phd practical theology online

Doctor of Philosophy in Practical Theology

45 credit hours

Program Length

as few as 36 months

Accreditation

Nationally Accredited by ATS

Prepare to Teach the Next Generation — Earn an Accredited PhD (Practical Theology) Fully Online

At Columbia International University, our PhD (Practical Theology) program is designed specifically for individuals like you who have a passion for teaching in postsecondary theological higher education. If you are seeking an academic/philosophical doctoral program that equips you with the knowledge and skills necessary to engage in scholarly research and writing and make a meaningful contribution to the field of Theological Studies, our PhD (Practical Theology) program is designed to help you reach your goal.

You will engage in rigorous academic study explores the profound truths of Scripture, with a focus on the functional authority of Scripture.

You will develop advanced research and writing skills that allow you to contribute significantly to the field of Practical Theology.

You will gain valuable skills in presenting your scholarly work in a professional, organized, coherent and structured manner, both in written and oral form.

You will engage in a supervisory relationship with an experienced faculty mentor, who will help you navigate the responsibilities of your academic pursuits while embracing spiritual growth and exemplifying Christian character.

Throughout your journey in Columbia International University’s online PhD (Practical Theology) program, you will receive excellent academic instruction, intentional professional mentoring, and consistent academic support. You will develop the advanced research and writing skills necessary to make a scholarly contribution to the field of Practical Theology. You will present your research findings in a professional and compelling manner. You will embrace the transformative journey of intellectual growth while embodying the principles of Victorious Christian Living. You will prepare to become a well-rounded scholar and educator, equipped to make a lasting impact in postsecondary theological higher education both nationally and internationally.

Practical Theology is one of three concentrations within the PhD degree. Within the Practical Theology concentration, you may pursue a wide variety of research topics. You might wish to consider a topic in an area such Chaplaincy, Homiletics, Pastoral Care, Pastoral Theology, or Moral Theology. If you have questions about how your anticipated topic might fit into the concentration, contact the program director for guidance. Note: In February 2022 the ATS Board of Commissioners approved a three-year experiment to offer a non-residential PhD degree as an exception to Standard 5.15, through a combination of online courses (synchronous and asynchronous) and one-on-one faculty mentoring sessions.

The other concentrations within the PhD degree are Biblical Studies and Theological Studies. (See the Concentrations below.)

Why Choose Columbia International University?

At Columbia International University, we are committed to providing you with a comprehensive and enriching educational experience through our ATS-accredited PhD (Practical Theology) program. Designed to equip you as a well-rounded scholar and educator, our program offers a unique blend of research-focused curriculum, individualized mentoring, and flexible online modality.

As a student in our PhD (Practical Theology) program, you will have the opportunity to delve deeply into your chosen area within the field of Practical Theology. Through rigorous research and academic exploration, you will gain a thorough understanding of your topic, contemporary issues in practical theology, and the methods scholars use in your chosen discipline.

Mentoring lies at the heart of our program. You will receive individualized guidance and support from an experienced faculty mentor who is a renowned scholar in his or her respective fields. Your mentor will provide personalized attention and expert advice as you navigate your research journey and develop your scholarly voice.

Our online modality offers you the flexibility of pursuing your doctoral studies while balancing other commitments in your life. Through our innovative online platform, you will have access to engaging course content, interactive discussions with faculty members and peers, and valuable resources that will enhance your learning experience.

Throughout your PhD journey, we are dedicated to preparing you to make a significant contribution to scholarship in your discipline. You will develop advanced research skills, critical thinking abilities, and scholarly writing expertise that will empower you to produce high-quality academic work. We believe in fostering a collaborative academic community, where you will have opportunities to engage in scholarly conversations and present your research findings to peers and faculty.

In addition to equipping you as a scholar, our PhD (Practical Theology) program prepares you to excel as an educator in theological higher education. Our curriculum includes pedagogical training, enabling you to teach and mentor future generations of students effectively in theological institutions both inside and outside the United States.

