Department of
Spiritual Formation
Documentation and Academic Structure of the Department
The Department of Spiritual Formation examines the personal practice of spiritual growth — contemplative disciplines, spiritual direction, and the cultivation of the interior life in relationship with the divine — distinct from the Department of Theology, which reasons systematically about doctrine, and the Department of Ministry and Spiritual Leadership, which trains vocational ministry practice.
Spiritual formation touches a person’s most interior life, and spiritual authority has a documented history of being misused to control rather than accompany. The Department studies genuine spiritual practice precisely to guard against that misuse.
This document establishes the Department’s complete academic and institutional documentation architecture across seven structural layers.
Foundational Framework
Governing Field. Human Formation, examined through the discipline of Spiritual Formation — the systematic study of contemplative disciplines, spiritual direction, and the cultivation of the interior life in relationship with the divine.
Central Premise. A person’s spiritual life is theirs to cultivate, and any spiritual direction relationship must remain freely entered and freely revocable at any time. Spiritual authority exercised to accompany a person’s own growth is formation; spiritual authority exercised to control that person’s choices is not formation but a misuse of the same authority.
Foundational Theoretical Anchor. The Department operates under the Principle of Theological Integrity and Freedom of Conscience established by the Department of Theology, and coordinates closely with the Department of Consciousness Studies (Faculty I, Principle of Interior Life Protection) and the Department of Human Formation (Faculty I, Formation Safeguarding Principle), applying both Departments’ protections to spiritual practice specifically.
Programme List
The Department offers a complete academic ladder from foundational study through doctoral research.
Delivery Framework
The Department is delivered online-first, using structured cohort-based study supported by Module Specifications, Study Guides, Teaching Manuals, and Assessment Briefs for every unit, consistent with the Institute’s established production standard.
Curriculum
The BA (Honours) Spiritual Formation curriculum proceeds across four levels, numbered SF101 through SF111, following the Institute’s core pedagogical standard: scaffolded progression from structured instruction toward fully independent, consent-based spiritual direction practice.
| Level | Focus | Modules |
|---|---|---|
| Level 4 | Foundations of Spiritual Formation; the accompaniment–control distinction; introduction to contemplative practice | SF101–SF104 |
| Level 5 | Comparative contemplative traditions; spiritual direction method; ethics of spiritual authority and consent | SF105–SF107 |
| Level 6 | Independent spiritual formation research; capstone applied direction case study; specialization electives | SF108–SF109 |
| Level 7 (MA) | Advanced spiritual formation theory; spiritual formation and Human Formation; research methods; dissertation | SF110–SF111 |
Key Pedagogical Standard. Every module moves the learner from structured instruction toward the independent capacity to accompany another person’s spiritual growth without controlling it — no learner exits the programme treating a direction relationship as anything other than freely entered and freely revocable.
Research Fields and Centres
The Department maintains the following primary research fields:
Centre for Spiritual Formation
The Department’s standing research centre, coordinating cross-domain research with the Department of Theology, the Department of Consciousness Studies (Faculty I), and the Department of Human Formation (Faculty I).
Assessment and Ethics
Assessment in the Department evaluates a learner’s competence in contemplative theory and their demonstrated restraint in spiritual direction practice — never a reward for a direction style that produces dependent, compliant directees.
Because spiritual authority has a documented history of being misused to control rather than accompany, the Department applies a dedicated integrity principle.
Award Titles
Public-Facing Department Page
The Department of Spiritual Formation is where the Institute studies contemplative practice and spiritual direction — always freely entered, always freely revocable, and never a vehicle for control. As a sibling Department of Faculty VII, it holds spiritual authority to the same safeguarding standard the Institute applies to Human Formation practice generally.
Learners join a structured academic pathway from Certificate through PhD, moving from guided foundational study toward independent, consent-based spiritual direction practice, supported at every level by the Institute’s full documentation standard: Module Specifications, Study Guides, Teaching Manuals, and Assessment Briefs.
