What to Expect in Your First Year of Seminary
Laying the Groundwork to Thrive in Seminary and Beyond
Your First Year as a Fuller MDiv Student
Take a closer look at the first six courses in your MDiv program and how they address the most pressing needs you’ll face as a church leader in today’s world.
All Fuller MDiv students take the same first six courses, called the Shared Foundations courses. The courses provide the necessary background that students will need to succeed in the rest of their studies and prepare students for the kinds of issues that students will face when ministering in Jesus’s name.
Shared Foundations
The MDiv’s Shared Foundations courses recognize and address six crucial needs of ministry leaders today, including the need to:
Clearly Discern Your Calling
SF 506: Vocational Formation in Seminary
Deeply Understand Scripture
NT 500: Introduction to the New Testament
Address Tough Questions
SF 505: Foundations of Practical Theology
Build Emotional Intelligence
PF 501: Foundations of Psychological Science
Cultivate Cultural Humility
SF 503: Living Missiologically
Grasp Christianity's Depth and Diversity
SF 502: The Christian Tradition in Global Perspective
Fuller’s Shared Foundations, a set of six courses spanning the seminary’s major disciplines, lay the groundwork for your time in seminary by ensuring you have the context you need to tackle advanced level courses. Everyone in your MDiv program will take the same courses, so you will have a shared understanding of vital concepts as you progress through seminary together. At the same time, the courses provide deep knowledge and understanding that you can immediately apply in your current life and ministry. As a leader in an ever changing world, you’ll need broad intellectual preparation and a dynamic set of skills to meet the opportunities and challenges of ministry. Keep reading to find out how Fuller’s MDiv uses the program’s first six courses to equip you to thrive in seminary and beyond.
A Message from the MDiv Program Chair
Scott Cormode, MDiv Program Chair and the Hugh De Pree Professor of Leadership Development, reflects on the most pressing needs of ministers and Christian leaders today and how the MDiv program’s Shared Foundations addresses each of those needs, giving you a head start for a thriving and sustainable vocation.
It’s not uncommon for students to start seminary with a vague sense of calling, not knowing the specifics of their vocation where, in Frederick Buechner’s words, their “deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.”
SF 506: Vocational Formation in Seminary
Vocational Formation in Seminary guides you to develop spiritual practices that sharpen your discernment so you gain a clear sense of your calling. The course also connects how a person’s call to love God is tied to their call to love their neighbor.
Assignments and Activities
- Participate in workshops on topics including, “How Do I Know My Call?” and “When, God, When?” (the timeline for your calling)
- Take the StrengthFinders test to explore your greatest strengths
- Establish a “Rhythm for Life” in order to have a sustainable experience of ministry
What Students Are Saying
“Vocational Formation in Seminary remains one of the most formative and engaging classes I have taken, offering insightful paradigms and engaging self-reflection that continue to guide me vocationally today.” – a missionary in Bangkok
“Vocational Formation in Seminary is an exciting class that involves personal reflection revealing how God orchestrates one’s life journey with individuals and experiences that shape their being.” – a pastor at a church in Rhode Island
The Scriptures are foundational to our Christian faith, and if you want to minister in Jesus’ name, you’ll need a profound understanding of the Bible and how to approach it.
NT 500: Introduction to the New Testament
Introduction to the New Testament offers the knowledge and tools you need to read Scripture wisely and interpret it faithfully. In this course you will learn about the literary, historical, and theological contexts of the New Testament, paying special attention to topics including women in the New Testament and the early church.
Assignments and Activities
- Read the entire New Testament
- Write interpretative papers that interpret specific passages by:
- reading a selected passage of Scripture
- using exegetical techniques and explore various commentaries
- deciding what the passage means and
- making an argument for it in your paper
What Students Are Saying
“This course helped me recognize theological misconceptions taught in my previous church environments and gave me the tools to read the New Testament from an educated and empowered position. The professor created an environment where I felt safe to ask questions and explore topics and ideas I hadn't considered. It was insightful and healing.” – Julia, ’19
There are questions that every Christian leader will have to address – the kinds of questions that keep people up at night.
SF 505: Foundations of Practical Theology
Foundations of Practical Theology teaches you how to construct a response to some of the thorniest issues of life. Through deep sharing with your fellow students, together you will make spiritual sense of what life throws at people. When a suffering person you’re ministering to asks, “Where is Jesus in all of this?” you can speak with confidence and integrity.
Assignments and Activities
- Work together with your fellow students to write podcasts about three big topics––one on race, one on money, and one on death and end-of-life matters.
- Meet for a live class with the professor once a week via Zoom for engaging, real-time discussion about applying theology to issues in our world today. (Choose the Online Live version of the course for this format.)
What Students Are Saying
“This is my favorite class that I have ever taken in my life. It was more than a class… We got to live in community.” – Dominique, current student
“This class is challenging me to be more practical in my teaching, in my delivery of the Word to my own congregation, and really helping me make sense of my own life, so I can help those entrusted in my care to make spiritual sense of their lives.” – Samuel, ’23
As a Christian leader, a knowledge of how humans think, develop, and process the experiences of life is vital, helping you support those entrusted to your care––and cultivate your own mental health and emotional resilience throughout your vocation.
PF 501: Foundations of Psychological Science: On Being Human
Taught by professors from Fuller’s School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy, Foundations of Psychological Science introduces you to the most helpful psychological paradigms for understanding what it means to be and become more fully human. Topics covered will include practices to promote mental health, the emotional life of ministry and coping strategies, and how to understand trauma and emotional wounds.
Assignments and Activities
In addition to lessons about relevant psychological concepts, this course provides workshops and learning labs on topics including:
- Staying grounded
- Overcoming fear
- Managing sleep
- Using journals for healing
What Students Are Saying
“What I loved most about this class is its ability to help bridge the gap between science and religion. Not only is it informative and empowering toward personal ministry skills, I believe it is essential for Christians seeking to engage our world as advances in brain science, trauma studies, and psychopharmacology rapidly evolve.” – Brennen, current student
In a globalized world where diversity reigns, Christian leaders need to be able to work with and minister to people who are not like them.
SF 503: Living Missiologically
In Living Missiologically, you will gain a greater understanding of how Christianity is different in other parts of the world and gain the skills to listen to people across cultural, economic, and ethnic differences. Through historical context, theological perspectives, and the social sciences, you will begin to develop a missiological approach to your ministry.
Assignments and Activities
- Reading, videos, and testimonies from people in diverse settings
- Fieldwork: for example, students visit a non-Christian place of worship and reflect on the experience
- Reflective writing
What Students Are Saying
“In Living Missiologically, I developed an appreciation for other cultures and learned how to integrate local church ministry with the mission of God in the world and how local mission exists in the greater context of all that God is doing through the global and historic church.” – a local church leader in Texas
As Christians, we are part of a community of faith shared by people from across time and all over the world. By rooting yourself in this historic Christian tradition, you can have a more profound understanding of what it means to live faithfully here and now.
SF 502: The Christian Tradition in Global Perspective
The Christian Tradition in Global Perspective provides you with a baseline knowledge of the church’s 2,000-year history, which creates a necessary scaffolding for your future courses at Fuller. Further, understanding present Christianity in light of how God has moved in the past will give you valuable context as you lead and minister today and in the future.
Assignments and Activities
Create a glossary that lists the key Christian doctrines and answers the questions:
- What does the doctrine mean?
- Why is it important?
- And what is at stake for how we live our lives today?
What Students Are Saying
“I never thought of myself as going to seminary or learning theology, and here I am just eating it up. [This course] helped me understand not just what happened but why it matters.”
– Emma, current student
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