Give yourself a year to get back on the cutting edge of youth ministry.

IWU's nationally recognized tradition of outstanding service, convenience, and affordability make this program one of the best values available for professional ministerial development.

Most importantly IWU's Christ-centered mission and warm-hearted Wesleyan heritage infuse our programs with a commitment to evangelism and personal transformation through the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Youth Ministries Concentration courses tackle such challenging issues as:

How do we do incarnational ministry in today's youth culture and context? 

How do we make Jesus real in today's youth culture?

How do we care for our own spirits while we give ourselves to meet the endless demands on our time and energy? 

How do we succeed with a personal and professional growth plan?

How do we communicate the good news of Jesus Christ to a media-rich, multi-tasking, IM-oriented generation?

How do we tame the youth programming and management beast? 

How do we mold the diverse view points, agendas, and gifts of parents, sponsors, senior pastors, and congregation into a cohesive, successful youth ministry program?

How do we use the best insights of the adolescent development and family systems fields to help us understand and meet youth and family ministry needs?

Course No.		Description	Credits
MIN594		Incarnational Ministry in Youth Culture and Context	3
(8 weeks)		This course undertakes an interdisciplinary analysis of youth cultures. It provides a means for students to develop anthropological and sociological analytical skills and insights with which to identify and assess the socio-cultural dynamics present in their local youth context, and thereby to insure the development of culturally relevant youth ministries. In addition, the course examines the history, practice, and effectiveness of incarnational youth ministry.
MIN592		Personal Development and Growth Strategies for Youth Ministers	3
(8 weeks)		This course provides students with a forum in which to survey and analyze various models of personal, professional, and spiritual development with a view to formulating personal strategies for ongoing professional growth. Students will have the opportunity to design a personal professional growth plan that includes such elements as personal vision, foci for personal and professional growth, the establishment of effective ministry partnerships, and the development of effective mentoring and accountability relationships.
MIN589		Advanced Communication for Youth Ministry	3
(8 weeks)		This course prepares students to synthesize and apply current communication, multi-media, and information technology theories and practices to the communication of biblical truth in youth ministry settings. The course will assist students in finding those communication channels and strategies to which youth are most open. In addition, students will explore processes required to develop balanced approaches that effectively integrate multiple means of communicating biblical truth to the young people represented in their youth ministries.
MIN593		Adolescent Development and Family Systems in Youth Ministry	3
(8 weeks)		This course allows students to explore the developmental and sociological dynamics of adolescence and family systems with a view to developing appropriate models of care, counseling and ministry programming for teens and their families. Students will gain exposure to the work of classic and contemporary developmental and sociological theorists and will specifically explore the ways in which this work informs and enriches youth ministry.
MIN590		Programming and Management Strategies in Youth Ministry	3
(8 weeks)		This course provides a forum for interdisciplinary studies of leadership, management, and educational theories that inform the development of youth ministry strategies. The focus of these interdisciplinary studies is to equip students with both theoretical frameworks and practical tools that will enrich the design, implementation and operation of their youth ministries. Students will gain exposure to a range of current ministry models and will be equipped to design viable ministries appropriate to their gifts and ministry settings. In addition, students will have the opportunity to develop personal management and leadership strategies related to time management, delegation, volunteer recruitment and development, the effective use of interns and program creation and implementation.
MIN533		Contemporary Theological Trends: Church and Postmodernism	3
(8 weeks)		This class engages several strands of theological development which are currently shaping the life and faith of the church. These include emphases on the powers available to the Christian community, the nature of the Christian faith and its intended impact on culture, and the balances among Scripture, reason, tradition, and experience in the current Christian context.
MIN511		Biblical Interpretation	3
(8 weeks)		Designed to prepare the student for in-depth studies in interpretation of the Bible. Hermeneutics and exegesis become important tools for understanding selected passages. Aid is provided both to students of the English Bible and those who wish to concentrate on the original languages. The course is a study of the problems of proof-texting apparent discrepancies, literal and figurative meanings, and progressive revelation as these emerge in varied option in history and theology (e.g., early church, Catholicism, and Reformation). The guiding purpose is to formulate appropriate principles essential to consistent Biblical exposition with additional help in detecting and avoiding fallacies of interpreting and applying Scripture.
MIN553		Cross-Cultural Ministry	3
(8 weeks)		This course is designed to expose students to cultures and cultural mores which are different from their own. Whether by intensive study or by direct exposures to another culture, it allows the student to experience the interfacing of culture with culture.
MIN543		Theology of Holiness	3
(8 weeks)		A systematic study of the teachings of holiness derived from a study of the Judeo-Christian Scriptures, the writings of Jacobus Arminius, John Wesley, and other classical and contemporary holiness writers.
MIN591		Project	3
(8 weeks)		An individually designed program accomplished primarily in the candidate's place of ministry. The written report will provide significant insight into the area explored. The project may have use primarily for the student and others interested in that area.