ICAS-Accredited Degree Program
Doctor of Ministry in Christian Education
D.Min. credential
Build a teaching ministry that reaches every age in the church, through a professional doctorate in Christian education.
Doctor of Ministry in Christian Education: Your Grant Price
Applications are free. Eligible applicants receive their admission and Grant decision before any one-time program fee is requested.
Published tuition
$24,900.00
$649.00 Registry & Assessment Fee
$149
Doctoral Degree
2026 Life in Christ Grant is active
Ministry Experience, Evaluated Against Academic Standards.
Documented prior learning may be considered when it aligns with program outcomes; every credit decision follows academic review.
Program Overview
About this program
The Doctor of Ministry in Christian education is for those designing how a whole congregation learns. A congregation is learning something every week; the question is whether anyone chose it. This ICAS-accredited Kingdom of Life University pathway covers the theology of Christian teaching, how congregations actually learn, curriculum design across ages, recruiting and forming teachers, doctrinal coverage, educational leadership inside a church, and assessment honest enough to show retention.
Competency-Based Ministry Assessment
Recognition of demonstrated learning in theology and ministry
Experienced ministry practitioners demonstrate competencies developed through years of service, theological study, and continuing learning. The assessment connects that learning with the published outcomes of the Doctor of Ministry in Christian Education through biblical understanding, theological reflection, research, and ministry judgment.
70
Audited questions in this pathway bank
30
Questions drawn for each sitting
60 minutes
Time available for the knowledge component
24 hours
Interval before reassessment
Theological knowledge and degree outcomes
- Published bank title
- Doctor of Ministry: Christian Education - Doctoral Competency-Based Ministry Assessment
- Credential
- Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) in Christian Education
- Question construction
- 14 pathway subject-bank sources contribute 5 questions each, producing the complete 70-question bank.
How completion is reported
- The knowledge component contributes 40% and assessed ministry experience contributes 60% to one weighted result.
- The reported result is no lower than 80%, matching the 80% degree pass mark.
- Reassessment draws a fresh question set and is included in program access, with no additional fee or limit on sittings.
- The integrated assessment covers the published degree plan; separate course assessments, a capstone paper, and a dissertation defense are not required.
Program Objectives
What you will achieve
Integrate advanced theological inquiry and ministry judgment in service to the church and its mission
Judge educational ministry by formation rather than attendance
Design curriculum backwards from stated outcomes
Form teachers rather than merely recruiting them
Assess retention honestly and act on the findings
Learning Outcomes
Skills and competencies you will develop
Synthesize doctoral-level theological evidence, research judgment, and ministry wisdom for faithful leadership
Produce a congregational curriculum with outcomes, sequence, and assessment
Design and run a teacher formation programme with observation and feedback
Evaluate doctrinal coverage and retention across age groups
Complete a doctoral project evidencing improved congregational learning
Career Opportunities
Where this degree can take you
Pastor of Christian education
Director of educational ministries
Curriculum publisher
Doctoral-level education instructor
Major Subject Areas
The fourteen subjects you study, and the ones the ministry assessment draws on
Foundational and Major-Core Subjects
Four foundations every pathway shares, then four that belong to this field.
Doctoral Seminar: Biblical Interpretation
Teaching Scripture so that people can read it without you, which is the aim any curriculum should be judged against.
Doctoral Seminar: Old Testament Theology
The Old Testament's own pedagogy — household catechesis, festival, memorial — and what it assumes about learning.
Doctoral Seminar: New Testament Theology
The New Testament on the teaching office and the formation the first congregations received.
Doctoral Seminar: Christian Doctrine
Doctrinal coverage audited across a congregation's whole educational programme, where the gaps are usually systematic.
Doctoral Seminar: Theology of Christian Teaching
A theology of Christian teaching, covering the teaching office of the church and the ends by which educational ministry should be judged.
Doctoral Seminar: How Congregations Learn
How congregations learn, covering adult learning evidence, retention, and the gap between exposure and formation.
Doctoral Seminar: Curriculum Design for the Church
Curriculum design for the church, covering outcomes, scope and sequence, doctrinal coverage, and materials selection.
Doctoral Seminar: Recruiting and Training Teachers
Recruiting and training teachers, covering identification, formation, observation, feedback, and realistic retention.
Specialization Subjects
Six more that take the field into the places it actually gets used.
Doctoral Seminar: Teaching Doctrine Across Ages
Teaching doctrine across ages, covering developmental appropriateness and the coherence of what children, youth, and adults are taught.
Doctoral Seminar: Educational Leadership in a Church
Educational leadership within a congregation, covering the relation to preaching, staffing, budget, and the politics of curriculum change.
Doctoral Seminar: Assessing Learning and Retention
Assessing learning and retention, covering what can be measured, the instruments available, and the honest interpretation of results.
Doctoral Seminar: Doctoral Christian Education Project
The doctoral Christian education project, covering design, intervention, evaluation, and the written argument.
Doctoral Seminar: Spiritual Formation and Christian Vocation
The teacher's formation, and the distance between mastering material and being changed by it.
Doctoral Seminar: Integrative Theology and Ministry
A doctoral education project: curriculum designed, delivered, and evaluated for retention across age groups.
Admission Requirements
What you need to apply
- Master's degree in theology, ministry, or a relevant field from an accredited or recognized institution
- Official graduate transcripts demonstrating advanced academic preparation
- Research statement identifying a proposed area of theological or ministry inquiry
- Scholarly or ministry-focused writing sample
- Current curriculum vitae documenting relevant research, church, or ministry leadership experience
- Three ministry or academic recommendations and a faculty interview
Degree Completion Requirements
Requirements for the Doctor of Ministry
Graduation Requirements
- Complete at least 60 doctoral semester credits in the approved degree plan
- Pass the Competency-Based Ministry Assessment for the degree
- Satisfy every doctoral-core, research-methods, specialization, elective, and Competency-Based Ministry Assessment requirement group
- Integrate theological knowledge with assessed ministry experience under the published result-weighting policy
- Recognize demonstrated learning against every published degree-plan requirement
Culminating Experience
Demonstrate doctoral-level theological synthesis, research judgment, and ministry leadership through Competency-Based Ministry Assessment, combining theological knowledge with assessed ministry experience.
Credit Distribution
| Requirement Area | Credits | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Advanced Doctoral Core | 24 | 8 courses. Doctoral theory, disciplinary foundations, and scholarly leadership. |
| Research Design and Methods | 12 | 4 courses. University-wide doctoral preparation in quantitative, qualitative, measurement, and research-ethics competencies. |
| Area of Specialization | 15 | 5 courses. Focused doctoral inquiry supporting the learner's research agenda. |
| Doctoral Elective | 6 | 2 courses. Any doctoral-level major course from any school that is not already part of this degree plan. |
| Competency-Based Ministry Assessment | 3 | 1 course. Integrated doctoral theological knowledge and assessed ministry experience, recognizing demonstrated learning across the published degree plan. |
| Total Degree Credits | 60 | All requirements must be completed within the approved degree plan. |
Program Details
Program Length
Self-Paced
Self-Paced Learning
Total Credits
60 credit hours
Up to 30 Transfer Credits
Published Degree Plan
20 courses
Across 5 required curriculum groups
Format
Flexible Study
Assessment Format
Competency-Based Ministry Assessment
Selected Degree
Doctorate
School
School of Theology and Ministry
Institutional Status
ICAS Accredited
Ready to Begin Your Accredited Christian Education Degree?
Applying costs nothing, and the work you have already done may count. Have a look at what this pathway asks for before you decide.