be successfully completed to earn the MAPT degree:

• Introduction to Practical Theology (3 credits) (please note this course typically meets as a 1-week August intensive before the student’s first Fall semester, with further assignments due throughout the Fall semester)

• Old Testament Interpretation (3 credits)

• New Testament Interpretation (3 credits)

• Christian Ethics (3 credits)

• 1 course in History of Christianities, American Religious History, or World Religions (3 credits)

• Christian Theology I (3 credits)

• Capstone Course in Practical Theology (3 credits)

Contextual Education

1 course – 6 credits

Area of Concentration

4 courses – 12 credits

• Introductory course in Area of Concentration (3 credits)

• Three additional courses (9 credits)

Electives

3 courses – 9 credits

TOTAL: 48 Credits

Join us!

The degree is designed as preparation for specialized professional or volunteer ministry in congregations and beyond. The degree may also be appropriate for lay persons serving in non-ordained ministry positions.

The MAPT program is a masters degree and has the following requirements: Application Materials Checklist.