A contemplative MDiv preparing you for spiritual care in healthcare, hospice, and community settings

Serve with Compassion and Wisdom: An Integrated Pathway to Buddhist Chaplaincy

Maitripa’s low-residency Master of Divinity integrates Tibetan Buddhist study, meditation and supervised spiritual care to prepare you for chaplaincy and spiritual care work. You learn to accompany people through illness, grief and the end of life, with your cohort and faculty alongside you.

MDiv at a Glance

  • Learning format: low-residency, cohort-based.

  • Length and credits: 4 years, part time; 72 credits.

  • Time commitment: about 21 hours a week, year-round (Fall and Spring semesters and a Summer term).

  • Live classes: one hour a week per course, scheduled weekdays between 4 and 6 pm Pacific and Saturdays between 10 am and 1 pm Pacific. Everything else is asynchronous.

  • Residencies: two four-day residencies a year in Portland; the final one includes Commencement,

    Resid. 1 · October 14–17, 2027 (Thu–Sun)

    Resid. 2 · March 15–18, 2028 (Wed–Sat)

    Resid. 3 · October 12–15, 2028 (Thu–Sun)

    Resid. 4 · March 21–24, 2029 (Wed–Sat)

    Redis. 5 · October 11–14, 2029 (Thu–Sun)

    Resid. 6 · March 20–23, 2030 (Wed–Sat)

    Resid. 7 · October 10–13, 2030 (Thu–Sun)

    Resid. 8 · July 22–25, 2031 (Tue–Fri)

    Includes Commencement

  • Clinical Pastoral Education or field education: one unit.

  • Next start: Fall semester, August 30, 2027 (orientation the week before).

  • Applications for Fall 2027: priority deadline February 15, 2027.

    Applications open · October 15, 2026

    Priority deadline · February 15, 2027

    Priority decisions · by March 1, 2027

    Regular deadline · April 15, 2027

    Final deadline · June 1, 2027

    Orientation · week of August 23–29, 2027

    Fall semester begins · August 30, 2027

  • Tuition and funding: estimated cost, payment plans and other options are on the Tuition & Funding page.

  • Support: an assigned faculty advisor and a cohort you move through the program with.

What You’ll Learn

Three integrated pillars: Scholarship, Meditation, and Service

  • Tibetan Buddhist philosophy, history, and ethics

  • Theories and praxis of chaplaincy, pastoral care, and spiritually integrated care

  • Graduate-level research and critical, applied thinking

  • Pastoral, public, and scholarly communication

  • Contemplative methods for cultivating wisdom and compassion in oneself and others

  • Reflective practice & embodied insight

  • Compassionate, ethical service grounded in spiritual formation
  • Spiritual care & leadership skills for diverse settings

Curriculum Snapshot

  • The Pastoral Buddha: scriptures on compassionate care

  • Culturally and spiritually responsive care + collaboration

  • Companioning grief and end-of-life care

  • Becoming an Action Research practitioner

  • Meditation classes: Concentration, Compassion, Insight into emptiness

  • Philosophy classes: A path out of suffering; Wisdom and compassion; Nature of mind and reality

  • Developing the Arts and Competencies of Spiritual Care

  • Buddhist Ethics: Equanimity, Equality, and Exchange of Self and Other

  • History: Buddhist Thought and Social Contexts

  • Spiritual Formation Group

Career Paths

  • Healthcare chaplaincy

  • Hospice and end-of-life chaplaincy
  • Community-based spiritual care

  • Chaplaincy/Spiritual Care in complex institutions, interdisciplinary settings, and diverse sectors where social, emotional, and spiritual needs exist to be met

  • Ministry and spiritual leadership in Buddhist, interfaith, or secular organizations

  • Integrating spirituality into therapeutic and allied professional roles

Program Features

Flexible Low-Residency Format
Live/recorded/async + Portland intensives

Cohort-Based & Faculty Mentorship
Spiritual Formation Group, Assigned faculty advisor

Affordable Tuition
Est. $36,480 tuition + fees; payment plans available

Lineage-grounded, Professionally Aligned Training
Tibetan Buddhist foundations + professional spiritual care training

Transformative In-Person Retreats
2 required intensives/year • 4–5 days • Portland, OR