Study On and Off Campus

Many of our lay degree students pursue degrees on a part-time basis and live several hours away from campus. Realizing that you have other responsibilities-family, full-time work, parish and community involvement, etc.-we provide a variety of course formats that fit into your busy life. We do not offer a complete distance-learning degree; you must earn at least half of your degree credits through courses that meet on campus.

Click here to view upcoming weekend, online, and other alternative-format courses [pdf]

Weekday Courses (on-campus)

This traditional course format requires you to live within regular commuting distance from our campus. You study side-by-side with seminarians for the duration of the fall or spring terms. Core classes generally meet on Tuesdays and Fridays or Mondays and Thursdays; electives are generally Monday, Tuesday or Thursday afternoons.

Weekly Podcast Courses (distance)

This format is based on a course offered in the regular weekday format. We digitally record the twice-weekly lectures and discussion, then post the audio files, along with any accompanying Powerpoint presentations or handouts, for students to access.

As a distance-based student, you keep up with the course by downloading these files every week and doing the same assignments as in-class students. You can email or phone the professor for questions and feedback.

Weekend Courses (on-campus)

This is the primary course format if you live some distance from Saint Meinrad. Weekend courses consist of three all-day Saturday-Sunday weekends (with a break on Sunday for Mass), roughly one per month for three months. On-campus weekend housing is available.

This compressed format gives you the same amount of classroom time as a conventional weekly course, but it requires being on campus only one weekend per month. We offer weekend courses year-round; during each of our four terms. In many courses, you will use our online learning platform to post readings and interact with others in your class between weekends.

Intensive Residency Courses (on-campus)

We designed Intensive Residency Courses to economize travel and provide opportunities for an extended stay. Intensive courses meet on the second weekend course meeting of the early summer term, and reconvene a month later for five days, including the third weekend of the early summer term, for a total of seven days of instruction.

Online Courses (distance)

These courses, taught entirely online using our online learning platform, are offered in the spring, summer and fall terms. Online courses have weekly scheduled assignments and promote a great degree of peer interaction. They are asynchronous, meaning you do not need to be online at a certain time each week. You may take up to 15 credit hours in the online format, including Web-hybrid courses (see below).

Web-Hybrid Courses (on-campus)

Web-hybrid courses are a combination of an online and a weekend-format class. Like the online courses, they use our online learning platform. Additionally, you travel to our campus for three full Saturdays of instruction, roughly once a month. Up to two Web-hybrid courses count as on-campus coursework; additional Web-hybrid courses are considered distance-based.

Independent Studies (distance)

If you have academic or pastoral interests not specifically addressed by available courses, or you have extraordinary circumstances that prevent you from enrolling in another course format, you may make arrangements with a professor to set up a directed independent study, either in an area of interest or to complete a regularly offered course.

Transfer Credit (distance)

You are welcome to transfer credits you have earned at other accredited schools, assuming the course is applicable to your degree curriculum. We generally accept up to 15 credits toward your Saint Meinrad degree.