Benefits of our PhD (Practical Theology) Degree

Our unique PhD program is fully-online, dissertation-focused and follows the modified-European model. It offers you the opportunity to:

• Complete your entire program using fully online modality without relocating or coming to campus.
• Pay affordable tuition that saves you up to 50% of the cost of other seminary PhD programs and includes the cost of textbooks.
• Develop your skills in research, writing and teaching, while you pursue a wide variety of research topics.
• Focus your coursework on refining your anticipated dissertation topic before beginning your research.
• Engage in synchronous small group discussion sessions that foster a sense of community with your classmates.
• Work closely with a mentor whose areas of interest and expertise align closely with your dissertation topic.
• Develop a well-rounded understanding of the knowledge related to your discipline through tutorial discussions with your mentor.
• Engage regularly and intentionally with your dissertation mentor throughout the research and writing process.
• Complete your entire program in as few as three years.

Featured Faculty

Michael W. Langston

Professor of Practical Theology

John D. Harvey

Professor of New Testament and PhD Program Director

What Will I Study?

You will survey significant contemporary issues in Practical Theology, including areas such as chaplaincy, homiletics, pastoral theology, moral theology, and the pastoral cycle. You will then identify an issue and a method related to the area of your proposed dissertation topic and will explore each in depth.

You will review biblical perspectives on teaching and learning, survey principles of adult education, and explore best practices of course design and development. You will learn how to design lessons and courses that go beyond the communication of content to the facilitation of learning and will apply those skills to the creation of a course related to the area of your proposed dissertation topic.

You will engage in guided practice of bibliographic (text-based) research that will prepare you to write a doctoral dissertation in Practical Theology. You will learn to craft a research problem, identify appropriate research methods, locate, evaluate, and document scholarly sources, structure argumentation, and write at the doctoral level. Building upon those skills, you will write a dissertation proposal that must be approved by the Dissertation Proposal Committee before you begin the dissertation research courses.

• PTH 9901 Practical Theology Dissertation Research and Writing I 6.00 credit hours
• PTH 9902 Practical Theology Dissertation Research and Writing II 6.00 credit hours
• PTH 9903 Practical Theology Dissertation Research and Writing III 6.00 credit hours
• PTH 9904 Practical Theology Dissertation Research and Writing IV 6.00 credit hours
• PTH 9905 Practical Theology Dissertation Research and Writing V 6.00 credit hours
• PTH 9906 Practical Theology Dissertation Review and Defense 3.00 credit hours

You will demonstrate acceptable competency in a research language related to your dissertation.

Admission Requirements

• Online application
• Official transcripts from accredited institutions (all graduate level work)
• Completed MA, MDiv, or ThM with 3.5 GPA
• Major research paper, (20–24 pages)
• Proposed research topic (1 page plus bibliography)
• Transcript evidence of having completed four semesters of Greek and/or Hebrew (in any combination)
• Two academic references
• Interview with admissions committee
• *International requirements when appropriate

Accreditation and Accolades

Career Path Opportunities

• Seminary Professor
• International Theological Educator
• Bible College Professor
• High School teacher

As a Practical Theology PhD student, you may choose to focus your study in the areas of Chaplaincy, Homiletics, Moral Theology, Pastoral Care, or Pastoral Theology.

The PhD program is accredited professionally by the Association of Theological Schools (ATS), as well as regionally by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) and nationally by the Association for Biblical Higher Education (ABHE).

The entire PhD program uses online modality, so that you never need to come to the Columbia campus.

The three foundational seminars are largely asynchronous, but with a synchronous component. Instructors facilitate two-hour discussion group sessions of six to eight students that meet five to eight times throughout each semester.

In February 2022 the ATS Board of Commissioners approved a three-year experiment to offer a non-residential PhD degree as an exception to Standard 5.15, through a combination of online courses (synchronous and asynchronous) and one-on-one faculty mentoring sessions.

The modified-European model combines the strengths of both the North American and European models. You enter the program with a preliminary idea of the topic for your dissertation, and the coursework in the three foundational seminars helps you refine your topic to be substantive, coherent and focused. After those seminars, you engage in your dissertation research, writing and defense, which comprises 80% of the studies.

Total tuition for the program is 25–50% lower than the cost of other seminary PhD programs and includes the cost of textbooks.

As a PhD student, you will receive a free copy of Accordance Bible Software that you may use as long as you are pursuing your doctoral studies. Upon graduation, you own the software.

If you are pursuing work related to Practical Theology, you must show transcript evidence of having completed four semesters of Greek and/or Hebrew in any combination.

In order to have as wide access as possible to scholarly literature related to your dissertation topic, Practical Theology students demonstrate proficiency in one theological research language as part of their PhD studies. The process of collecting a working bibliography for your dissertation usually helps you identify the specific language you will pursue.

