Ethics

Ethics is concerned with the evaluation of character and action.  It examines the sorts of people we ought to be, the ways we should act in relation to others, and the social structures we collectively inhabit, transmit, and transform.  The concentration in Ethics is an inherently interdisciplinary course of study that trains students in Christian theological traditions of ethical reflection and in contemporary social-ethical thought.  Courses in ethics address questions of the good life, social justice, and the common good, both as these have arisen in the past and as they take shape with reference to pressing concerns of our own historical moment, from immigration to environmental justice.  All students are encouraged to pursue work across the theological disciplines as well as in pertinent areas of the University outside of the Divinity School, including the Departments of Religious Studies, Philosophy, and Politics and the schools of Forestry and Law.  The Yale Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics offers further resources for interested students. At least eighteen credit hours must be taken in ethics, and ordinarily six credit hours in the biblical disciplines and twelve in history and theology are required.  The program trains students for intellectual leadership both inside and outside the academy, with graduates of the program entering top doctoral programs in the field as the non-profit sector, advocacy work, secondary education, journalism, and law.