Certificate Programs

Children and Family Ministry

12 Credit Hours

Residential | Remote

Gain a deeper understanding of spiritual formation, stewarding a ministry team, curriculum building, church leadership and administration, roles of family in spiritual development and intergenerational, family, and children’s ministry care. This certificate will equip you to serve children and families in the local church and ministry contexts.

Required (4 semester hours) generally completed at the beginning of enrollment:

• EM 5200 Educational Ministries
• EM 5125 Teaching and Learning

Additional Requirements (8 semester hours)

• Select additional semester hours of courses prefixed EM or ES available at the master’s level (8999 or below). Courses from other departments or the ES 8000 Current Issues Seminar may be applied when such substitutions are approved in advance by the EM Department.

Suggested curricular courses include but are not limited to:

• EM 5210 Christian Leadership and Administration
• EM 5510 Christian Formation and Journey
• EM 6100 Intergenerational Ministry in the Church
• EM 6265 Building Ministry Teams
• EM 6500 Curriculum Development
• EM 7110 Spiritual Formation within the Family
• ES 7524 Children in Congregations
• ES 7535 Nurturing Families in the Church
• ES 7560 Program Planning Dynamics in the Local Church
Other departmental courses offered regularly may apply.

Christian Tradition

12 Credit Hours

Residential | Remote

Explore the rich traditions, theology, and history of the Christian faith throughout time beginning with the early church, through the Reformation, up to today. By examining church history and engaging the foundations of systematic theology, you will gain a biblical understanding of the ways in which God works in the world, as well as the effect culture has had on various church traditions throughout history.

Required (12 semester hours)

• CH 5201 History of Christianity I
• CH 5202 History of Christianity II
• ST 5201 Theology I: The God of the Gospel
• ST 5202 Theology II: The Gospel of God

Educational Ministries

12 Credit Hours

Residential | Remote

Gain a deeper understanding of spiritual formation, curriculum building, and ministry practices to support each generation. This certificate will equip you to develop Biblically rooted programming and curriculum for all generations and intergenerational groups in the local church or other ministry contexts.

Required: Generally Completed at the beginning of enrollment

• EM 5100 Educational Ministries and Leadership OR EM 5200 Educational Ministries AND EM 5210 Christian Leadership and Administration

Additional Requirements: Suggested curricular courses include but are not limited to:

• EM 5510 Christian Formation & Journey
• EM 5541 Youth and Emerging Adults in Congregations
• EM 5560 Adults in Congregations
• EM 6100 Intergenerational Ministry in the Church
• ES 7524 Children in Congregations
• ES 7535 Nurturing Families in the Church
• ES 7560 Program Planning Dynamics in the Local Church
• ES 8235 Ministry with Aging Adults
Other departmental courses offered regularly may apply.

Leadership in Missions

12 Credit Hours

Residential | Remote

By studying the theology and history of evangelism and missions around the world you will gain a strong foundation of anthropology, discipleship practices and practical evangelism methods which will enrich your ministry abilities both in the United States and around the world.

Required:

• ME 6760 Theology of Mission and Evangelism

Additional Requirements: Select additional semester hours of courses prefixed ME available at the master’s level (8999 or below). Courses from other departments may be applied when such substitutions are approved in advance by the ME Department.

• ME 5000 Foundations of Christian Mission
• ME 5001 Foundations of Evangelism
• ME 6410 History of the Expansion of Christianity
• ME 6610 Anthropology for Ministry
• ME 7300 World Religions
• ME 7510 Missional Church
• ME 7710 Contextualization
• ME 8250 Leadership Development and Culture
• ME 8500 Missional Disciple-making
Other ME departmental courses offered regularly may apply.

Ministry Care

12 Credit Hours

Residential

Learn how to faithfully counsel, teach, support, and guide your brothers and sisters in Christ as they seek to be transformed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Through this certificate you’ll explore ministry practices, counseling techniques, socio-cultural impacts on ministry, church leadership development, and building biblical curriculum.

Required (12 semester hours)

• CM 5000 Introduction to Counseling Ministries
• EM 5100 Educational Ministries and Leadership
• ID 6500 Understanding Social and Cultural Contexts of Ministry
• PT 5100 Spiritual Formation for Ministry
• PT 7250 Christian Worship and Pastoral Practices

Organizational Leadership
(Local Church - Masters)

12 Credit Hours

Residential | Remote

Gain a deeper understanding of leadership practices and enhance your leadership skills in church, ministry or marketplace settings. By specializing in church leadership or executive leadership, you’ll be better equipped to lead teams in your area of focus.

