Canonical Administrative Practice Course
From October 2026 to May 2027
Attached to the Dicastery for the Clergy is the ancient Studium, established by Benedict XV on October 28, 1919, so that its students can gain practice in the management of ecclesiastical affairs and the administrative application of canon law. In keeping with these objectives, this Dicastery organizes the Course in Canonical Administrative Practice.
It addresses the issues within the purview of this Vatican body, including initial formation for Holy Orders, the ministry, life, and discipline of clerics, dispensation from obligations arising from Sacred Ordination, rehabilitation and readmission to the Sacred Ministry, loss or dismissal from the clerical state, hierarchical appeals, the bodies of the diocesan curia and the parish, and the administration and disposal of ecclesiastical property (cf. Nn. 113-120 of the Apostolic Constitution Prædicate Evangelium).
The two-year (A & B), cyclical Course is routinely recognized, for each year frequented, as an optional subject or seminar by the Faculties of Canon Law and other Pontifical Academic Centers in Rome. In the 2026/2027 academic year, the Year A cycle will be offered.
Lessons, held weekly on Tuesday afternoons between October and the end of May, are held in person in Italian at the Dicastery. At the end of the second year of the Course, having successfully passed the required tests for both years and attended at least two-thirds of the sessions, the ordinary student will receive the Diploma in Canonical Administrative Practice.
According to the Regulations, approved on September 14, 2017, the lessons are open to clerics, religious men and women, and lay people, who must be enrolled at least in the second year of a Licentiate in Canon Law at a University or Pontifical Athenaeum, provided they are presented by their Ordinary or by the competent ecclesiastical authority.
Students wishing to enroll in the first year of the course are invited to contact the Dicastery for the Clergy directly by the established deadlines and times. They must submit the following documents, along with the application downloaded from the Dicastery's website:
- - Letter of recommendation from their Ordinary or the competent ecclesiastical authority, addressed to His Eminence Cardinal Lazzaro You Heung-sik, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Clergy.
- - Certification of completed or ongoing studies in Canon Law (enrolment in at least the second year of the Licentiate in Canon Law).
- - A passport-sized photograph, which will also be sent in digital format by email to: prassiamministrativa@clerus.va
- - Registration fee.
REGISTRATION DATE
- Monday, September 21st: 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM
- Tuesday, September 22nd: 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM
- Wednesday, September 23rd: 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM
- Thursday, September 24th: 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM
REGISTRATION FEE
Annual registration €100.00
Final diploma €50.00
PRACTICAL LESSONS AND ATTENDANCE
Lessons are held in person in Italian at the Dicastery (Piazza Pio XII 3, 2nd floor), weekly, every Tuesday afternoon. It is possible to register as an online auditor; in this case, students are not entitled to the practical exercises or to obtain the final Diploma.
At the end of the second year, ordinary students receive the Diploma in Canonical Administrative Practice, having passed the practical exercises required for cycles A and B. To obtain the qualification, regular attendance (at least two-thirds) and passing all the tests at the end of each module are required, with an average grade of no lower than Probatus.
Lesson schedule:
- 1st hour 3:45-4:30 PM
- 2nd hour 4:40-5:20 PM
- 3rd hour 5:30-6:15 PM
PRESIDENT OF THE STUDIUM
H. E. the Most Reverend Carlo Roberto Maria Redaelli
Secretary of the Dicastery for the Clergy
SECRETARY OF THE STUDIUM
Rev. Antonio J. Mellet
Official of the Dicastery
For further information:
Contact the Studium Office
Monday to Friday: 9:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
Tuesday and Thursday: 3:45 p.m.–6:15 p.m.
Dicastery for the Clergy
Piazza Pio XII, 3, 2nd floor – 00120 Vatican City
Tel. +39 06 69884151
prassiamministrativa@clerus.va
clerus.va