The Department of Practical Theology focuses on the operations of different churches and other religious communities - in their foundabons, theories and practical results. The Department is responsible for teaching in the following three disciplines: General Practical Theology, Religious Education, and Church and Social Studies. The Department is also responsible for the applied studies which give students the opportuniq to acquire practical experience of congregational and religious work while also putting theoretical knowledge into practice.

The Department of Practical Theology is engaged in a number of research projects, some of which are international joint ventures and some of national importance. The Department participates in the nationwide interdisciplinary research programme on "The Economic Crisis of the 1990s in Finland", launched by the Academy of Finland. One of the international ventures is the research project on visual theology together with the Department of Art History of the University of Jyvaskyla, the Department of Church Architecture and Modern Church Art of the Universiq of Marburg, and the Liturgical Institute of the State University of Groningen; this study investigates the ecclesiastical art and theology of images in Finnish churches. A joint Nordic project is the study on children's life situations and their interpretations of life.

The Department is collaborating in a Nordic homiletic project on Lutheran sermon in the Nordic countries, and with the Research Institute of the Lutheran Church in Finland and Suomen Gallup (Finnish Gallup) on an extensive project called "European Values."

Ongoing research activities include an extensive project on pastoral care, an investigation into church administration and operational planning, and a study on Finnish liturgical tradition. Finnish religiosiq and the study of religious movements are a part of the Department's research areas. Further projects are studies on religious learning, distance teaching in religious pedagogy, further training for church employees, religious committment, alienation, and international relations of the churches.

Kuvio Digital Archives (www.kuvio.helsinki.fi), an umbrella archives for various academic uses, has been developed since 1995 at the Department of Practical Theology. Its backbone is the Archives for the Church Architecture and the Arts, which comprises of over 3000 press quality scans of modern European church architecture.