Licentiate and Doctoral Study of Theology offer opportunities to interested young scholars and researchers to contribute to the development of modern theology, while empowering them to assume responsibility in all segments of church activity: archives, museums, Caritas, pastoral offices and in schools and parishes.

Licentiate and Doctoral Study of Theology emphasizes on scientific research articulated in seven modules. These modules, independently and in correlation, include: monitoring of contemporary developments in world theology, specifically of Croatian theology in the context of society and the Church through regular annual coverage of current topics of society and the Church through  symposiums (Theological- pastoral week, Dies theologicus, Symposium of Professors of Philosophy and Theology of Croatian-speaking scholars and researchers), some of whom have a decades-long tradition that confirms the successful dissemination of scientific and research work by Catholic Faculty of Theology.

The whole licentiate and doctoral programme is based on the four scientific-teaching theological areas – Biblical, historical, systematic, and practical – within which there are 14 departments that serve as the basic structural forms of scientific-teaching work and in which contemporary study programmes of all three cycles are being conceptualised, formed, and realised.

The Licentiate and Doctoral Study in Theology consist of those theological disciplines that are, while being structured in departments, conducted in all study programmes at the KBF. The fourteen departments that exist at the moment are all involved in conduction of the seven modules that have been conceptualised as scientific-research areas, which are a constitutional part of the Strategic Programme of Scientific Research of the KBF:

1. Contemporary perspectives on the relationship between philosophy and theology;
2. Conciliar research and the renewal of the Church;
3. Systematic theology encounters the signs of the times;
4. Ethical-moral and social relevancy of theology and the Church;
5. Ecumenical and interreligious dialogue;
6. Contemporary pastoral challenges between theory and practice;
7. The Church and theology during history.

Head of Departments (modules):

1. Full professor Josip Oslić, PhD
2. Assistant professor Tomislav Kovač, PhD
3. Full professor Ivan Karlić, PhD
4. Full professor Tonči Matulić, PhD
5. Full professor Juro Zečević-Božić, PhD
6. Full professor Josip Šimunović, PhD
7. Associate professor Slavko Slišković, PhD

Enrolment Requirements

1. Any person who completed the integrated undergraduate and graduate philosophical-theological study and obtained the degree of master in theology (mag. theol.) or those who completed undergraduate theological study and obtained the degree of graduated theologian (dipl. theol.) is eligible to enrol into the Licentiate and Doctoral Study of Theology.
2. A person who completed the study of theological-religious sciences and obtained the degree of master in theological-religious sciences (mag. sc. theol.-relig.) or the study of religious pedagogy and catechetics and obtained the degree of master in religious pedagogy and catechetics (mag. paed. relig. et catech.) is eligible to enrol into the postgraduate study at the Faculty only if he/she mastered the difference in contents in order to obtain the degree of master in theology (mag. theol.).
3. Any person who obtained the academic degree of licence in theology in Croatia or abroad is eligible to enrol into the doctoral study (3^rd cycle). Candidates who obtained the academic degree of licence in theology in Croatia or abroad are obliged to apply to the competition.

Before enrolling into the 1^st year of the Licentiate and Doctoral Study in Theology, a student needs to pick one of the seven modules/specialisations. The programme is individualised, i.e. in the centre of the programme that a student enrols in is the area/topic of his/her licentiate/doctoral research, while all other activities of the student are optimally aligned with it.

The Licentiate and Doctoral Study in Theology is conducted in the full-time manner and in the part-time manner. The whole study lasts for six semesters. As a rule, the full-time study lasts for three years, while it can be extended for justifiable reasons up to five years. The part-time study lasts for five years, while it can be extended for justifiable reasons up to eight years.

The Licentiate and Doctoral Study in Theology consists of two cycles. The cycle of licentiate lasts for two years or four semesters, the second cycle, i.e. the doctoral year, lasts for one year or two semesters.

The process of licentiate and doctoral education is organised and conducted within the framework of primarily three point groups.

The structure of the workload of the Licentiate and Doctoral Study consists of:

• scientific-research work
• scientific-teaching activities (academic practice)
• teaching

1. Scientific and Research Work

For the purpose of developing scientific research and creative work, as well as generic and transferable skills, within the Licentiate and Doctoral Study in Theology, the following forms of work are especially valued and promoted:

• Thematic seminars in the form of workshops and discussion groups
• Research seminars
• Doctoral workshops.

