Master of Arts in Bioethics (MA/BE)
MISSION STATEMENT
The MA in Bioethics (MA/BE) equips students to analyze bioethical issues in healthcare and biotechnology and to engage bioethical challenges in relevant contexts.
PROGRAM OBJECTIVES & OUTCOMES
Students graduating from the MA/BE program will be able to:
- Understand the current and emerging bioethical issues in healthcare and biotechnology
- Discern the differences among competing contemporary approaches to ethics and bioethics
- Engage bioethical challenges in public policy, clinical healthcare, and biomedical research contexts
- Employ culturally-sensitive biblical and theological frameworks for addressing issues in bioethics
- Think integratively, seeing beyond individual bioethical issues to deeper questions that underlie the bioethics field as a whole
The MA in Bioethics (MA/BE) is designed with various groups of students in mind, including those who are presently—or aspire to be—physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals; lawyers; people with political, public policy, social service, and ministry interests in pro-life and related areas; teachers in related university, college, or high school fields; and those involved in educating and engaging various constituencies through nonprofit organizations. The program is particularly well-suited for those with professional or other responsibilities who need a flexible 30-semester-hour program. There is also a multiple masters degree option for Trinity Evangelical Divinity School students and for Trinity Graduate School students, as well as a dual degree option for Trinity College undergraduates. By enrolling in online or remote courses, mentored and independent study work, and as few as one several-day campus course in the summer, the program can be completed without relocating near the Bannockburn, Illinois campus. Alternatively, a complete on-campus program is also available.
PROGRAM OF STUDY
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Foundation Courses | 9 | |
| BE 5002 | Foundations for Cultural Engagement in Bioethics | 3 |
| BE 7600 | Theological Bioethics and Contemporary Alternatives 3 | 3 |
| ID 5000 | Biblical Theology and Interpretation | 3 |
| Required Bioethics Courses | 17-18 | |
| BE 5000 | Introduction to Bioethics: Matters of Life and Dignity | 3 |
| or BE 5100 | Intensive Bioethics Institute | |
| BE 5200 | Research Ethics | 2 |
| BE 5299 | The Clinical Context 1 | 1 |
| BE 5300 | Clinical Issues in Bioethics 4 | 2 |
| BE 5499 | The Public Policy Context 2 | 1 |
| BE 5500 | Bioethics and Public Policy | 2 |
| BE 6200 | Ethical Theory | 3 |
| BE 6500 | Advanced Bioethics Institute | 3-4 |
| Bioethics Capstone | 2-3 | |
| BE 7478 | Bioethics Capstone Project | 2-3 |
| or BE 7480 | Bioethics Capstone Integrative or Major Paper | |
| Bioethics Electives | 5-8 | |
| Students choose 5-8 hours from any of the courses listed below, depending on how many hours they earn for their capstone. Students should consult with an academic advisor in planning their individual programs of study. | ||
| BE 5400 | Nursing Ethics | 2 |
| BE 5600 | Law and Bioethics | 2 |
| BE 5700 | The Right to Life & the Law | 2-3 |
| BE 5800 | Contemporary Issues in Bioethics | 1-3 |
| BE 5900 | Bioethics National Conference | 2-3 |
| BE 6100 | Bioethics Colloquium | 1-2 |
| BE 6300 | Bioethics, Human Dignity, and the Church | 2-3 |
| BE 6400 | Readings in Bioethics | 3 |
| BE 6600 | Classic Cases in Bioethics | 3 |
| BE 6700 | Personhood in Theological & Philosophical Perspective | 3 |
| BE 6800 | Global Health and Justice | 2-3 |
| BE 6950 | Bioethics Practicum | 1-3 |
| BE 7300 | Advanced Clinical Ethics | 1-3 |
| BE 7700 | Bioethics Seminar | 1-4 |
| Total Hours | 36 | |
| 1 | Students with formal clinical-medical training can apply for advanced standing to satisfy the BE 5299 requirement. |
| 2 | Students with formal legal or public policy training can apply for advanced standing to satisfy the BE 5499 requirement. |
REQUIRED CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE (0-4 HOURS)
Preparation for work in the field of bioethics should include at least one endeavor that is not merely focused on a particular bioethical issue but is integrative in nature, encompassing multiple issues. The capstone course can involve writing an integrative paper, or developing a special project such as a bioethics curriculum, a sermon/talk series, or a written reflection on a clinical, public policy, or other bioethics-related internship experience.
Students should register for BE 7478 or BE 7480 in the semester they intend to start the project or paper. Students making progress toward completion of a capstone but unable to finish in a single semester, can apply for a capstone extension. They must then register for BE 7486 Capstone Extension. A capstone extension fee will be assessed.
Students should schedule a capstone preparation meeting with the bioethics program director at least one semester prior to working on the capstone requirement in order to discuss topical areas, capstone options, and a potential supervisor. An Independent Study & Capstone Registration form (available on myTIU) must be completed to register for all capstone and guided research (BE 7501) courses. All capstones involving research with human subjects must be approved by the TIU IRB prior to the beginning of that research, with the application for approval due by the end of the semester that precedes the semester in which the research is to take place.