The wordcount for your dissertation is 90,000–110,000 words, including the introduction, the body, the footnotes, the conclusion and the bibliography, but not the front matter.

We will work with you to recruit a dissertation mentor whose areas of interest and expertise align as closely as possible with your topic. Since the majority of our mentors come from outside the seminary, the range of topics you may pursue is broad, and you have the opportunity to work closely with an expert in your field of research.

You may also be interested in

Doctor of Philosophy in Biblical Studies

Doctor of Philosophy in Theological Studies

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Practical Theology, Ph.D.

Our Ph.D. in Practical Theology begins with a two year program of coursework designed to train scholar-leaders to work within a diversity of theological specializations which emphasizes deep theological formation, skills in method and methodology, and engagement.

School of Ministry

West Palm Beach

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Ph.d. in practical theology, designed for ministry in the 21st century, this program integrates both:.

Chart Your Path. Launch Your Future.

Courses Are Paired Each Semester to Develop a Practical Theological Dialogue

Contemporary practical theology.

Introduces major works within practical theology worldwide together with an exploration of practical theological methods and methodology.

Formation and Spirituality in Practical Theology

Examines critical areas of formational practice (marturia), including education and teaching (didache) as well as preaching and proclamation (kergyma), engaging theological reflection and spiritual direction.

Sources of Practical Theology

Students will acquire an understanding of how scripture, practice, and theological reflection over the centuries provide the foundation on which contemporary practical theology rests within the theological enterprise.

Public Theology as Practical Theology

Explores forms of public theological reflection, including contemporary political and liberation theologies as well as theologies of reconciliation, in the context of theological ethics and pastoral care (diakonia).

Social Science for Practical Theology

Examines social research methods and theory as related to the work of practical theology. Students will critically assess and appropriate resources for contemporary practical theology within social science research and theory.

Community Life and Pastoral Practice

Presents congregational studies and faith community life (koinonia) in light of a practical ecclesiology and theological reflection on pastoral practices in dialogue with organizational theory, leadership studies, and related scholarship.

What Makes Our Program Unique

• We train our students to present at academic conferences from their very first semester.  We run an academic conference at the end of each semester and coach our students for success from the start.

• Students learn to engage, produce, and present scholarly work with the  relationship between theology and context in the 21st century.
• The program offers a collaborative educational approach  that seeks to form a community of learners at the highest level, engaging theological and relevant disciplines in critical conversation. You will be trained to produce original research that will launch your careers as scholars, educators and, pioneering leaders.

Program Details

Our students come from all over the world and represent a wide range of Christian traditions. We are thus both “intercultural and interconfessional.” This creates exciting conversations and leads to new insight for doctoral learning community members while learning from their colleagues. Intercultural and interconfessional conversation is a must for quality scholarly production and this is uniquely part of the seminar experience.

We train our students to present at academic conferences from their very first semester. We run an academic conference at the end of each semester and coach our students for success from the start.

This focus on a theology of action, both as theologizing from the praxis of ministry as well as entering into the entire Christian theological enterprise from the standpoint of praxis, is at the heart of this doctoral program. We seek to provide robust scholarly formation through a community of teaching and learning that embraces spiritual, human, intellectual, and pastoral dimensions.

This is the only Ph.D. in Practical Theology (PT) offered by our faculty in theology, biblical studies, and ministry. Our unique focus gives students an extraordinary depth. We do “all PT all the time” without distraction. We have no other doctoral program specialization in theology, biblical studies, or ministry. Other institutions that offer the Ph.D. in Practical Theology offer other doctoral specializations and relatively few courses and attention to practical theology.   We define PT using both definitions, which is atypical and gives students many more options. We approach practical theology as both “theologizing from the practice of the arts of ministry” and “a point of entrée into the entire theological enterprise from the standpoint of praxis.” This gives space for student interest and engagement. We encourage and support a wide range of specializations.   Our students come from all over the world and represent a wide range of Christian traditions. We are thus both “intercultural and interconfessional.” This creates exciting conversations and leads to new insight for doctoral learning community members as they work within their particular context while learning from their colleagues. This is especially appropriate for practical theology since the emphasis is on practice, not dogmatic theological debates. Intercultural and interconfessional conversation is a must for quality scholarly production and this is uniquely part of the seminar experience.

