Understanding Doctoral Degree Programs at Faith-Based, Protestant Higher Education Institutions: A Worldwide Inventory of Academic Programs for Comparative Studies

• In Event: Roundtable Session 6
  In Refereed Roundtable Session: Religion, Education, Security, and Understanding

Proposal

Background

Research articles, books, and policy briefs on doctoral education development and support from institutions who are part of the Association of American Universities (AAU), Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU), and Universitas 21 has been well documented for many decades. By contrast, higher education research that examine doctoral education development and support from “religiously affiliated protestant institutions” who are members of the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities (CCCU) has been non-existence, despite its significant impact to the higher education industry and the global economy.

One reason doctoral and post-graduate education at CCCU institutions has not been given much attention compared to other higher education research associations is that the doctorate is much more specialized in scope, is less selective in admissions, is typically not diverse (in terms of faculty of color and staff of color) and is often categorized as a teaching institution (rather than research) as noted in the 2022 Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. In addition, doctoral and post-graduate education at protestant institutions often lacks in institutional structure, its intellectual debate is marginal, and its political construction is incomplete.

Yet, despite the limitations of doctoral education research in protestant institutions, this roundtable paper suggests that graduate and professional education would benefit from a strong and united field of doctoral education studies worldwide, built around a community of practice regardless of geography and institutional religious affiliation. A strong doctoral education research field in international higher education would serve incredible well in a sector that is highly diverse, and would help strengthen research and further our understanding of doctoral and post-graduate education at all levels – global, international, and local – at all denominations – Catholic, Protestant, and secular.

This comparative research examines the rapid growth in doctoral degree programs at faith-based, protestant higher education institutions across 190+ CCCU member institutions around the world. Specifically, this study investigates the critical issues, policies, and debates experienced by Protestant doctoral program directors, faculty, and administrators at CCCU institutions, with special attention to doctoral education, student success, and enrollment worldwide. This paper considers the role of doctoral education at protestant colleges and universities globally and what it means for higher education future.

Methods

This roundtable session analyzed the websites, course catalogs, and program brochures of 190+ CCCU member institutions around the world to identify the number of doctoral programs, concentrations, and specializations offered at religiously affiliated protestant universities. Specifically, a visual research method pertaining to the study of higher education institutions was conducted between May 2022 and August 2022 to identify the number of doctoral degree programs in CCCU schools and the quality assurance practices with doctoral capstone products (dissertations, comprehensive examinations). The study uses institutional websites in the study of higher education to understand similarities and differences between CCCU higher education institutions and systems. The goal of this study is to not only address existing comparative methodological approaches related to website-based visual research, but to also examine the many internal and external issues faced at faith-based, protestant colleges and universities.

Ultimately, this study seeks to empower future researchers to use website analysis in comparative and international higher education research, which has gained in popularity in recent years (Schreiber & Fischman, 2016), yet in its sub-field of higher education research, visual methods remain underutilized (Metcalfe & Blanoco, 2019).

Results

The number of doctoral degree programs offered at CCCU member institutions has increased dramatically, bringing new opportunities and challenges (e.g., coursework, candidacy exams, portfolios, dissertation/project design, supervision, program assessment). In total, there were 94 protestant colleges and universities that awarded a doctorate, with 326 doctoral degree programs administered worldwide.

The top three CCCU doctoral degree programs offerings are Ph.D. (N = 117), Ed.D. (N = 59), and D.Min. (N = 41). The growing number of professional or specialized degree programs (N = 209) in Protestant higher education is worthy to note, given the recent focus on career preparation and transition of doctoral graduates across both protestant-based and non-protestant-based institution.

The most common types of doctoral degree program delivery format are Fully Online (N = 109), followed by Hybrid (N = 95), and Fully Residential (N = 78).

In the Unites States, Texas had the most protestant, faith-based doctoral degree programs (N = 74), followed by California (N = 36) and South Carolina (N = 20). Outside the United States, Kenya offered the most doctoral degree programs (N = 20), followed by Australia (N = 7) and Canada (N = 6).

In terms of denominational, Baptist was the most common type (N = 88), followed by Interdenominational (N = 38), and Nondenominational (N = 33).

Discussion

As protestant-based doctoral education program continues to expand across the United States and abroad, this roundtable provides participants a unique opportunity to explore religious diversity needs and challenges experienced at faith-based institutions around the world and its significant impact to graduate and professional education at independent colleges and universities. This roundtable seeks to provide international higher education program directors, faculty, and other administrators resources to develop and maintain Christ-centered doctoral education efforts at their colleges and universities. The results presented will be applicable to faculty members working at either a protestant-based or non- protestant-based institution.

Author

• Roy Y. Chan, Lee University