COURSE SEQUENCING
Either BE 5000 or BE 5100 must be taken before BE 6500. When the elective BE 7300 is offered, only those who have clinical/medical experience (or permission from the professor) and have completed BE 5300 can take it. It is recommended that the three foundational courses—ID 5000, BE 5002, and either BE 5000 or BE 5100—be taken before other bioethics courses. Professors teaching other bioethics courses will assume that all students in those courses either will have taken these four courses or will at least have read a relevant text for each of those courses not yet taken. A list of relevant texts for these courses may be found in the Bioethics Department section of myTIU.
Trinity provides the opportunity for students to earn multiple masters degrees without substantially lengthening their stay. Multiple Masters options include:
Model Curricular Plan for the Dual Degree
The following is a sample course plan for the dual degree. Plans may vary for individual students. Students are expected to consult with their undergraduate and graduate advisors to make individual adjustments to the curricular plan as necessary. During the fall and spring semesters, as students complete their course requirements for general education and major and take graduate coursework toward the MA, they are reminded that a full academic course load must include at least 12 hours of combined graduate and undergraduate courses per semester.
Recommended undergraduate courses to be completed before starting the MA coursework:
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| BI 105 | Understanding the Old Testament 1 | 3 |
| or BI 115 | Understanding the New Testament | |
| BI 211 | Ethics and the Bible | 3 |
| BIO 111 | General Biology | 4 |
| or BIO 103 | Introductory Biology | |
| PH 180 | Introduction to Philosophy | 3 |
| Other general education courses and required major courses | ||
| 1 |
Undergraduate general education requirements that will be fulfilled by graduate-level courses and need not be duplicated with undergraduate work
- BI 105 or BI 115: BE 5001 replaces either BI 105 or BI 115 in general education
- Diversity, Traditions, and Culture: BE 5002 replaces one course in the Diversity, Traditions, and Culture subcategory under Chapter Two: Exploring.
- BE 5000 or BE 5100 replaces BE 474X in the World of Contemporary Social and Political Life category in "Chapter Two: Exploring."
Undergraduate major requirements that may be fulfilled by graduate-level courses and need not be duplicated with undergraduate work
- Any approved undergraduate major or elective course: (up to 6 hours) of graduate credit can replace up to 6 hours of additional undergraduate credit. Students should check with advisors to determine if there are courses in their major that can be replaced with graduate coursework.
Students should note that BE courses are offered in several formats: traditional (15 week), modular (meets two weekends in a semester), online, summer conference associated courses, and independent study courses.
At least two courses must be taken in residency at the Bannockburn, IL campus:
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| BE 5100 | Intensive Bioethics Institute | 3 |
| BE 6500 | Advanced Bioethics Institute | 3-4 |
BE 5100 and BE 6500 are offered during the summer at the time of the annual National Bioethics Conference on the Bannockburn campus. BE 5100 can be replaced by BE 5000 – a 15-week course offered in the fall semester on the Bannockburn campus.
Each spring semester, students are invited to participate in a series of three evening bioethics colloquia. The Bioethics Colloquium course (BE 6100) can also be taken for elective credit toward the MA in Bioethics.
Service Learning Requirement
Students can fulfill Trinity College’s service learning requirement by working with The Center for Bioethics & Human Dignity (CBHD) during the summer National Bioethics Conference, with optional free attendance at the conference in the summers following the freshman and sophomore years.
Application to the Dual Degree Program
Upon completion of 70 hours with a 3.0 GPA, students must submit an application and letter of recommendation to Trinity Evangelical Divinity School Admissions to be accepted into the Dual Degree program.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| First Summer | ||
| BE 5100 | Intensive Bioethics Institute | 3 |
| BE 5900 | Bioethics National Conference (elective) | 2-3 |
| Fall Semester | ||
| BE 5001 | Foundations for Integrative Thought in Bioethics | 3 |
| BE 5002 | Foundations for Cultural Engagement in Bioethics | 3 |
| BE 5200 | Research Ethics | 2 |
| BE 5499 | The Public Policy Context (optional) 1 | 1 |
| BE 5500 | Bioethics and Public Policy | 2 |
| Spring Semester | ||
| BE 5299 | The Clinical Context (optional) 1 | 1 |
| BE 5300 | Clinical Issues in Bioethics | 2 |
| BE 6200 | Ethical Theory | 3 |
| Second Summer | ||
| BE 5900 | Bioethics National Conference | 2-3 |
| BE 6500 | Advanced Bioethics Institute | 3-4 |
| Capstone | ||
| (0-4 hours of the following) | ||
| BE 7476 | Bioethics Capstone Exam | 0 |
| BE 7478 | Bioethics Capstone Project | 0-3 |
| BE 7480 | Bioethics Capstone Integrative or Major Paper | 0-3 |
| BE 7485 | MA Thesis 2 | 0-4 |
| Total Hours | 30 | |
| 1 | Students relatively unfamiliar with clinical-medical and/or public policy settings will need to use one or two of their elective hours in order to take the background courses BE 5299 and/or BE 5499 either concurrently or during the previous semester. |
| 2 | BE 7485 requires ID 6910, a research methods course, as a prerequisite. |