Darul Iftaa Chicago has a unique and carefully crafted curriculum that combines a mix of traditional and contemporary works taught in English with academic critique and practical application. The majority of the time is spent in thorough and well-referenced research of questions, alongside individual reading of various books of fatwa. Students receive training in English grammar and style, as well as practical workshops on numerous contemporary issues conducted by professionals in the relevant fields, such as doctors, lawyers, chemists, and Islamic finance executives.
Curriculum
YEAR 1
Classes
Sharḥ ʿUqūd Rasm al-Muftī
Uṣūl al-Iftāʾ wa Ādābuhu
Introduction to Islamic Finance
Fiqh al-Buyūʿ
Introduction to Ḥanafī Furūʿ Books
Mukhtaṣar al-Manār
Academic Critique
Individual Reading
Fatāwā Dār al-ʿUlūm Zakarīyā
Nashr al-ʿArf
Aḥkām al-Qurān li al-Jaṣṣāṣ (1/3)
The Elements of Style
Path to Perfection
Various Research Papers
Dhukhr al-Mutaʾahhilīn (Assisted)
Al-Durar al-Mubāḥa (Assisted)
Training & Workshops
Tamrīn al-Fatāwā*
Effective Writing Skills
Sessions with Various Professionals**
Peer Review & Academic Critique
*Students will be assigned questions daily to provide thorough and well-referenced research.
** Includes psychologists, chemists, lawyers, doctors, food scientists, and others.
YEAR 2
Classes
Majallat al-Aḥkām al-ʿAdalīya
Al-Ashbāh wa al-Naẓāʾir
(al-Fann al-Awwal)Al-Ḥīlat al-Nājiza
AAOIFI Standards
Intro to Ḥanafī Uṣūl Books
Academic Critique
Individual Reading
Fatāwā Maḥmūdīyya
Aḥkām al-Qurān li al-Jaṣṣāṣ (2/3)
Various Research Papers
Tuḥfat al-ʿUlamāʾ (Assisted)
Niṣāb al-Iḥtisāb (Assisted)
Training & Workshops
Tamrīn al-Fatāwā*
Faskh al-Nikāḥ
Financial Contracts Analyses
Arbitration & Mediation
Intro to Hadith Research
*Students will focus part of the year on daily questions and the remainder on a final thesis.