The Master of Arts in Pastoral Care and Counseling (MAPCC) Chaplaincy and Spiritual Care track is designed to help students increase and deepen self-awareness; develop skills training in interpersonal, contextual, and institutional engagements; and acquire foundational knowledge that can all be deployed for effective chaplaincy and spiritual care practice across a variety of contexts—hospital, military, movement, prison, hospice, first responder, campus, and urban ministry.
The MAPCC Chaplaincy and Spiritual Care track is a 48-credit hour hybrid degree track where students can complete nearly all of their required coursework online without needing to move to Evanston/Chicago area.
Students are required to take only one course in person, a week-long cohort intensive in August, before beginning their first year. Students also have opportunities to take other courses related to chaplaincy that are offered as weekend intensives during the fall and spring semesters or week-long intensives during January and summer.
Students will be able to complete their Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) requirements in the area where they live. The CPE program they choose must be accredited by the Association of Clinical Pastoral Education (ACPE).
Foundational Courses (18-credit hours)
Concentration Courses (30-credit hours)
CPE is an accreditation and training program that teaches students how to provide spiritual care in clinical settings like hospitals, nursing homes, prisons, and addiction treatment centers. A significant part of one’s theological education, CPE provides a learning situation for a student in which they may develop awareness of the theological and psycho-social concerns of persons in crisis.
The MAPCC Chaplaincy and Spiritual Care track fulfills the academic requirements for associate certified chaplain certification through Board of Chaplaincy Certification Inc. (BCCI), an affiliate of the Association of Professional Chaplains.
The BCCI® certification program is designed to elevate professional standards, enhance individual performance and designate professional chaplains who demonstrate the knowledge essential to the practice of chaplaincy care. Chaplains are certified as board certified chaplains (BCC) or associate certified chaplains (ACC) according to established national qualifications, including a code of ethics.
Please note: completing the MAPCC Chaplaincy and Spiritual Care program does not grant you certification as an associate certified chaplain.
Students can round out their Master of Arts degree with the Master of Divinity degree. The MDiv/MA allows students to become specialists in the area of their MA degree while broadening their theological, spiritual, and leadership foundations through the Master of Divinity.
Garrett offers courses in a variety of course modalities to meet a variety of scheduling needs. Course options include in-person, online, hybrid, hyflex, and more. While the program is taught by faculty of Garrett, students may also take courses at Northwestern University and at any of the Association of Chicago Theological Schools (ACTS) in the Chicago metropolitan area.
The MAPCC Clinical Track is best suited for students who are interested in licensure as a professional counselor.
I am delighted to join a world class faculty in a school that in many ways is synonymous with the academic discipline of Pastoral Care worldwide. I look forward to collaborating in the formation of would be pastors and academics for the needs of a multicultural church and society. I bring a decidedly intercultural voice and a teaching style that helps students question their answers to arrive at even deeper questions, and a collaborative style that ensures students learn to share their intellectual gifts and thus live of a life of service.
Rev. Dr. Esther E. Acolatse
Professor of Pastoral Theology and World Christianity
My vocation as a teacher, pastoral theologian and librarian is deeply rooted in the commitment to serve and lead others as we together try to understand the complexities of the world and engage in the caring and community building activities of the Divine.
Dr. Jaeyeon Lucy Chung
Director, Styberg Library
Associate Professor of Pastoral Theology
As a teacher, scholar, and clinician, it is my intention to create an atmosphere of hospitality and curiosity and to encourage religious imagination in spaces of teaching and learning.
Dr. Rolf Nolasco
Rueben P. Job Professor of Spiritual Formation and Pastoral Theology
As persons of faith, a psychology based on the assumption of the central need and motivation for relational connectedness to another resonates with the biblical accounts of the partnership of Adam and Eve, the covenant of Yahweh with the people of Israel, the New Testament accounts of a redeeming relationship with the Christ, the commandment to love self and neighbor, and the necessity of the church to function as a body.
Dr. Lallene Rector
Professor of Psychology of Religion and Pastoral Psychotherapy
Not only am I thrilled to be working alongside such a distinguished faculty, I am also excited to teach and connect with the bold and adventurous students of the Garrett community. I hope to continue my work as an ally and advocate for greater representation of minority and underserved communities to access pastoral and spiritual care.
Rev. Dr. AHyun Lee
Assistant Professor of Pastoral Theology, Care, and Psychotherapy
Graduates of this program will be able to:
Garrett-Evangelical accepts applications from students with a minimum GPA of 2.5 in a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university or from an AETH-certified Bible institute. Because our primary language of instruction is English, applicants be able to show English proficiency, as evidenced by a previous degree in English or completion of either the Duolingo or Test of English as a Foreign Language test.
Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. International student applications are due by February 1st.