Permanent Department Documentation Order
The permanent documentation order of the Department, restated for reference:
Delivery Framework Detail
Programme Specification I — Certificate in Spiritual Formation
Programme Specification II — Diploma in Spiritual Formation
Programme Specification III — BA Spiritual Formation
Programme Specification IV — BA (Honours) Spiritual Formation
Programme Specification V — Postgraduate Certificate in Spiritual Formation
Programme Specification VI — Postgraduate Diploma in Spiritual Formation
Programme Specification VII — MA Spiritual Formation
Programme Specification VIII — Specialized Master’s in Spiritual Formation
Programme Specification IX — MRes Spiritual Formation
Programme Specification X — MPhil Spiritual Formation
Programme Specification XI — PhD Spiritual Formation
Programme Specification XII — Professional Practice Certificate in Spiritual Direction and Contemplative Facilitation
Summary Programme Table
A consolidated summary of all twelve programmes offered by the Department.
| Award | Abbreviation | Duration | Credits | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Certificate in Spiritual Formation | CertSF | 6–12 months | 60 credits | ₦450,000 |
| Diploma in Spiritual Formation | DipSF | 1 year | 120 credits | ₦850,000 |
| BA Spiritual Formation | BA SF | 3 years | 360 credits | ₦2,400,000 |
| BA (Honours) Spiritual Formation | BA(Hons) SF | 4 years | 480 credits | ₦3,100,000 |
| Postgraduate Certificate in Spiritual Formation | PGCert SF | 6 months | 60 credits | ₦900,000 |
| Postgraduate Diploma in Spiritual Formation | PGDip SF | 9 months | 120 credits | ₦1,600,000 |
| MA Spiritual Formation | MA SF | 1 year (FT) / 2 years (PT) | 180 credits | ₦2,900,000 |
| Specialized Master’s in Spiritual Formation | MA SF (Spec.) | 1 year (FT) / 2 years (PT) | 180 credits | ₦3,200,000 |
| MRes Spiritual Formation | MRes SF | 1 year (FT) / 2 years (PT) | 180 credits | ₦3,400,000 |
| MPhil Spiritual Formation | MPhil SF | 2 years (FT) / 3 years (PT) | 240 credits | ₦5,600,000 |
| PhD Spiritual Formation | PhD SF | 3–4 years (FT) / 5–6 years (PT) | 360 credits | ₦9,100,000+ |
| Professional Practice Certificate in Spiritual Direction and Contemplative Facilitation | PPC SDCF | 6–9 months | 60 credits (practice-based) | ₦1,100,000 |
Credit Framework
The Department applies the Institute’s standard credit framework: one credit represents approximately 10 notional learning hours, inclusive of guided instruction, independent study, spiritual direction practicum where applicable, and assessment.
| Level | Credits (Full Level) | Notional Learning Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Level 4 (Certificate/Year 1) | 120 | 1,200 |
| Level 5 (Diploma/Year 2) | 120 | 1,200 |
| Level 6 (BA Year 3 / Honours Year) | 120–240 | 1,200–2,400 |
| Level 7 (Postgraduate/MA) | 180 | 1,800 |
| Level 8 (MPhil/PhD, research credit) | 240–360 | 2,400–3,600 |
Spiritual Direction Ethics Principle
Because spiritual authority has a documented history of being misused to control rather than accompany a person’s growth, the Department’s ethical commitments govern every module, practicum, and research activity it authorizes.
This principle governs curriculum design, spiritual direction practicum, assessment design, and all research involving human participants across the Department, and stands alongside the Principle of Theological Integrity and Freedom of Conscience (Department of Theology), the Principle of Contextual Textual Integrity (Department of Biblical Studies), and the Principle of Comparative Religious Respect (Department of Religious Studies) as the fourth ethics principle documented within Faculty VII.
Tuition Principle
Tuition for every programme is published in full above, with no undisclosed fees. Where a learner’s circumstances warrant it, the Department may offer needs-based tuition adjustment, cohort scholarships, or staged payment plans, at the discretion of the Institute’s admissions and finance offices.
Tuition figures reflect the Institute’s standard credit-based tuition model and are reviewed annually.
Final Delivery and Access Declaration
The Department of Spiritual Formation is delivered online-first to maximize access for learners regardless of geographic location, with structured cohort support, complete documentation for every module, and a clear pathway from Certificate through PhD. No learner shall be required to relocate to access any taught programme offered by this Department.
Final Structural Declaration
The Department of Spiritual Formation stands as a sibling Department of Faculty VII, holding contemplative practice and spiritual direction to the same safeguarding standard the Institute applies to Human Formation practice generally. Every award, module, and research activity documented above proceeds through the Department’s permanent structural chain:
This chain governs the Department of Spiritual Formation now and permanently, coordinated with, and answerable to, the Principle of Theological Integrity and Freedom of Conscience held by the Department of Theology.