DMin Program will prepare students for leading roles in the Catholic Church.
Within one week of announcing its new Doctor of Ministry in Evangelization and Catechetics Program (DMin) in February 2025, Franciscan University received more than 200 inquiries, and 42 students started their applications for the inaugural semester in fall 2025. By mid-March, more than 35 students had submitted their applications, exceeding Franciscan University’s expectations for the first class and highlighting the need for the program in the Church today.
The first applicants to this three- to five-year program include priests, deacons, teachers, and lay diocesan leaders of many years, as well as those new to ministry in the Catholic Church. A passion for evangelization, love for Jesus Christ, a fascination with catechetics, desire to serve the Church, and appreciation for Franciscan’s commitment to faithful Catholic education were among many reasons they gave for applying.
This enthusiastic response from prospective doctoral students is matched by the enthusiasm of Franciscan University administrators and faculty for the DMin.
“We see our Doctor of Ministry in Evangelization and Catechetics Program as an exciting way to take our formation to the next level,” says Dr. Bob Rice MA ’97, program director for the DMin.
Rice says the program comes as part of a natural progression in catechetical education at Franciscan, which offered its first specialization in catechetics at the master’s degree level in 1996, followed by an undergraduate major in 2005, and the Master of Arts in Catechetics and Evangelization Program in 2014. The DMin joins the Doctor of Sacred Theology Program, which launched in 2024, as the first two doctoral programs in the University’s history.
“This degree is for those who are professionally active in Catholic ministry and are looking to enhance their skills, knowledge, and academic credentials so they can have an even greater impact in their ministry of evangelization and catechesis,” Rice says.
Students accepted into the Doctor of Ministry Program will receive in-depth theological, catechetical, and pastoral formation to equip them to serve in prominent roles in Catholic higher education, Church leadership, and many Catholic apostolates.
The DMin is a terminal degree that completes a master of divinity, master of catechetics, or master of theology with a pastoral focus. The graduate-level classes are offered primarily online and are complemented by three nine-day residential summer sessions. The course of study culminates in a doctoral thesis project, which Dr. Stephen Hildebrand, vice president for Academic Affairs at Franciscan University, describes as “a laboratory” for catechesis and evangelization.
“In their doctoral projects, students will apply the ageless wisdom of the Church to today’s challenges. They will offer pastorally effective and theologically sound solutions, making a real difference in the lives of the faithful,” Hildebrand explains.
Dr. Petroc Willey, professor of theology and catechetics at Franciscan University, says, “This program will bring together leaders in catechetics and evangelization to explore the riches of Tradition and our contemporary situation. Their research into key areas of need in the proclamation of the Gospel and in discipleship formation will inform new field strategies and programs that will make a real difference in the Church’s mission.”
Rice, Hildebrand, Willey, and other faculty who have pastoral as well as academic expertise and experience will provide students with both practical and theoretical formation, equipping them for more effective pastoral work.
“We’re delighted to place ourselves at the service of the Church with this doctor of ministry degree,” Hildebrand says.
For more information on Franciscan University’s Doctor of Ministry in Evangelization and Catechetics Program, please visit franciscan.edu/doctor-ministry.html.
