If one pursues the MDiv at a full-time pace, the degree can be completed in three years as follows:
First Year
Your first year of an MDiv begins in late August, followed by a 4-6 week break in the winter, and spring term concluding in May. Students should plan on enrolling in 10+ credit hours per semester, including core Philosophy, Meditation, and Service required courses.
MDiv students are encouraged to enroll in the Classical Tibetan Language Summer Intensive, June-August, for four credits.
In this first year, students are encouraged to understand APC requirements for Endorsement, and begin to consider where they may want to be employed and from whom they may want to obtain recognized Endorsement. They should request information from potential endorsers about their requirements, and integrate this preparation into their degree planning.
Second Year
Students should plan on enrolling in 10+ credit hours per semester. The second academic year, August-May, is ideally followed by one unit of Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) or external field education/clinical internship, June-August, for 6 credits. In the fall semester of the MDiv student’s second year, CPE is discussed in depth, and students draft applications to CPE programs. Students are encouraged to submit applications to CPE admissions committees between November – February of their second academic year.
Third Year
Students should plan on enrolling in 10+ credit hours per semester, including their Action Research Project (capstone).
Students are encouraged to apply in October of their third year for full time, post-graduate CPE Residency programs if they wish to pursue a career in healthcare chaplaincy or sector requiring additional CPE and/or board certification. The third year of the MDiv may be completed in May, and student may have completed Endorsement requirements, or still be working on them. Commencement Exercises are in mid-May.
Post-Graduate Year
If a CPE Residency has been secured, a postgraduate full time CPE program typically lasts from September-August. Residents seek employment following CPE, and become eligible, after 2 years of employment experience, to apply for Board Certification. Students may also continue to pursue Endorsement in postgraduate years, up to the time of applying for Board Certification, by which time it must be obtained.
Some Maitripa students prefer to complete some or all of their MDiv degree on a part-time basis, or have family, work, or other obligations to balance with graduate school. Many students complete the MDiv in four years, and students are permitted to take up to seven years to complete the MDiv degree requirements.
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