Prerequisite: Applicants must have made the full Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius under personal direction, either in the 30-day format or the Exercises in Daily Life.

“This program was informative, helpful, prayerful, and academic. The caliber of  faculty was quite impressive.”

 “The staff at Guelph possess a remarkable depth of knowledge and wisdom. I learned the skills of and experienced the benefits of spiritual direction.” 

This 7-week program provides participants with fundamental skills for on-going and retreat spiritual direction. It has three components:

• A personally directed 8-day retreat: a spring board for learning about retreat direction.
• The Spiritual Directors’ Workshop:  an intensive 12-day  training program in spiritual  direction.  Includes a 3-day spiritual direction practicum under supervision.
• Seminars developing contemporary themes in Spiritual Direction for retreats and on-going direction.

Cost:  $6,578 CAD – Ensuite Room – private single bedroom with 3-piece washroom, desk and chair

Who Should Apply

The Expanded Skills in Ignatius Spiritual Direction is suitable for:  

• Christians who pray and who possess an ability to understand and express interior experience
• People who are serious about their spiritual journey and have some experience of accompanying others
• Members of various religious and lay communities with spiritual leadership potential
• Mature individuals who are in formation and seeking a program to help prepare for ministries of Ignatian spirituality
• Practitioners of Ignatian spirituality

Note the application process for this program:

1. Fill in the online application form
2. Once completed, the registrar will email the entire application package
3. Go to this link if you wish to also apply for the Applied Skills in Ignatian Spiritual Direction (August 1-28, 2025). Note that those that wish to apply to the Applied Skills program, your definitive acceptance depends on your successful completion of the Expanded Skills. Upon successful completion of the Expanded Skills another acceptance letter will follow with details of the program and the payment for the Applied Skills will be required.

Application deadline is February 1. Note: If you reside outside of North America, we advise you to apply early to allow time for Visa process.  Apply early as space is limited.

To fill out application by clicking the Quantity box and selecting 1.