The Master of Arts in Intercultural Studies degree program is designed to prepare students who anticipate serving interculturally. Relevance and flexibility are embedded within this program to personally equip students, whether they intend to serve internationally or within their home context.
Whether you are called to the mission field in another country or to a cross-cultural context across the street, the MAIS program can prepare you to love your neighbors well with the truth of the gospel.
The Curriculum
The 2-year MA programs at DTS have a common core of Bible and theology coursework along with specific training in cross-cultural communication that you can apply wherever God has called you to serve.
Biblical Exposition
BE5101 Bible Study Methods and Hermeneutics
BE5102 Old Testament History I
BE5103 Old Testament History II & Poetry
BE5104 Old Testament Prophets
BE5105 The Gospels
BE5106 Acts & Pauline Epistles
BE5107 Hebrews, General Epistles, and Revelation
BE5109 Ruth, Psalms, Jonah, and Selected Epistles
Systematic Theology
ST5101 Theological Method and Bibliology
ST5102 Trinitarianism
ST5103 Angelology, Anthropology, and Hamartiology
ST5104 Soteriology
ST5105 Sanctification and Ecclesiology
ST5106 Eschatology
Missions and Intercultural Studies
MIM5101 Missiological and Intercultural Foundations
MIM5205 Cultural Dynamics in Ministry
MIM5210 Intercultural Communication
MIM5215 Dynamics of Missionary Development
INT5110 Ministry Formation Internship (Two Credit Hours)
Spiritual Formation and Electives
SF5100 Spiritual Formation (2 terms)
PM5101 Christian Life and Witness
Intercultural Studies Electives – 9 credit hours
Program Details
Program Goals
Students in the MAIS program will:
- Evidence a general knowledge of Christian theology, including an ability to support their theological views
- Demonstrate a general knowledge of the Bible, including an understanding of the message and arguments of specific books of the Bible
- Display Christlikeness in their pursuit of knowledge and relationships within the seminary community
- Defend the biblical and theological basis for making disciples of all nations
- Understand and apply foundational principles of anthropology, ethnology, sociology, and psychology in relation to making disciples through intercultural service
- Evidence a commitment to multiplying disciples of all nations
Course Requirements
Sixty-six credit hours of coursework are required as a minimum for graduation. Of those hours, 22 are in prescribed Bible Exposition courses, 18 in prescribed Systematic Theology courses, and 3 are in the Christian Life and Witness course. There are 12 hours of prescribed Missiology and Intercultural Ministries courses and a 2-credit-hour internship (INT5110 Ministry Formation Internship). The remaining 9 hours are open MIM electives. The MAIS requires 4 courses (i.e., 4 3-hour courses for a total of 12 hours) be completed in realtime. No thesis is required for the MAIS degree.
Department professors will assist students in designing the most appropriate program electives for each student’s intended intercultural ministry. When appropriate, professors may also assist in forming student cohorts. Students are required to complete an intercultural
internship as a part of their program. This internship will be crafted on the basis of the student’s intended ministry objectives. Some portion of the internship might require
an overseas component depending on the student’s ministry goals. The acceptability of this experience is determined by the Department of Missiology and Intercultural Ministries and the Ministry Formation department.
For information about the maximum amount of transfer credit available for the degree, see the Graduate Transfer Information page.
Spiritual Formation
The mission of Spiritual Formation at DTS is helping servant-leaders pursue Christlikeness. Because DTS values Christlike character and spiritual maturity, MAIS students are required to register for and participate in Spiritual Formation groups for two consecutive fall and spring semesters at the Dallas, Houston, Washington, DC, or Atlanta campuses. (Students who are not planning to be in residence in Dallas, Houston, or Washington, DC, for two consecutive fall and spring semesters must contact the Spiritual Formation Office for other options to meet their Spiritual Formation requirement.)
In the Spiritual Formation curriculum, small groups of four to five students focus on issues of identity, community, integrity, and fidelity. The groups provide an atmosphere for prayer, fellowship, and the integration of learning with life and ministry.
Because students participate with the same group during two consecutive semesters, they should plan their schedules so they may meet on the same day and at the same time each semester. Spiritual Formation is a noncredit, transcripted experience. Internship prerequisites include successful completion of SF5100.
Financial Aid
Through our donors and Foundation, we are able to offer hundreds of scholarships to students every year.
Logos Bible Software
Every student at DTS receives a copy of Logos Bible Software customized with additional commentaries and resources, and DTS courses integrate Logos into assignments and learning.