“Great Christian leadership is the bridge between God’s Word and the world.” – Matt Penny (Master of Arts in Leadership, 2021 – click the link for a testimonial)
Asbury has offered a master’s degree in leadership for twenty years, serving students called to ministry in the church, para-church, nonprofit, or marketplace. Some of our graduates continue in their business vocation while others give their lives to congregations whose polity does not require a Master of Divinity degree. Others are making a difference in the nonprofit organizations they help steward, including NGOs and higher educational institutions.
Specializations in the current Master of Arts in Leadership degree prepare students for social impact (non-profit), worship, and other organizational leadership. A new fundraising track is scheduled for 2022-23. The impressive students who enroll in the leadership courses, including physicians, consultants, pastors, and missionaries, witness to God’s faithfulness in their ministries.
This has been especially true during this season of COVID-19. Navigating the unexpected as a theologically formed Christ-follower affects more than the individual. All within her or his influence experience the consequences of decisions made on their behalf. Asbury seeks to immerse graduates in biblical wisdom and theological insight to provide a solid foundation from which to discern. Graduates embrace their identity as Christian leaders who integrate faith and leadership excellence.
A recent international graduate, Apoorva Bhope-Onkar, highlights the adaptive Christian leadership bias of the MAL degree. “Your ability to identify what is needful moves you toward servant leadership where you are not just focused on yourself, but you are focused on the people who are involved in that situation.”
Church and denominational leaders expect pastors to be able to lead and administrate. Para-church groups like Exponential send their network members to Asbury because of our integrative curriculum and the spiritual leadership qualities of Asbury’s graduates. Non-profit and for-profit organizations hire our alumni because they demonstrate expertise and knowledge with a mature, informed, Christian worldview. The Seminary offers a degree in leadership because it is committed to bringing “the whole Bible for the whole world.”