We train our students to present at academic conferences from their very first semester. We run an academic conference at the end of each semester and coach our students for success from the start.   Students can petition for permission to pursue study on a distance basis by participating live in the precandidacy courses, which are offered Mondays and Thursdays 5-9pm ET, via Zoom.

Course catalog

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What Can I Do With This Degree?

• University and seminary faculties and administrative positions
• Highly trained and able high school teachers and leaders
• Serve as pastors or teaching pastors
• Professional consultants for churches and related organizations
• Positions of leadership in church organizations and church-related organizations

Admission Requirements

Applicants must have at least a master’s degree in theology or a closely related field from a regionally accredited institution in the United States or the recognized equivalent, if the degree is from outside the United States. Applicants without a graduate degree in theology or a closely related field may be considered if they hold a recognized master’s degree and have 15 graduate credits in theology. Applicants in the process of completing the master’s degree at the time of admission will be considered if they can demonstrate the likelihood of completing that degree on or before the start of doctoral study. Official transcripts of all studies in institutions of higher education must be sent directly to the Office of Admissions from the institutions attended by the applicant. The most recent degree is generally the most important to document. Applicants should arrange for transcripts to be sent to Palm Beach Atlantic University, ATTN: ADMISSIONS, 901 South Flagler Drive, PO Box 24708, West Palm Beach, FL 33416. Official electronic transcripts may be sent to [email protected] or [email protected].

Applicants who have completed graduate level coursework at an institution outside of the U.S. that is not accredited by a U.S. regional accrediting organization or the equivalent must have a course-by-course and GPA equivalent evaluation conducted by an accredited member of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES). PBA is a corporate client of Spantran, a NACES member. PBA can directly provide Spantran copies of the official transcripts received by PBA. Applicants can request a Spantran transcript evaluation form, which includes payment information for Spantran credentials review, and return that form as part of the application process. The typical processing time for credentials review is 10 business days.

Applicants are urged to submit an academic-style curriculum vitae following a generally accepted format of their choosing. Such formats ordinarily include a listing of a person’s educational history, experience, and honors or awards. Entries should be given in descending chronological order. Any publications or conference papers presented should also be listed, ideally in a format following the Chicago Manual of Style. A traditional resume is acceptable in lieu of a formal curriculum vitae.

The writing sample should demonstrate the applicant’s readiness to embark upon scholarly research and writing. It will ideally be theological in nature and reflect an area of the applicant’s current scholarly interest. It may consist of one or more papers but must include no fewer than twenty pages. Applicants are encouraged but not required to follow the Chicago Manual of Style in their writing sample.

Applicants should request at least three recommendations that give evidence of scholarly potential as well as personal skills for the applicant as a self-motivated and peer learner within a scholarly community of teachers and learners together. These letters should mention how long and in what capacity the recommender has known the applicant, offer some specific observations about the applicant’s personal qualities and readiness to proceed to a Ph.D. in practical theology, as well as scholarly interests, if known, and potential to learn effectively at a distance, if is something about which the recommender feels competent to comment. At least two of the three letters should be written by a scholar holding the doctoral degree, ideally a theologian, who should specifically attest to the readiness of the applicant for theological scholarship. Recommendations should be in the traditional form of a letter on letterhead and should be sent as scanned attached files to the Program Director directly from the person writing the letter of recommendation.

Applicants from a country where English is not the primary language of instruction are required to submit the results of an English language proficiency exam, such as the TOEFL (minimum 79), IELTS (minimum 6.5) or Duolingo (minimum 105). This is not required for applicants holding an undergraduate or graduate degree from an institution in the U.S. or for applicants who have completed a course of study in the English language outside of the U.S

This is a 3-5 page articulation of the applicant’s background and aspirations sufficient to understand why the applicant seeks a Ph.D. in practical theology. The applicant should show understanding of the approach and design of the Ph.D. program, including particular course requirements as appropriate to the applicant’s interests. Specifics regarding an applicant’s intellectual interests, including potential dissertation research, should be included. Headings should be used. Some find it helpful to address three major questions: “Why a Ph.D.?” “Why practical theology?” “Why PBA?” Applicants who desire to participate on a distance basis (synchronous only, courses meet on Mondays and Thursdays from 5-9pm Eastern Time) should include a brief request to pursue pre-candidacy studies on a distance basis, noting sufficient computer equipment, internet access, and online experience to facilitate participation from a distance. They should also note their acceptance of the requirement to participate in person for the opening weekend and end-of-semester academic conference in every fall and spring semester of pre-candidacy.

