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Admission Requirements | Application Process

Admission Requirements

• General admission to The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
• An earned Master of Divinity degree or its equivalent from an accredited institution. Applicants interested in the Expository Preaching D.Min. must have earned an M.Div. that included the study of both Hebrew and Greek.
• Generally, an M.Div. grade point average of at least a B is required. If an applicant’s GPA is below a B, the applicant will be required to submit an acceptable score on the Miller Analogies Test. If the MAT score is acceptable, applicants may be accepted under academic probation until they have completed their first six hours of degree work. The GPA requirement for the D.Miss. is B+.
• A minimum of three years’ full-time, post M.Div. ministry experience by the time the applicant begins the D.Min. program. (However, we are now considering a small percentage of students who have ministry experience, but not three years of post M.Div. experience).
• A three page, double-spaced autobiographical essay that discusses the applicant’s spiritual pilgrimage, concept of ministry, reasons for desiring to pursue this degree, and expectations related to this study. This essay may be the same essay submitted to the admissions office, but a separate copy must be submitted to the D.Min. office.
• A ministry essay, written in a monitored hour and a half period, in response to a case calling for the application of biblical and theological insights into a ministry situation. This essay may be proctored in the applicant’s ministry setting.
• A personal interview with a representative of the Office of Professional Doctoral Studies.
• Applicants for whom English is not their native language must submit an acceptable score on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).

Application Process

Applicants should apply for general admission to The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary through the admissions department and to the DMin program through the Office of Professional Doctoral Studies.
DMin Application Checklist (PDF)

Application Deadlines

January Term – October 15
Summer Term – March 15
When all of the above requirements are submitted to the Doctor of Ministry office, the applicant’s entire profile will be reviewed for admission. The process typically requires approximately one month after application materials are received; therefore, it is imperative that applicants submit all material prior to the application deadlines of March 15 for the summer term and October 15 for the January term. Completion of the prerequisite work for each D.Min. seminar also demands early completion of the application process.