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Borromeo Seminary Institute

The Borromeo Seminary Institute program follows the norms and recommendations of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' Program of Priestly Formation. Students admitted by the Diocese of Cleveland and Youngstown or by their religious order to the program for collegiate seminarians matriculate at John Carroll University, where they are known as members of the Borromeo Seminary Institute (BSI).

BSI students complete all of the academic requirements of John Carroll University and are expected to fulfill additional course requirements specified by the collegiate seminary program. The formation program at the CPL campus is concentrated on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so that students may attend classes on the JCU main campus on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

BSI students are required to complete coursework in philosophy as well as theology and religious studies. Language study in Latin and Greek also is encouraged.

The Borromeo Seminary Institute, housed at the Diocese of Cleveland's Center for Pastoral Leadership (CPL), prepares college students seeking the ordained priesthood of the Catholic Church.

Learn more about the BSI course of studies. You can find the standard four-year plan as well as alternative three-year or two-year accelerated plans for students with substantial transfer credit.

View descriptions of the required BSI Philosophy and Theology courses.

Borromeo Institute

Course List

PHILOSOPHY

210. Ancient Greek Philosophy 3 cr.
225. Medieval Philosophy and Logic 3 cr.
240. 17th and 18th Century European Philosophy 3 cr.
246. 19th and 20th Century Philosophy 3 cr.
304. Philosophy of the Human Person 3 cr.
308. Philosophy of God 3 cr.
368. Ethical Theory 3 cr.
391. What Does Science Prove? 3 cr.
395. Metaphysics 3 cr.
396. Theories of Knowledge 3 cr.

To complete the Philosophy Major, the seminarians are also required to complete PL 300 Methods in Philosophy 3 cr.  and either PL450 (Seminar; 3 cr.) or PL495 (Senior Thesis; 3 cr.) for a total of 36 credits.

THEOLOGY AND RELIGIOUS STUDIES

200. Hebrew Bible 3 cr.
205. New Testament Introduction 3 cr.
238. Catechism of the Catholic Church 3 cr.
268. Catholic Moral Theology 3 cr.

Students may elect other TRS courses, including:

328. The Franciscan Movement 3 cr.
335. What Happened at Vatican II 3 cr.
368. Christian Social Justice 3 cr.
493. Senior Seminar 3 cr.
494. The Catholic Experience 3 cr.