LOCAL CHURCH TRACK (MASTERS LEVEL)

• REQUIRED: EM 5210 Christian Leadership and Administration (Generally completed with EM 5200 Educational Ministries)
• Additional requirements: Select additional semester hours of courses prefixed EM or ES available at the master’s level (8999 or below). Courses from other departments or the ES 8000 Current Issues Seminar may be applied when such substitutions are approved in advance by the EM Department.
Suggested curricular courses include but are not limited to:
• EM 5510 Christian Formation & Journey
• EM 6265 Building Ministry Teams
• EM 6275 Developing Healthy Spiritual Leaders
• ES 7550 Local Church as System
• ES 7560 Program Planning Dynamics in the Local Church
• ES 7815 Change, Power, and Conflict
• ES 8710 Social Intelligence and Leadership
Other departmental courses offered regularly may apply.

Organizational Leadership
(Executive - Doctoral)

12 Credit Hours

Residential | Remote

For those who already possess a graduate degree and desire further training in the area of Executive Leadership. This Program is meant for pastors, directors, executives, and all other senior leaders who want more education but do not want to enter a doctoral program.

EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP TRACK (DOCTORAL LEVEL)

• REQUIRED: ES 9175 Leadership and the Development of Organizations
• Additional requirements: Select additional semester hours of courses prefixed ES 7500 and above. Courses from other departments or the ES 8000 Current Issues Seminar may be applied when such substitutions are approved in advance by the EM Department.
Suggested curricular courses include but are not limited to:
• ES 8710 Social Intelligence and Leadership
• ES 9275 Higher Education Administration
• ES 9305 Developing Emerging Leaders
• ES 9316 Innovation, Agility, and Leading Change
• ES 9330 Developing Collaborative Teams
• ES 9725 Ethics in Education
Other departmental courses offered regularly may apply.

Teaching and Learning
(Educational Ministry - Masters)

12 Credit Hours

Residential | Remote

Expand your understanding of teaching methods, spiritual formation, curriculum building, education administration, and ministry teaching practices for each age group. With this certificate you’ll gain a strong foundation of educational ministry practices and have the option to specialize in a higher education administration track.

MASTER'S LEVEL CERTIFICATE

• REQUIRED: EM 5125 Teaching and Learning
• Additional requirements: Select additional semester hours of courses prefixed EM or ES available at the master's level (8999 or below). Courses from other departments or the ES 8000 Current Issues Seminar may be applied when such substitutions are approved in advance by the EM Department.

CERTIFICATE IN EDUCATIONAL MINISTRIES REQUIREMENTS

• REQUIRED: EM 5100 Educational Ministries and Leadership OR EM 5210 Christian Leadership and Administration
• EM 5200 Educational Ministries
Additional Requirements - Suggested curricular courses include but are not limited to:
• EM 5510 Christian Formation & Journey
• EM 5541 Youth and Emerging Adults in Congregations
• EM 5560 Adults in Congregations
• EM 6100 Intergenerational Ministry in the Church
• ES 7524 Children in Congregations
• ES 7535 Nurturing Families in the Church
• ES 7560 Program Planning Dynamics in the Local Church
• ES 8235 Ministry with Aging Adults
Other departmental courses offered regularly may apply.

Teaching and Learning
(Higher Ed - Doctoral)

12 Credit Hours

Residential | Remote

For professionals working in higher education who desire further training but do not want to enter a doctoral program. This program is perfect for deans who's doctorate is not in education or for administrative professionals who possess a graduate degree and would like to expand their skill set.

HIGHER EDUCATION TRACK (DOCTORAL LEVEL)

• REQUIRED: ES 9150 Teaching in Higher Education
• Additional requirements: Select additional semester hours of courses prefixed ES 7500 and above. Courses from other departments or the ES 8000 Current Issues Seminar may be applied when such substitutions are approved in advance by the EM Department.
Suggested curricular courses for the Higher Education track include but are not limited to:
• ES 8258 Online Teaching and Learning
• ES 8425 Theological Education: Topics
• ES 8715 Appreciative Inquiry
• ES 9200 Adult Learning Foundations
• ES 9210 Curriculum Theory and Design
• ES 9250 Modes of Higher Education
• ES 9275 Higher Education Administration
• ES 9280 Assessment in Higher Education
• ES 9700 Biblical and Theological Formation of the Educator
• ME 8215 Teaching Across Cultures
Other departmental courses offered regularly may apply.

Theological Studies

21 Credit Hours

Residential | Online

Gain a solid foundation of theology and biblical interpretation with the option to choose your area of focus ranging from church history, systematic theology, New Testament, Old Testament, and more. This certificate is a building block for our MA in Theological Studies program.

There are no specifically required courses to complete the Certificate. However, Certificate students are required to fulfill the following minimal requirements:

• Biblical Studies
• Theological Studies
• 15 hours of Electives