This is the single most important part of the process. It occurs after all other required documentation has been submitted by the deadline, which is ordinarily January 31. Because faculty are collectively responsible for admission decisions, the personal interview is before core doctoral faculty. Interviews are organized and scheduled by the director of the Ph.D. program, ordinarily for late February. They are to take place via videoconference using an Internet-based video connection with the applicant. Applicants are responsible for ensuring the quality of their signal and equipment

West Palm Beach Admissions

Office of Admissions

Send Email Phone: (561) 803-2100

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Practical Theology PhD Program

The PhD program in practical theology offers three tracks, which are designed to prepare students to teach at a seminary, college, or university. However a majority of graduates go on to serve in many different capacities and institutional settings, including the parish.

Pastoral Theology

The PhD program in pastoral theology prepares students to learn and read texts critically, recognize the importance of introspection, and learn to use theology and ethics as tools for assessing the beliefs, practices, and actions of Christians.

The PhD program in homiletics brings together scholars with a unique range of interests and expertise, including theology and hermeneutics, rhetoric, performance theory, communication, and African American studies.

Christian Education

The PhD program in Christian education engages students in ground-breaking research using sophisticated practical theological methods and research tools.

PhD Course of Study

Students are to successfully complete a minimum of eight doctoral seminars or their equivalent, two of which must be inter-area seminars on issues of common concern to the whole field of practical theology. One of these two seminars must be PT900 History and Method of Practical Theology. In addition, each of the three areas will have specific requirements for the remaining six seminars.

Comprehensive Examinations

Students are required to take five written comprehensive examinations (one departmental examination in practical theology and four area examinations), the timing of which will be determined in consultation with the Residence Committee.

The examinations may all be taken during one of the following two examination periods, namely, September and October of the third year or January of the third year. Alternatively, the examinations may be divided, so that one or two examinations may be taken in April and May of the second year and three or four examinations in September and October of the third year, or one or two examinations in September and October of the third year and three or four examinations in January of the third year. When the examinations are divided, the examination in practical theology will always be taken as the first in the overall sequence. The oral examination will be based on the written examinations.

Students in Christian education will write examinations in the following areas:

• Practical theology
• Christian formation, theology, and spirituality
• Christian formation and the human sciences
• Contemporary discipleship and education
• History and philosophy of Christian formation

Students in pastoral theology will write examinations in the following areas:

• One or more of the human sciences (e.g., psychology, sociology, anthropology)
• The theological disciplines (systematic theology, ethics, biblical theology, or philosophy as related to the theological enterprise)
• Theory, method, and practice in pastoral theology
• Psychology of religion, or another field of relevance to pastoral theology (e.g., philosophy of religion, sociology of religion, religion and science, religion and literature)

A paper may be substituted for one of the four area examinations.

Students in homiletics will write examinations in the following areas:

• Speech, performance theory, and preaching
• History, theory, and practice of preaching
• Theology and hermeneutics in preaching
• Preaching the gospel in diverse cultures

On occasion, a student will be authorized to substitute a topic—such as liturgical studies and proclamation—selected by the Residence Committee in consultation with the student.

Home > Degree Programs > PhD in Practical Theology

Doctor of Philosophy in Practical Theology

A PhD is the height of scholarship. And the Claremont Practical Theology PhD Program begins with current epistemological and methodological standards in the fields of education and formation, or spiritual care and counseling.

Then, it challenges you to go further – to the leading edge. Your focus and passion will push that boundary into new and original territory. Now, you are the leading edge.

With the guidance of a faculty advisor, and the collaboration of your academic community and cohorts, serious students make serious contributions in the disciplines of spiritual formation, religious and interreligious education, clinical spiritual care, or spiritually integrated psychotherapy.

This is a program that will propel you, personally and professionally, into an elevated stratum of research, teaching and religious or spiritual leadership. The PhD holds special prestige in society, because PhD students move society forward.

PhD in Practical Theology

Select your concentration below.

This program is available in several modes.

Education and Formation

Spiritual care and counseling, ready to experience claremont.

Doctoral Program

Students investigate social and religious practices through interdisciplinary, contextual research, exploring the meaning of human actions while seeking richly textured ‘readings’ of them.