Seminars/workshops. Within every module/specialisation there are a few thematic seminars/workshops. During the first two years of the study students are obliged to choose 3 seminars / workshops, within which they will be involved in research on certain topics that will allow them to deepen and widen their knowledge of an issue from various theological thematic areas and in connection with the topic of a student’s research. Researched seminar topics will be presented and discussed by students during seminars/discussion groups.

Seminars/workshops promote and allow learning and acquiring generic and transferable skills appropriate for doctoral education: skills of communication and team work, skills of effective scientific/academic writing and presenting results of research, skills of putting together a project proposal, etc.

Research seminars. As a rule, licentiandi enrol in a research seminar in each of the four semesters, while doctorandi enrol in these in each of the six semesters. A research seminar is closely related to the specialisation (i.e. department) within which a student chooses and works on a licentiate or doctoral thesis. It’s goal is to firstly introduce a student more deeply into methodology of scientific research within a given area and then to continuously monitor him/her in his/her scientific-research work that is directed towards research for and writing of licentiate or doctoral thesis, in reference to his/her plan of obligations (doctorandus’ portfolio).

A research seminar therefore consists primarily in conduction of the previously set research and in writing licentiate or doctoral thesis coupled with consultations with the mentor and other competent teachers.

Minimally once a year a doctoral workshop is organised within the frame of a research seminar. During the workshop doctoral theses are discussed, results obtained through research and writing are presented. All doctorandi and their mentors are obliged to participate in the work of doctoral workshops, while other interested teachers involved in the study can also participate.

  2. Scientific-teaching Activities (Academic Practice)

The second point group consists of scientific-teaching activities. They carry, for those students who are preparing the licentiate, 18 ECTS within two years of studying. For those students who are not obliged to write a licentiate thesis, these activities carry 26 ECTS points during the three years of study.

Scientific-teaching activities consist of three various group activities:

The first group:

• Publishing, as a main author or as a co-author, scientific and professional articles in national and international journals (original scientific article, review article, professional article – in a1 and a2 journals or in review collections of papers)
• Writing of reviews, overviews, reflections.

The second group:

• Participation in a scientific gathering
• Presentation on an international scientific gathering
• Presentation on a domestic scientific gathering
• Participation in public lectures, round-table discussions
• A public lecture
• Participation in preparation of scientific gatherings
• Courses in permanent training.

The third group (didactic activity):

• Participation in conduction of teaching, seminars, exercises within an undergraduate/graduate programme.

Scientific-teaching activities are not linked to individual semesters. The successful completion of assumed obligations is confirmed by the Study Advisor/Mentor, on the basis of submitted documentation and filled in form. The allocation of points is conducted according to the internal ordinance on studying.

3. Teaching

In reference to the Ordinance on Doctoral Studies, classic teaching should consist of 20% of the overall workload (32 or 36 ECTS), which presupposes a significant decrease of the previous scope of teaching. The teaching is based on obligatory courses during the first two years.

The group of obligatory courses consists of 2 common courses and 7 courses (mimimum of 3 corses within the module/research area).

Common courses are the common core at the Licentiate and Doctoral Study in Theology for students of all modules. Their main function is to, on one hand, introduce students with the study and with relevant issues from various theological disciplines and, on the other hand, to introduce students into the scientific-research work and to main approaches and research tendencies and methods within the university context. All students follow two common courses in the first year of the study.

In the first year of the study, students also follow three obligatory lectures in the chosen module (research area). These are selected during the enrolment, i.e. during writing the plan of obligations on the basis of a student’s project proposal on the area/topic of research and in the selection a students is assisted by his/her study advisor (mentor).

In the first two years students-licentiandi are obliged to enrol into minimally another three courses, while doctoral students are obliged to enrol into another four courses. These courses cover a wide spectrum of potential scientific problems in reference to the scientific-research work in the field of theology. Courses are chosen by students within their module/research area, within other modules/research areas, as well as among those courses that are being offered (and approved) by other doctoral study programmes at other institutions of higher education.

