Bachelor of Sacred Theology

The Bachelor of Sacred Theology (STB) degree is an ecclesiastical degree program. The purpose of this program is to provide the student with a solid, organic, and complete instruction in theology at the basic level, enabling graduates to pursue further studies in the sacred sciences. Seminarians at St. Patrick’s may pursue the MDiv and STB degrees concurrently. The STB degree is granted and conferred by an affiliated institution.

Prerequisites for Admission:

Applicants for admission to the STB program must have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university. The applicant must have a minimum of thirty (30) semester credit hours in philosophical studies appropriate for theological coursework (including the History of Philosophy, Logic, Philosophical Anthropology, Philosophy of Nature, Metaphysics, Philosophy of God, Philosophical Ethics, Epistemology) and a reading knowledge of Latin as verified by coursework, or the passing of a reading exam administered by the Academic Office.

All other admission requirements as outline in Section IV of the academic catalog apply. The academic prerequisites for admission will be evaluated by the Academic Dean who may, in individual cases, allow the student to remedy particular deficiencies during the first year of the program.

Program Requirements:

The program requires completion of 93 credits according to the following distribution:

• Sacred Scripture                20 credits
• Moral Theology                  15 credits
• Dogmatics                           48 credits
• Pastoral Theology               6 credits
• Biblical Greek I and II         4 credits

If the student enters the STB Program with a reading competence in Greek, coursework in Greek may be waived if competence is demonstrated with the successful passing of a reading examination administered by the Academic Office.

The student in the STB Program must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 in STB coursework. He must pass an oral and a written comprehensive examination in the final semester of the program with an average score of 3.0 out of 4.0 on each examination. Further details about the STB comprehensive exams may be found in the STB Study Guide made available from the Academic Office.