DOCTORATE IN FORMATIVE SPIRITUALITY AND COUNSELLING (ThD)

Director:   Dr. Peter Kochalumkal, CMI

Email: apeterkoch@gmail.com

1. Scope

1. The scope of the third cycle leading to a Doctorate in Formative Spirituality and Counselling (ThD) is the completion of the academic studies in the domain of formative spirituality and counselling.

1. Objectives

1. Its objective is specialization in a particular area of formative spirituality and counselling as well as refinement in the methodology of scientific research integrating the theories and practices within the field of spiritual and psychological formation.
2. The program also envisages the following obligations: (i) informed and integrated formators in religious houses and seminaries, (ii) extending the knowledge base of counselling founded on Christian values and precepts, and (iii) researchers integrating wisdom from the fields of psychology and spirituality

1. Admission

1. Admission is open to all who have the proper qualifications but only to those below 55 years. An exemption to the age-limit can be granted by the Institute Council in deserving cases.
2. The candidates shall be introduced and recommended by his/her Major Superior/Ordinary or a competent person acceptable to DVK. Admissions shall be given only at the beginning of each semester.

1. Requirements

1. For admission to Doctorate, the applicant must hold a Licentiate in Formative Spirituality and Counselling with at least a first class.
2. The mode of commutation of any of the requirements for Doctorate with the courses one has done in other ecclesiastical Institutes shall be determined by the Syndicate of DVK, taking into consideration the merits of each case.

1. Duration

1. The doctorate in formative spirituality and counselling is spread over a minimum period of three years and a maximum of five years (DVK Statutes, Art. 65§2).
2. In case of those who do not complete the programme within five years, the Director, in consultation with the Institute Council, may grant a special permission to extend it for one more year by paying the additional tuition fees for the academic year.
3. Residence in Bangalore is a requirement during the first year of the Doctorate. Exemption from this may be given only by the Institute Council after examining the merit of each case.

1. Academic Programme: The Doctorate programme consists of the following:

1. Two seminars
2. Two research papers, two tutorials, or two case studies
3. Research Methodology
4. Teaching Assignment (Optional)
5. Presentation of, at least, one scientific paper in national or international conference
6. Publication of, at least, one scientific paper in a peer reviewed journal
7. Research Proposal and its approval
8. Dissertation and Public Defence
9. The seminars and research papers or tutorials or case studies shall be selected by the candidate in consultation with the Director of Vinayasadhana Institute. Completion of the two seminars and two research papers or tutorials or case studies, with a first-class grade, shall be a basic requirement to submit the thesis proposal for scrutiny and approval. The grades of these four courses will form twenty percent of the final grade of the doctorate.
10. Language Proficiency: The doctoral candidates shall be required to have a working knowledge of appropriate languages according to the nature of the research, and also a working knowledge of modern languages, besides English, that may be required for the research. If proof for language proficiency in a language required for one’s research is not submitted, the candidate shall be asked to take an examination under the supervision of the Director of Vinayasadhana Institute.

1. Doctoral Research Proposal

1. After having completed all other requirements, the candidate shall present a Research Proposal to a panel of three examiners (including the guide) appointed by the Director. Four copies of the Research Proposal have to be presented to the office of the Director.
2. The Research Proposal shall include a statement of the question or issue of research and its significance, methodology and procedure of the research, an outline containing provisional titles of the chapters and their contents, projected conclusions, and the bibliography with information on primary and secondary sources of research.
3. The Research Proposal session shall be private and its duration may be about an hour.
4. The main objectives of the session are critical evaluation of the research project and its methodology, and offering concrete suggestions towards the improvement and revision of the research project.
5. The examiners have to give formal evaluation of the Research Proposal individually in writing and hand it over to the Director along with their comments and suggestions towards the revision of the proposed research project.
6. The candidate shall be informed of the result of the Research Proposal in writing along with the comments and suggestions of the examiners and a copy of this communication shall be kept in the office.

1. Guide of the Dissertation

1. The Director in consultation with the Institute Council shall allocate the guide of the doctoral dissertation from among the staff of Vinayasadhana Institute; in special cases, after assessing the merit of the project as well as the expertise of the staff, the Institute Council may appoint the first guide from among the staff of any other Faculty or Institute of DVK.
2. A second guide, in case of research in interdisciplinary areas, may be appointed by the Director in consultation with the Institute Council, and he/she can be from outside DVK. The student shall have regular consultation also with the second guide, whose approval of the draft of the dissertation is required for final submission.

1. Semestral Reporting

1. The doctoral candidate shall prepare a quarterly report on the progress of doctoral research, which shall be submitted to the Director, after getting it endorsed by the guide of the dissertation.
2. The format of this report shall be issued by the Director after taking the approval of the Institute Council.

1. Dissertation Approval

1. The maximum number of words for the dissertation shall be 125,000 to 1,35,000 words (around 300 pages, 1.5 line spacing). Before the public defence, the candidate shall submit four copies of the dissertation, with the approval of the guide/s, to the Director.
2. Three readers shall be appointed by the Director to scrutinize the draft, and at least two of them must approve it before promoting the candidate to the public defence. The guide/s shall not be a member of this panel. The observations of the readers shall be intimated to the student and the guide/s of the dissertation.
3. If two of the readers are not in favour of promoting the candidate to the public defence, the dissertation shall be revised and a second session may be arranged for approval after three months.
4. If the panel approves the final draft, five bound copies of the dissertation shall be submitted to the office of the Director. Public defence of the dissertation shall be arranged by the Director of Vinayasadhana Institute within a period of two months after the formal submission of the final text.
5. The format of the dissertation shall be according to the prescribed methodology of DVK.

1. Public Defence:

1. The Director appoints the panel of examiners in consultation with the Institute Council. The panel shall not be less than four members.
2. The public defence shall be chaired by the Director of Vinayasadhana Institute or his delegate, and shall have the duration of an hour and a half.
3. The guide/s and at least one of the three readers shall be included in the panel of examiners.
4. The panel of examiners, apart from the members of Vinayasadhana Institute, may include competent persons from any of the Faculties or Institutes of DVK and persons from other faculties in India and abroad.

1. Marks and Grading System

The grade of the Doctorate will be determined by calculating the marks according to the following proportions: Seminars, Research Papers, Tutorials, or Case Studies: 20%; Written Dissertation 60%: Public Defence: 20%.

1. Special Fees

Besides the annual fees, the candidate shall pay special fees as prescribed in DVK Handbook for the Research Proposal, Dissertation Approval, and the Public Defence.

1. Publication

After the public defence, the corrected Dissertation, or a part thereof, is to be published, and twenty copies are to be submitted to the office of DVK, of which copies are forwarded to the Congregation for Catholic Education (VG Norms of Application, 37, DVK Statutes Art. 65 §4).