Students perform critical and comparative theological reflection on practices in conversation with the Christian and other religious and philosophical traditions, attempting not merely to define those practices but to engage them with questions, analysis, and imagination.

Students develop contextualized strategies for creating, sustaining, and transforming practices in close relation to the institutional needs of faith communities and the lived religious experiences of persons in their social, political, and cultural settings.

General Description of the Degree Program

The purpose of the Ph.D. degree program is to discover and extend knowledge and to enhance teaching competence in practical theology.

Practical theology is the theologically positioned, interdisciplinary study of the practices of religious communities and of the traditions and social contexts that shape and challenge those practices. The practices of any religious community sustain and transform that community by embodying its shared values and enacting its foundational narratives. Examples of such practices include liturgical rituals; acts of service, justice, and compassion; practices of nurture, education, and formation; and the transmission of a community’s tradition to others within new cultural and social contexts. Religious practices appear in all faith traditions, though with their own unique histories and institutional settings and in relation to their own distinctive sacred texts, rituals, symbols, and theological understandings.

In studying the practices of Christian communities, the doctoral program in practical theology is designed to prepare students to understand and assess the contemporary situation, to reflect historically and systematically on the church’s embodied witness of faith, and to develop faithful and effective strategies for Christian practice. This preparation, while it has a common structure and an ecclesiological center, emphasizes the particularity of context and requires a diversity in focus that requires strong interdisciplinary skills and a highly integrative acumen. The primary interdisciplinary partners and methodological approach in studying religious practices will need to be chosen in relation to the particularity of the practices in question and so as to address specific problems identified. At the same time, there are shared tasks for which the Ph.D. program prepares every student.

First, students must be able to provide a thick description, analysis, and interpretation of practices. The individual student will typically approach this description primarily from within a single particular discipline (as a historian, or as a sociologist, for example), and therefore the student must become conversant with a particular language and method of research. Still, the study of practical theology requires strong interdisciplinary skills and a highly integrative acumen. A theological understanding of practices within their context is never only an empirical or historical science but starts from a hermeneutically defined situation and employs interpretive skills that bring to light the meaning of human actions, making possible richly textured ‘readings’ of them.

Second, students in practical theology must engage in critical and comparative theological reflection. The discipline of practical theology moves beyond an initial and more descriptive moment toward the ongoing creative task of re-imagining and transforming practice. In doing so, the discipline requires of all PhD students an ability to think systematically and historically about the beliefs and practices of the Christian faith and to ask questions and form judgments concerning the shared visions of goodness, beauty, and truth contained within the sacred texts, rituals, and patterns of community of that tradition, always in conversation with other religious and secular traditions. In this way practical theological research is never reduced to mere description, on the one hand, or a capitulation to practical considerations, institutional inertia, and contextual forces, on the other hand.

Third, the doctoral program in practical theology will prepare students to develop contextualized strategies for sustaining and transforming practice in close relation to the institutional needs of faith   communities and the lived religious experience of persons in their social, political, and cultural settings. In this task, students will also need to enter into dialogue with a range of disciplinary partners such as, for example, the arts of music and rhetoric or the sciences of education, organizational management, and communication.

In the Ph.D. program at Boston University School of Theology, practice is not only the application but the generating source of theological norms. Thirdly, while this approach to practical theology would include the study of practices traditionally called ‘pastoral theology’ (focused on leadership of liturgy and ritual, preaching, evangelism, religious education and formation, social action and outreach, community-building and organization), here the agent of practice is the faith community itself, not only or primarily a priesthood or the clergy. The proposed program, therefore, expands the older ‘clerical’ paradigm of practical theology.

Ph.D. in Practical Theology

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Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Practical Theology

Use theological understanding to meet the needs of christian communities with liberty’s online ph.d. in practical theology.

Do you have a passion for helping Christian leaders serve their congregations and communities? Are you interested in conducting valuable theological research and using it to address ministry-related problems? With Liberty’s online Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Practical Theology, you can learn how to take theological principles beyond the realm of academic study and apply them to every aspect of Christian thought, worship, and life.

This 100% online Ph.D. program is designed to help you engage in practical theology in churches, parachurch organizations, religious nonprofits, and even secular settings. The skills you develop through this degree can be an asset as you seek to write about practical theology topics, teach at a university or seminary, serve as a church staff member, or develop material to distribute to Christians seeking answers to ministry questions.

