Bachelor's degree in Practical Theology (full-time)

Are you keen to help shape the church and bring the Christian faith closer to others? This degree will enable you to perform a variety of different roles as a parish worker. For example, it will allow you to provide pastoral care to your community, prepare children and young people for baptism, first communion and confirmation, and teach religious education. Furthermore, it will open up many other careers to you in which religion plays a role, for example in Christian associations or in the media.

The course programme will provide you with basic knowledge of the theological disciplines, as well as education, psychology and sociology. You will also be introduced to professional methods, and as such you will learn to preach, how to teach religion, how to manage crisis talks and much more besides. In addition to academic learning, vocation-related spirituality also plays an underlying role. This concerns questions such as: What does spirituality mean to you and to others - and how can you respectfully promote and attentively support any form of religious expression?

You will have an opportunity to further deepen and test your knowledge during your internships in a community, school and social institution, which are an integral part of the programme. If you are interested in studying abroad, you will have the option of spending a semester at a foreign university.

The Bachelor's degree constitutes the first step in training towards the pastoral vocation of parish assistant within the Catholic Church. The course is followed by a professional introduction to a pastoral unit in the diocese.

Highly practical degree program

Three internships are an integral part of your degree programme:

• Internship in a parish (6.5 weeks, after the 1st semester)
• School internship (5 weeks, after the 3rd semester)
• Internship in a social institution (120 hours, in a block or part-time, after the end of lectures in the 4th semester and before the start of lectures in the 6th semester)

Here you can deepen and test your knowledge directly in practice. Those who wish to give their studies an international focus can spend a semester at a foreign university. 

The bachelor's degree programme is the first stage in training for the pastoral profession of parish worker in the Catholic Church. The degree programme is followed by an introduction to the profession in a pastoral care unit in the diocese.

In addition, there are many other professions open to you in which religion plays a role, for example in Christian associations or in the media.

What does a parish worker do?

Parish workers take on a wide range of different tasks, such as …

• Providing pastoral care to a parish
• Preparing children and young people for baptism, first communion and confirmation
• Teaching religious education

Or would you like to continue studying? Master's programmes in theology

If you would like to continue studying, you can apply for various consecutive master’s programmes at different universities with a bachelor’s degree in Practical Theology. We have compiled a list of possible master’s programmes in theology for you.

To embark on this degree programme you should be a member of the Catholic Church. You will also be interested in social and theological issues and intrigued by the interdisciplinary examination of social and church topics. It is also important that you possess strong communication skills and a keenness for networking. Ideally, you will have been active in the social and/or church sector in a voluntary capacity before starting your studies.

If you also satisfy the following requirements, you can submit a direct application to us for a place on our degree course:

• You have gained entry admission to a university in Rhineland-Palatinate.
• A six-week internship in the pastoral sector outside your home parish or equivalent.