There are even quite a few people who go to seminary simply to "test the waters" to see if ministry or further study is for them. Most students pay for seminary using a combinations of scholarships, grants, loans, and work funds.
The amount of institution-based aid depends, of course, on the school itself. Some schools have a generous endowment and are able to offer students quite a bit of financial aid while others are less able to do so. It's wise to investigate the schools you're interested in and look at the type of aid they can offer. It depends on the degree. An MDiv generally takes three years while an MA takes two. For more advanced degrees, a ThM which builds upon an MDiv takes only a year whereas a doctoral degree can take anywhere from five to ten years.
Choosing a seminary can be a difficult task. You want to make a list of factors that are important to you in the decision process. Does your church or governing body have a seminary that they prefer? How important is financial aid?
Are there particular faculty members you admire or would like to study under? Do you want be surrounded by like-minded students or a more diverse student body? None of these are doctorates, but you can continue on and earn a doctorate. The most likely reason you would get a PhD. You wake up at 7AM and have a quiet time. You have four classes scattered through the morning and early afternoon.
As you walk back to your dorm or trek across campus to the library, you join the masses of nerds who are flipping through Greek flash cards. After all, you want to be a good steward of your time, or at least you want to look like you are. In some sense this day looks no different than your undergrad days, but the classes are harder. So imagine four or five such classes stacked in a semester.
Seminary can be a rich time for you spiritually. The rest of your afternoon and evening could be split between studying and your part-time job at Starbucks. Look for a school that understands itself to operate consistent to Scripture: one that is confessional. This is important! The presuppositions a seminary holds about Scripture and salvation will not only work their way through lectures and required reading, but also in its approach to learning. You see the slippery slope.
For most of us there are forms of theological liberalism that are like carbon- monoxide: they appear harmless or undetected but are poisonous none-the-less. Because of the formative nature of the M. For advanced studies or a Ph. Seminaries are everywhere--kind of like chiropractors. You notice them in the phone book, you notice them attached to small brick buildings, you notice them in the passing comments of a blog.
You have to be able to sift through them and discern which are best. There is usually a reason why you hear of some and not others. A good professor is first of all a godly man. Doctrine and life cannot be separated. Brilliant professors are usually devoted followers. You want big heart and big brains. Let me warn you that often the professors who write all the books are professors who are given much time to do research. This means the more research leeway that they are given, the less time for teaching they have.
Make sure you look into the possibly less known second-tier professors and investigate them. Quality is also seen in academic commitment and rigor. You want a school that is accredited, preferably by something national like the Association of Theological Schools www. Not only will accreditation help you transfer credits if you need to change seminaries, but it will ensure that you are receiving a level of quality. Quality can be assessed in terms of libraries and resources. Trust me, you want a decent library.
You need access to good reference material, journals, and historical documents. Part of your decision on a seminary should include a visit to their library or at least a comparison with other libraries of the number of volumes it contains.
Finally, quality can be judged in terms of the facilities. During my visit to the seminary I ended up attending, I asked a student how he chose this particular one. It would be great, but not a deal breaker, if a school leveraged things like good technology. A few years of seminary provides crisis rich opportunities, which in turn accelerates the rate of developing meaningful friends.
These folks are not only your study partners, but they are the friends who struggle with you to make ends meet. Beyond sharing the same circumstances, they are most likely people who share like-minded convictions and philosophies about life and ministry. You may serve together at your church. You may even see yourselves working together after seminary as church planters or mission team members. If you are clear on denominational leanings, you ought to go to a seminary in that denomination.
This might also affect your tuition costs. Some seminaries may require you to be placed in a church as an intern or go on a mission trip after finishing coursework but before you graduate. After you complete your studies at a seminary and receive a degree, the most important step you can take is to become an ordained minister. Churches in many Christian denominations require their pastors to be ordained ministers. A degree from a seminary shows you are a dedicated student and can demonstrate a level of expertise in the faith.
Ordination requires you to demonstrate an exceptional level of spirituality, character, and a higher moral center than the laity. The process of becoming an ordained minister usually takes seven to eight years to complete.
Every denomination has different ordination requirements. Other steps include:. Ordained ministers have a high standing in many communities. They are often called upon to be a comforting voice in troubling times.
Government leaders, business leaders, and professional athletes often use ordained ministers as spiritual advisors. It should be your goal to become an ordained minister, and it starts with getting a seminary degree. The traditional classroom experience is the mainstay of seminary education. Some seminaries offer online or flexible degree programs designed for people who are balancing their studies with family duties and full-time careers.
Many of these degree programs are hybrid programs where you can attend classes online for most of the school year, and other parts of the school year will include periods of on-campus residency.
Many online and flexible seminary programs allow students to study part-time by taking only one or two classes a term. Program requirements and individual courses in North American seminary institutions are typically described in terms of credit hours. Credit hours assume that you will spend at least three hours studying and doing homework for every contact hour in the classroom. For example, if a class meets for one hour a day for three days a week, then this three-credit course requires a time investment of 12 hours per week over a week semester.
A course load of four classes per semester is considered a full-time course load in all programs because this will require a time commitment of 48 hours per week.
Many colleges and universities offer M. These credit hours can include regular courses, independent studies, and thesis supervision hours. More people can decide to attend seminary schools in a university environment to get a Master of Divinity degree. Even though most people attend seminar schools because they feel that God has called them, others want to attend seminary schools for academic purposes.
For example, some people may enjoy studying the bible or the scriptures or wish to become teachers, counselors, or social workers. People who completed seminary school can do other professions other than a pastor or as part of the clergy. For example, seminary graduates can pursue a career in creative arts, music, or missionary work. Seminary graduates can find themselves being hired to write, design, and do other creative jobs like sing, composing music, or even as musicians.
In addition, some graduates may end up as missionaries or other humanitarian activities. Online schools can be done at a faster pace. For example, there are programs to become a Master of Divinity or a Master in Theology that can be done within 2 to 3 years. But, students do online courses typically when they are already attending work or have a family to take care of. Therefore they may take longer to complete their program and graduate.
Several colleges and schools now offer various courses in alignment with seminary programs.
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