Degrees

The Bachelor’s Program

The Bachelorīs degree program lasts two years (four semesters) and offers foundational courses and seminars in five areas: General Bioethics, Medicine, Law, Philosophy and Theology.


Who can Register?

For the Bachelorīs program, any student eligible for admission to university studies in his or her home country.

Students who come directly from high school must begin with a propedeutic year as an introduction to university-level study.

Propedeutic Year Courses

First Semester
Introduction to the Study of Bioethics
Christian Ethics: Commandments and Virtues
Introduction to Logic and Discourse in Bioethics
The Great Themes of Theology
Introduction to the Old and New Testaments
Foreign Language
Methodology Seminar

Second Semester
Contemporary Problems in Medicine and Bioethics
The Christian View of Love, Sexuality and the Family
The Mystery of the Church and the Role of the Magisterium
The Philosophical-Theological Dilemma Concerning God and Religion
History of the Principal Philosophical Systems
Technical Support for Scientific Studies


Courses for the Bachelor’s Program

First Semester
Bioethics and Sexuality
Elements of Biology
General Bioethics
Introduction to the Study of Bioethics
Institutions of Private Law
Philosophy of Law
Reasoning and the Search for Truth: Logic and Epistemology
Understanding Reality: Metaphysics
Oral and Written Communication in Bioethics

Second Semester
Bioethics and its Ties to Ecology
Constitutional and Comparative Law
Bioethics and the Origin of Life
General Ethics
Genetics and the Human Genome
Human Embryology
Philosophical Anthropology
Elective course
Group Seminar

Third Semester
Bioethics and Medical Interventions
Elements of Criminal Law
Fundamental Moral Theology
History of Philosophy
Introduction to Pedagogy
Medical Pathology
Theological Anthropology
Elective course

Fourth Semester
Bioethics and Medical Certificate Management
Bioethical Approaches to the Terminal Phase of Life
Christian Sexual Ethics
Elements of Psychology and Psychiatry
International and European Community Law
Legal Medicine
Philosophy of Medical Science
The Psychology of High Risk Behavior
Seminar

The Master’s Program

The Masterīs degree program lasts two years (four semesters). Along with further investigation into foundational bioethical principles, students engage in case analysis and applicational research into specific bioethical issues. The study program includes mandatory and elective courses, seminars, research and drafting of a thesis paper, the reading of the most significant texts available on the subject and a comprehensive final exam.


Who can Register?

Admission to the Masterīs program is open to any student who has satisfactorily completed a Bachelor’s degree in Bioethics or Theology. Likewise, students who have finished the six-year course of philosophical-theological seminary studies can be admitted. At the discretion of the Dean of Bioethics, students who have received sufficient philosophical and theological preparation can be admitted to the Master’s program.


Courses for the Master’s Program

This program varies from year to year, offering a wide range of courses and seminars. Eighty credits are required to obtain Master’s degree: required courses (8 credits); elective courses (24 credits); seminars (8 credits); thesis (16 credits); comprehensive exam (24 credits).

The following courses are presently offered:

Required Courses
Meta-Bioethics: Epistemological Problems and Foundations
Bioethics and Magisterium
Ethics and Law: The Relationship between Bioethics and Democracy
The Structure and Limits of Scientific Knowledge

Elective Courses
The Adoption of Minors by Homosexual Couples
The AIDS Dilemma
Animal Rights?
Bioethical Reflection through Pedagogical Stages
Bioethics and Public Health
Bioethics and Social Theory: From Plato to Engelhardt
Bioethical Issues in Selected Anglo-Saxon Authors
Christ the Physician
Comparative Law Regarding Bioethical Problems
Custom, Ethics, and Positive Law
Ethical Models in Early Christian Writings
Ethical Problems Associated with the Cryogenic Conservation of the Human Embryo
Genetic Experimentation in Recent Legislation
The Legalization of Abortion: From Roe v. Wade to Law 194/78
A History of Bioethics and its Most Recent Developments
The Myth of the “Good Death” in Fact and Fiction
A Practical Approach to Ethical Decisions in Clinical Medicine
The Problem of Pain
The Proper Administration of Healthcare Resources
Recent Developments in Biomedical Technology
Reflections on the Encyclical Letter Evangelium Vitae
Sexual Ethics and Marriage in Early Christianity
The Personalist School of Bioethics
The Philosophical Roots of Utilitarian Bioethics
Two Anthropological Approaches to Euthanasia
Virtue and Dialogue: Towards a Responsible Healthcare Practice

Seminars
A Methodological Approach for Bioethical Research and Investigation
Abortion Law: A Global Overview
The Concept of “Person” in the First Centuries
Fertility and Reproductive Health: Ethical and Pastoral Dimensions
Mass Media and the Presentation of Bioethical Issues
Procured Abortion and Euthanasia: An Analysis of Arguments in Favor
The Theory of Progressive Human Evolution: A Critical Analysis


The Doctoral Program

The Doctoral degree program consists in ongoing research into a particular bioethical question and the drafting of a doctoral dissertation which will offer an original contribution to the bioethical field.


Who can Register?

For admission to doctoral studies, students must either have a Master’s degree in Bioethics or in Theology. The Dean may require that those who only have a degree in Theology attend a certain number of courses from the Master’s and/or Bachelor’s program in the areas of Philosophy, General Bioethics and Law.


The Diploma Program

In addition to the three degree programs, the School of Bioethics offers a diploma course open to the public. This two-year program is designed for working professionals and students attending other academic institutions who desire to deepen their understanding of the principal bioethical issues in the light of Catholic moral teaching.

The program covers four semesters and offers students fundamental bioethical principles, a history of Bioethics, the study of the principal issues in Bioethics and applications to the biomedical, biojuridical and pastoral fields.

Diploma students meet once a week on Thursday afternoons. At the end of the program students who have submitted a written paper and have successfully passed the exams will be awarded a Diploma in Bioethics