Prerequisites: Master’s Degree or Equivalent

A degree major may be selected in any of the following religious concentrations; (Clinical Christian Counseling, Clinical Pastoral Counseling, Christian Education, Christian Leadership and Theology.) Special consideration may be given to areas of concentration that are not listed here.

Our Doctor of Philosophy graduate program is based on the European university model of “research degrees” which are entirely research-based, rather than course-based. The Ph.D. degree is awarded on the basis of substantial original research; the Ph.D. has a prerequisite of an MA degree (or its equivalent) and requires the student to write a 125-page dissertation (36 credits) on a topic centered on the student’s selected concentration.

The dissertation-only option does not apply to the Ph.D. in Clinical Christian Counseling or the Ph.D. in Clinical Pastoral Counseling. The Ph.D. in Clinical Christian Counseling and the Clinical Pastoral Counseling Degree Program (Ph.D.) is designed to give the student an advanced background in Christian Counseling and incorporates the programs which will allow for National Christian Counseling Association (NCCA) certification or licensure. The program is 36 semester hours in length. The purchase of books are required for the Doctor of Philosophy in Clinical Christian Counseling and the Doctor of Philosophy in Clinical Pastoral Counseling.