4. Other Obligations

By the end of the 3^th semester student is obligated to submit approval of research licentiate thesis. The research licentiate thesis is a written thesis composed on the basis of the scientific method. It can become a part of doctoral research. It contains at least 60 pages of text (excluding abstracts, keywords, and literature list) and it is graded by the supervisor and one other teacher (two supervisors and a teacher) who teaches in the module. The submission of the topic of research licentiate thesis, appointment of the supervisor, and the graphic outlook of the thesis are the same as for the licentiate thesis. The graded research licentiate thesis has to be submitted to the secretariat of postgraduate study before taking the licentiate exam.

During the 5^th, and at the latest during the 6^th, semester a doctorandus has to pass the licentiate exam in front of a committee consisting of three teachers. (the graded research licentiate thesis is condition for passing the licentiate exam). Exam consists of two parts: firstly, a doctorandus presents results of his doctoral research to the members of the committee; secondly, on the basis of literature picked by the director of a module and the doctorandus’ mentor, the doctorandus passes the exam in a chosen area of research/theological discipline. This exam is a condition for a grade and the defence of the doctoral thesis.

Programme outline by years (ECTS and other conditions):

First and Second Semester Conditions

– during enrolment the doctoral student is being assigned a study advisor who will direct him until a supervisor has been appointed for him/her

– all doctoral students in the first year are required to enrol into and follow common courses Science and Research in the University Context and Lectio Theologica

– the doctoral student will enrol into five lectures in the research area in which he/she wants to write a doctoral thesis (three lectures in the module in which the doctoral student is enrolled)

– the doctoral student will enrol into one seminar (seminars can be chosen from any module)

– in the second semester the doctoral student has the obligation to participate in and present in the doctoral workshop and to present results of research on the topic of his/her licentiate/doctoral thesis

– in agreement with his/her supervisor, the doctoral student participates in scientific-teaching activities

Third Semester Conditions

– the doctoral student enrols into a lecture in agreement with his/her supervisor

– the doctoral student enrols into a seminar in agreement with his/her supervisor

– within the frame of a doctoral workshop, the doctoral student will present results of research on the topic of his/her licentiate/doctoral thesis

–  in agreement with his/her supervisor, the doctoral student will participate in scientific-teaching activities

– at the latest until the end of the 3^rd semester, the doctoral student will submit the topic of his research licentiate thesis

Fourth Semester Conditions

– the doctoral student enrols into a lecture in agreement with his/her supervisor

– the doctoral student enrols into a seminar in agreement with his/her supervisor

– within the frame of a doctoral workshop, the doctoral student will present results of research on the topic of his/her licentiate/doctoral thesis

– in agreement with his/her supervisor, the doctoral student will participate in scientific-teaching activities

Fifth Semester Conditions

– in agreement with his/her supervisor, the doctoral student will participate in scientific-teaching activities

– within the frame of a doctoral workshop, the doctoral student will present results of research on the topic of his/her licentiate/doctoral thesis

– during the 5^th semester the doctoral student will submit to the students’ office his/her graded research licentiate thesis and takes the licentiate exams. Positively graded licentiate exam is a condition for being eligible for grading and defending a doctoral thesis

– at the latest until the end of the 5^th semester, the doctoral student will start the procedure for acceptance of his/her doctoral thesis and a supervisor will be appointed for him/her (Dr. sc. 01 OBAD)

Sixth Semester Conditions

– in agreement with his/her supervisor, the doctoral student will participate in scientific-teaching activities

– within the frame of a doctoral workshop, the doctoral student will present results of research on the topic of his/her doctoral thesis

Conditions for Attainment of Degree

– before being eligible for grading and defense  of a doctoral thesis, the doctoral student will present his/her work at minimally one scientific gathering

– the doctoral student is obliged to have at least one (1) published or accepted for publication work before the defense  of his/her doctoral thesis. The work has to be published (accepted for publication) in a renowned international or national scientific journal and the topic has to be related to his/her doctoral research (he/she has to be the main or one of the main authors)

Tuition and fees per semestar: 7.5000,00 croatian kuna

The Regulations on Licentiate and Doctoral Study of Theology

Contact information:

Marija Ferlindeš, mag. paed. relig. et catech.

Change: Anamaria Đurak, mag. paed. relig. et catech.

Office of Postgraduate Studies

E-mail: poslijediplomski@kbf.unizg.hr

Phone: +385 1 4890 410