DMin Scope of Projects & Project Options

The DMin Project should normally be about 75 pages in length, and no longer than 100 pages in length (double-spaced in Times New Roman font). The project should represent a reflective engagement with one of the DMin Project Options. 

DMin Projects will vary from student to student, but all projects will typically share these characteristics:

• Grounded in the practice of ministry, contextually defined;
• Rooted in the study of religion and culture, and attentive to complex analysis of religious, cultural, and material realities;
• Concerned with the nature and function of leadership;
• Attentive to complex analysis of context, including religious, cultural, and material realities at play; and
• Reflective of contemporary, responsible scholarship in the student's field(s) of study.

The DMin Project is a significant project that furthers the student’s own professional work and is informative for others undertaking the same kind of work. It should be grounded in prior published research and inquiry, and designed to address constructively a particular problem or challenge. 

Many approaches to the final project are possible. Any that involve research with human subjects or communities require IRB permission. Here are some approaches that could work well:

1. Undertake Qualitative or Quantitative Research of Relevance to One’s Ministry Context

• Articulate the presenting problem and a well-developed research question.
• Engage in contextual and theoretical analysis of the problem.
• Review literature of existing related studies to the problem.
• Articulate a coherent method for your research and design and complete a process of data gathering.
• Engage in data analysis to articulate research findings.
• Name implications of the analysis of the research for the problem as presented and as potentially relevant to other contexts.

2. Development and Evaluation of a Contextually-Based Program, Process, or Resource

• Articulation of a contextualized problem with current praxis in an area of ministry in which you are focused.
• Contextual analysis of that problem with special attention to how it came to be, why it continues, and how it reflects the current interests and values of its participants.
• Review of relevant literature to understand the nature of the problem and why it is happening in this context in this particular way.
• In response, develop a program, process, series of resources, in-service trainings, curricular materials, educational podcasts, worship services, or retreat sessions for those who are impacted by this problem in praxis.
• Pilot what you have developed, evaluate its impact on participants through a coherent research design and data collection process, and document learnings brought about by the evaluation.

3. Development of a Contextually-Based Performance Ethnography or Collaborative Artistic Production (theater, storytelling, spoken word, music, dance, filmmaking)

• Identify a problem that a specific community is struggling with in consultation with members of that community.
• Engage in participant observation, interviews, focus groups or other forms of data-gathering to understand in-depth what is happening in relation to the problem.
• Review relevant literature and existing research with regards to the particular problem.
• Drawing on the data and literature review, design and implement a process to collaboratively create and produce an artistic production that communicates the problem and potential constructive responses to it to a relevant audience.
• Engage in assessment/analysis of the reception of the event, identifying any potential changes it may have generated.
• Reflect on the process of collaborative art production and what learnings it might suggest to other contexts struggling with similar problems.

4. Consulting on a Strategic Visioning Project

• Work with an organization/congregation for which you are not the current leader in which you design a process that allows that entity to address a significant presenting problem that the organization/congregation hopes to address.
• Engage in significant contextual analysis and data gathering to determine what is happening currently with regards to the presenting problem.
• Review of literature relevant to the problem, including engagement with stakeholders of the organization to help them learn from the literature to gain perspective on their own situation.
• Engagement with core values and mission of the organization to help imagine how to better live into those values in relation to the current presenting situation.
• Help the organization develop a plan for short-term and long-term initiatives to address the presenting problem and live more fully into their core values and mission.
• An analysis of what problems will remain or are likely to arise once the strategic plan is implemented along with what the learnings from this specific context might offer to other organizations/congregations.

5. Development of Educational Materials for Other Ministry Professionals

• Articulation of a contextualized problem with current praxis in an area of ministry in which you are focused.
• Contextual analysis of that problem with special attention to how it came to be, why it continues, and how it reflects the current interests and values of its participants.
• Review of relevant literature to understanding the nature of the problem and why it is happening in this context in this particular way.
• Articulate a constructive response to the problem related to your analysis and research.
• Develop a series of in-service trainings, curricular materials, educational podcasts or retreat sessions for educating or re-educating leaders who are impacted by this problem in praxis.
• Pilot the educational materials, assess their effectiveness, and document changes in the educational design brought about by the assessment.

6. Work with an Organization to Design a Public Campaign for Education/Financial Support/Call to Action

• Work with an organization/congregation for which you are not the current leader in which you design a process that allows that entity to shape a significant public campaign related to an issue that the organization/congregation hopes to address.
• Engage in significant contextual analysis and data gathering to determine the current understandings related to the public campaign and beneficial ways to shape the communication in light of the organization’s goals, core values, and mission.
• Review of literature relevant to the problem, including engagement with stakeholders of the organization to help them learn from the literature to gain perspective on their own situation.
• Design and implement a public campaign that addresses the goals of the organization for educational outreach, increased financial support, or responsiveness from volunteers, including assessment of its impact.
• Engage in analysis of what was learned in the process of creating the campaign along with what the learnings from this specific context might offer to other organizations/congregations.

7. Generalized Practical Theology Project

• Identify a theological problem or question that is relevant to a context of ministry that you know well. Describe the context’s current practice in relation to the problem with complex attention to how it is experienced by a range of people within the context.
• Engage in analysis of why the current situation has come to be. What are the material realities, histories, ideologies, interests, and ongoing values that keep the problem from being resolved
• What ought to be going on? Identify a normative vision in language appropriate to the community that draws on creative and critical engagement with theological and/or wisdom literatures that are authoritative to the community in which the problem is occurring.
• How might the community shift its own practice to better embody their shared vision for flourishing with regards to this problem? Articulate a pragmatic plan/solution that holds promise for actualizing the normative vision through renewed or changed practice.
• Conclude with attention to how this response might have implications for other related contexts.

8. Generalized Participatory Action Research

• Identify a problem that a specific community is struggling with in consultation with members of that community.
• Engage in participant observation, interviews, focus groups or other forms of data-gathering to understand in-depth what is happening in the community in relation to the problem.
• Review relevant literature and existing research with regards to the particular problem including engagement with members of the community to help them learn from existing literature to gain perspective on their own situation.
• Drawing on the data and literature review, design and implement a process for the community to collaboratively create and implement potential constructive responses to the problem that they have identified.
• Engage in assessment/analysis of the collaborative responses, identifying any potential changes they may have generated in the community.
• Reflect on the process of collaborative constructive response and what learnings it might suggest to other contexts struggling with similar problems.