Center for Christianity
and Scholarship
Graduate Collaborative

The Graduate Collaborative is a year-long program that supports the intellectual, professional, and spiritual formation of graduate students and postdocs. A cohort of 6-10 scholars meets over the calendar year at a weekend retreat, six dinner dialogues, and a series of workshops at which students receive feedback on their work from peers and faculty mentors.

The program rests on a pair of complementary beliefs: (1) every discipline—be it biochemistry, history, or business—teaches us truth about God who wove the fabric of the world, and (2) theology provides crucial insights into every discipline in return, allowing us to understand the deeper meaning of all academic pursuits.

The Graduate Collaborative is a community of scholars seeking to approach their academic work in a spirit of faith; to write and research in the light of God’s truth; to better understand the role of faith in a pluralist university; and to support one another amid the challenges of graduate school.

"It is evident how the many-formed Wisdom of God, which is clearly revealed in Sacred Scripture, lies hidden in all knowledge and in all nature."

— Bonaventure of Bagnoregio (13th century)

Participants in the program commit to attend the retreat, at least five spring meetings, and at least five fall meetings, as well present one academic project (e.g. article, dissertation chapter, conference paper, syllabus, lecture, or presentation sharing academic work with a public audience) at a fall workshop. They will receive a stipend of $250 as a token of appreciation for their time and commitment.

Graduate Collaborative
The year-long program includes:

In addition to the program components below, participants will be a part of a community of peers that support and encourage each other as they face similar challenges with the same faith.

Christianity and the University Seminar

Six dinner meetings across the spring semester to discuss Christianity’s role in modern secular academia and how faith can inform research and teaching.

Theological Integration Workshops

Regular meetings across the fall semester to share work in progress and receive interdisciplinary feedback from Christian perspectives.

Access to two Duke faculty mentors

Ross Wagner (Divinity, New Testament) and Carolyn Glass (Medicine, Pathology), as well as other faculty guest teachers.

Academic Vocation Retreat

All-expenses-paid weekend retreat.

Get in touch with Derek Witten, our Director of Academic Programming!