The YDS faculty has established learning goals for all students in the Master of Divinity degree program. It is expected that students will achieve these goals during their time at Yale. The end of term essays, as well as the Mid-Degree Consultation, refer to these goals in a variety of ways. 

Students graduating from Yale Divinity School with the Master of Divinity (MDiv) will:

1. Demonstrate a broad knowledge of Christian scriptures, texts, art, practices, history, and theology, and the ability to interpret them amid a diverse, changing church and world.

2. Integrate faith and intellect through scholarly practices (such as interpretation, praxis-based learning, critical thinking, analysis of texts and contexts, interdisciplinary research), that support continual learning for a life and leadership of faith.

3. Analyze and constructively address issues of social and environmental concern.

4. Communicate effectively in oral and written forms and through the appropriate use of technology for diverse contexts.

5. Engage with and interpret various modes of artistic expression and contextually sensitive ritual practice in the leadership of prayer, worship, lament, or other communal expressions of spiritual meaning.

6. Show sensitive engagement with the variety of religious contexts:

a. Demonstrate an appreciative understanding of the global diversity of Christianity.

b. Exhibit significant knowledge of a religion other than Christianity.

c. Demonstrate capacities for interacting sensitively and constructively in a multi- religious context.

7. Exhibit faith-informed practices that promote communal flourishing and organizational health, engaging the traditions and cultural contexts in which leadership is situated.

8. Embody an understanding of one’s religious/spiritual identity, professional ethics, practices of spiritual formation, and boundary-setting and self-care.