At Liberty, we’re committed to offering you the best in distance learning – which means providing you with flexible courses, dedicated faculty, and a world-class curriculum that can help equip you for your future. By partnering with us for your doctoral degree, you’ll have the freedom to further your education without putting your life on hold – enabling you to get the skills, knowledge, and training you need to serve others and become a Champion for Christ .

What Will You Learn in Liberty University’s Practical Theology Ph.D.?

• Challenges and opportunities related to ministry in the 21st century
• Philosophical and ministry foundations for practical theology
• Teaching and research methods

Through this program, you can become equipped to apply theological principles to challenges in church growth, spiritual formation, social issues, preaching, church administration, educational ministries, family life, and more. Your courses will cover the hands-on aspects of carrying out practical theology as well as research techniques and tools for contributing your own findings to the field.

As you prepare to write and defend your dissertation, you can learn how to position your own research within the broader scholarly conversations taking place about your topic – and how to use your research to address practical theology- and ministry-related challenges.

Potential Careers for Graduates of the Ph.D. in Practical Theology Program

• Church staff leader
• Parachurch ministry leader

Benefits of Pursuing Your Online Ph.D. in Practical Theology with Liberty University

As a leader in distance education since 1985, we understand what it takes to create a flexible and affordable education for busy people. Since we have been investing in distance and online learning for decades, our experience has taught us how to streamline our degree options so you can focus on what really matters to you. While many schools offer online degrees, we believe Liberty stands out.

Here’s what sets us apart:

• Our online programs are backed by our brick-and-mortar campus – ranked among Niche.com’s Top 5 College Campuses in America – and that commitment to excellence extends to our online students as well. Earning your degree from a nonprofit university with this kind of recognition can help set you apart from others in your field.
• The majority of tuition for undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs has not increased in 9 years. While many other online colleges have raised tuition, Liberty has been able to keep costs low as a nonprofit university.
• Your ministry matters – so when you take 7-15 credit hours per semester in your divinity program, you’ll pay a discounted block rate of $2,750 .* It’s our way of supporting all you do to serve others.
• To continue our mission of providing affordable education, electronic textbooks are provided for many divinity courses** all for one convenient fee.

*Credits taken below 7 and above 15 credit hours are charged at the part-time rate.

**Electronic textbooks are not provided for courses that fall under departments outside the School of Divinity.

Military Tuition Discount

We want to help you find the doctoral degree you want — at a price you’ve earned. As a thank-you for your military service, Liberty University offers eligible current and former service members like you or your spouse multiple pathways to earn a doctoral degree for only $300/credit hour . Here’s how:

• If you’re earning or have earned a master’s degree through Liberty, you automatically qualify for the low price (when you begin within 2 years of your master’s completion).
• If you haven’t earned a graduate degree through Liberty, our Executive Certificate program allows you to pay only $300/credit hour for a postgraduate certificate that can stand alone or potentially count as the first 21 hours of a related doctoral degree. Then pay just $300/credit hour for your doctorate. Learn more!

Credit Hours

Available Online

100% online, 8-week courses

Transfer Credits

Transfer in up to 50% of the degree total

Next Start Date

Jan 13, 2025

Accreditation

Liberty University is accredited by SACSCOC

Areas of Interest

Choose your area of Interest:

Training Champions for Christ

Liberty’s promise to you is an education that expertly brings knowledge and faith together. Here, education is designed around you. It connects you to people and opportunities that help you develop the skills and confidence you’re looking for. At Liberty, you’ll find the knowledge, experience, and mentorship you want to make your career — and life — a fulfilling one.

Why Liberty

Liberty University is not just another school. It is the realization of a dream, the product of thousands of prayers. It was built to invite students into a bigger, better story. Discover the Liberty difference for yourself.

Scholarships

When it comes to choosing a college, finances make a difference. That’s why at Liberty, we believe in offering you a top-notch education — that’s also affordable. Discover how Liberty can help you keep your college costs down.

For residential students

Online Discounts

At Liberty University, we believe everyone should have an equal opportunity to pursue higher education, and it's our job to keep private education affordable. Explore the many ways a Liberty education can be an affordable one.

For online students

Academic Excellence

Liberty University is institutionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, and certain programs have earned additional field-specific accreditation as well.