Doctor of Ministry

The Doctor of Ministry Degree is a professional doctoral degree providing space for renewal, growth, companionship among peers, and rich dialogue with members of staff at New College and Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. A cohort of students on this programme will complete their studies in May 2024, and from April 2024 onwards applications are invited to form a new cohort of twelve students from the UK who will work with a similar cohort from the United States. This new cohort will commence their studies in June 2025.

The purpose of this programme is to engage with the challenges, opportunities, and vocation of ministry through a systematic and sustained curriculum involving disciplined study and reflection over a period of three years. Students undertaking the degree are to develop a habit of reading and study, conversation and reflection, writing and rewriting that provides a pattern of deep theological engagement and invites renewed imagination for work in the student’s ministry setting. 

Pittsburgh Theological Seminary is the degree-awarding institution for this programme.  Therefore, applicants from outside of the UK should apply directly through them.

Pittsburgh Theological Seminary

Programme structure:

• Classes meet in two-week blocks twice per year for 2.5 years, in Edinburgh and in Pittsburgh.
• The programme is based on a cohort model that facilitates peer relationships and shared learning throughout the DMin journey.
• This emphasis on combining academic study and the practice of ministry is carried out through interactive teaching-learning styles in seminars and courses.
• The doctoral project at the end of coursework is undertaken under the supervision of carefully selected members of staff.

In the DMin final project, each candidate demonstrates the ability to identify a specific theological topic in ministry, organize an effective research model, use appropriate resources, and evaluate the results, reflecting the candidate’s depth of theological insight in relation to ministry. 

This project is different from other doctorate degrees which culminate in dissertations and its distinctive feature is that it is contextual – it engages a specific context.

Entry requirements and application

Applicants must have completed a minimum of three years in active ministry since completing their training, and are expected to be engaged in some recognised ministerial position for the period of the programme.

Learning outcomes

Upon completion of the Doctor of Ministry in Reformed Theology, students will demonstrate the ability to:

• Articulate how the central convictions of Reformed theology relate to the practices of ministry, with particular attention to the relationship between divine and human agency
• Describe with cultural sensitivity the way theological commitments are shaped by diverse cultural and historical circumstances
• Use appropriate analytical tools to describe how practices take shape in a particular context and reflect theologically on that description, drawing on the distinctive theological contributions of Reformed traditions
• Exhibit an aptitude for critical theological thinking about the practices of ministry today with reference to the witness of Scripture (is it faithful?) and a pastoral sensitivity to the role of context in making judgments about local theology and practice (is it fitting?).

Each course should:

• Engage students in biblical and theological reflection
• Provide opportunities for worship and prayer
• Invite students to relate the subject matter of the course to their own ministry contexts, considering how it intersects with local theology and practice
• Attend to how the subject matter of the course intersects with the religious, cultural, historical, and political dynamics of the United States and Scotland

Fees and funding

• All fees will be payable to the University of Edinburgh. Currently the fees are £3000 per year.
• New College currently offers a bursary to all Church of Scotland ministers of £1000 per year towards the cost of fees.
• In the past, the Hope Trust has offered a bursary of £1000 in the first two years and £500 in the third year to all students from a Reformed tradition, to contribute towards travelling expenses etc. We will apply again to the Hope Trust on behalf of the relevant students once offers have been made and accepted.
• Students will be responsible for their own travelling, accommodation and visa costs.
• Scottish students will need to apply for a F1 visa in order to study in the United States of America.

Further information about student visas for the USA