Northwind Theological Seminary
Doctor of Theology
Degree
Engage in rich theological reflection on ministry practice, develop and deepen your knowledge of theological content, and generate new understandings of the craft of ministry.
The Doctor of Theology is an accredited degree of advanced study delivered in an accelerated format.
The degree is designed for the theological reflective practitioner, is a research degree that will enable you to engage in rich theological reflection on practice to enhance and create biblically faithful, theologically coherent, and contextually relevant ministry practices for the Church at large. The program’s core learning experiences provide a common foundation for seminar-style focused readings and generative research, accompanied by an invitation to integrate and apply. The program may be completed in context but requires two group residencies conducted in person at Kairos University in Sioux Falls, SD.
Degree Concentrations:
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Open & Relational Theology with Tom Oord, Ph.D.
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Romantic Theology with Michael Christensen, Ph.D.
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Semiotics with Len Sweet, Ph.D.
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Biblical Studies with Carl Savage, Ph.D.
Students in this degree are dually enrolled in Kairos University and receive their degree from Kairos.
Degree Description
The Doctor of Theology is 42 credit hours which can be completed in two years.
The degree consists of the following experiences.
Each concentration has a specific course of study.
Starting Well
This experience prepares you for doctoral-level reading and writing, encourage you to develop habits and patterns for successful progress through the program, assist you in identifying a tentative research focus, and conclude with the identification of a mentor team to guide you through the remainder of the program.
Core Learning
Integrative learning experiences provide a common foundational content and context for the learning in the ThD program and degree concentrations. Each 12-week scheduled integrative learning experience requires a three-day intensive residency experience in Sioux Falls, SD (some exceptions may apply for students outside of North America). Core learning experiences can be taken in any order.
Integration: Macro Context
This learning experience examines:
Macro Integration: An Historical Imagination
Macro Integration: A Global Imagination
A five-day intensive residency experience in Sioux Falls, SD is required.
Integration: Micro Context
This learning experience examines:
Micro Integration: An Ecclesiological Imagination
Micro Integration: A Formational Imagination
A five-day intensive residency experience in Sioux Falls, SD is required.
Specialized Inquiry
Self-paced specialized reading and research in the your area of inquiry. Specialized inquiry is done at your own pace and under the direct supervision of your mentor team.
Literature and History
Concepts and Methods
Practices and Methods
Generative Learning
Upon completion of core learning experiences and specialozed inquiry, you will take a comprehensive exam to demonstrate the capacity to integrate and apply across the content of the program. Following your comprehensive exam, you will begin the process, under the continued direction of your mentor team, of creating a full-length disseminable dissertation or, with approval, a related artifact that accomplishes the same learning objectives.
Continuing Well
This experience prepares you for doctoral-level ministry, encourages you to continue to utilize the habits and patterns of the program, and assists you in implementing you research focus into practical ministry.
Program Outcomes
With a focus on rich theological reflection on ministry practice, the Doctor of Theology will help you develop and deepen your knowledge of theological content, be more fully formed in Christian character, and generate new understandings of the craft of ministry. Through the program, you will develop and demonstrate proficiency in its eight outcomes: Starting Well, Specialized Inquiry: Literature and History, Specialized Inquiry: Concepts and Models, Specialized Inquiry: Practices and Methods, Integration: Macro Context, Integration: Micro Context, Generative Learning, and Continuing Well.
Dissertation
As part of the Doctor of Theology program, you will be invited to generate for dissemination high-level scholarly research within a specialized theological field of inquiry toward the improvement of ministry praxis. You will work alongside a mentor team crafted around your specialized field of inquiry, and your entire learning experience may be individualized and contextualized as much as possible toward exploring your degree concentration and research focus.
Customized Learning Experiences
Learning experiences in Kairos are built around an invitation for students to explore some aspect of their vocation, Christian thought and practice, or the human experience. As a Doctor of Theology student, you will be able to engage in individualized and guided learning experiences that encourage deep theological reflection on ministry practice within your context and tradition.