Advanced Master of Divinity
The Advanced Master of Divinity allows students to build upon undergraduate theological training by taking advanced courses in place of the introductory courses in the regular Master of Divinity curriculum.
Entrance Requirements
The student must have an undergraduate degree from an accredited college or university with a minimum GPA of 3.0. The student’s undergraduate major should be in a discipline directly related to the courses in the Advanced MDiv curriculum. The Advanced MDiv is built upon 33 hours of prerequisites.
| Course Title | Hours |
|---|---|
| Old Testament I and II | 6 |
| New Testament I and II | 6 |
| Greek or Hebrew | 9 hours in one language |
| Systematic Theology I, II, and III | 9 |
| Baptist Heritage | 3 |
| Total | 33 |
The prerequisite courses must cover the entire range of material covered in the SWBTS courses and must be completed with a grade of B- or higher.
Students who have not fulfilled all prerequisites may complete the remaining prerequisites at the beginning of work toward the degree.
Degree Requirements
The 73-hour degree includes advanced courses in Biblical Studies, Theological Studies, Ethics and Philosophical Studies, as well as courses in Preaching and Ministry Studies and Evangelism and Missions Studies. In addition, the degree includes 12 hours of free electives which are used to complete any available Fish School concentration. Free elective hours may not be used for basic survey courses.
| Course Title | Course Number | Hours |
|---|---|---|
Biblical Studies |
||
| Old Testament Elective | OLDTS Elective | 3 |
| New Testament Elective | NEWTS Elective | 3 |
| Biblical Hermeneutics | BIBST 3203 | 3 |
| Biblical Hebrew I1 | HEBRW 4313 | 3 |
| Biblical Hebrew II1 | HEBRW 4323 | 3 |
| Hebrew Exegetical Method1 | HEBRW 5003 | 3 |
| Hebrew or Greek Exegesis Elective | HEBRW or GREEK Elective | 3 |
| 1This presentation assumes the student completed 9 hours of Greek as prerequisites. If Hebrew was completed in the prerequisite category, the student takes GREEK 3313, 3323, and 4313 instead. | ||
Theological Studies |
||
| Church History I | CHAHT 3103 | 3 |
| Church History II | CHAHT 3113 | 3 |
| Church History Elective | CHAHT | 3 |
| Systematic Theology Elective | SYSTH | 3 |
Ethics and Philosophical Studies |
||
| Christian Ethics (three options): The Christian Home, Christians Ethics OR The Bible and Moral Issues | ETHIC 4303, 4313, OR 4323 | 3 |
Evangelism and Missions Studies |
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| Contemporary Evangelism | EVANG 3303 | 3 |
| Introduction to Missiology | MISSN 3363 | 3 |
| Introduction to Great Commission Apologetics | GCAPL 4373 | 3 |
Preaching or Teaching |
||
| Introduction to Expository Preaching or Introduction to Expository Teaching2 | PRCHG 3313 or WOMST 40432 | 3 |
| Advanced Expository Preaching or Free Elective2 | PRCHG 3323 or Free Elective | 3 |
Ministry Studies |
||
| Foundations for Christian Ministry or Ministry to Women2 | PASMN 3313 WOMST 40032 | 3 |
| Christian Leadership | EDMIN 3043 | 3 |
| Applied Ministry - Mentoring | APLEV 4031 | 1 |
| Applied Ministry - Disciple-Making | APLEV 4041 | 1 |
Spiritual Formation |
||
| Christian Formation | EDMIN 3022 | 2 |
School of Evangelism and Missions Concentrations |
||
| Free Electives3,4 | 12 | |
| Total | 73 | |
|
2 Female Students enrolled in MDiv complete these courses instead of the courses required for male students 3 Students seeking a concentration take specific courses in lieu of elective hours. 4 Students may take up to 6 hours of Arabic courses for the Islamic Studies Concentration. |
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School of Evangelism and Missions Advanced Master of Divinity
Students obtain concentrations by completing the following requirements to fulfill the Free Elective section of the M.Div.
| Course Title | Course Number | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Any Combination Fish School Electives | EVANG, MISSN, ISLST, GCAPL, and/or APLEV | 12 |
Concentrations in Evangelism, Missions, Islamic Studies, Great Commission Apologetics or North American Church Planting
Students obtain concentrations by completing the following requirements to fulfill the Free Elective section of the M.Div. Upon completion of a concentration, students will receive a certificate for their work.
Evangelism
| Course Title | Course Number | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Evangelism Electives | EVANG Elective | 12 |
Missions
| Course Title | Course Number | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Major Living Religions | MISSN 4333 | 3 |
| Applied Anthropology for Biblical Church Planting | MISSN 4653 | 3 |
| Missions Electives | MISSN Elective | 6 |
Islamic Studies
| Course Title | Course Number | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Islamic Studies Electives | ISLST Elective |
12 |
Great Commission Apologetics
| Course Title | Course Number | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Choose any four of the following courses: | 12 | |
| Evangelism and Missions in the Book of Acts | EVANG 5333 | |
| Major Living Religions | MISSN 4333 | |
| New Religious Movements and Minority Religions in America | EVANG 5313 | |
| The Problem of Evil | GCAPL 4383 | |
| History of the Bible | GCAPL 4383 | |
| Great Commission Apologetics and Aesthetics | GCAPL 4413 | |
| Great Commission Apologetics and Science | GCAPL 4423 | |
| Great Commission Apologetics in the Early Church | GCAPL 4433 | |
| Great Commission Apologetics in a Pluralistic and Postmodern Society | GCAPL 5013 | |
| Great Commission Apologetics and Secularism | GCAPL 5023 | |
| Great Commission Apologetics and the New Age | GCAPL 5033 | |
| Great Commission Apologetics 2: Apologetic Methodology | GCAPL 5113 | |
| Great Commission Apologetics 3: Contemporary Issues in Apologetics and Culture | GCAPL 5123 | |
| Great Commission Apologetics 4: The Christian Worldview | GCAPL 5133 |
North American Church Planting
| Course Title | Course Number | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Intro to North American Church Planting OR Church Planting in Urban Contexts | MISSN 4503 or MISSN 5453 | 3 |
| Church Planting Summer (or Semester) Internship | MISSN 5473 | 3 |
| Choose two of the following: | 6 | |
| Major Living Religions | MISSN 4333 | |
| New Religious Movements and Minority Religions in America | EVANG 5313 | |
| Discipleship Evangelism | EVANG 5403 | |
| Advanced Topics in North American Missiology | MISSN 4303 |
Advanced M.Div. with International Church Planting Concentration
This degree follows the same basic format as above with variances in the courses specific to the concentration. Students interested in the Adv. M.Div. with a concentration in International Church Planting should contact the Registrar's Office for information, application, and approval. The office is located in Fleming 204 and can be reached by phone at 817-923-1921 extension 2000.
Transfers
Master's courses from an eligible institution may transfer into the Advanced M.Div. The courses must be comparable to the Southwestern courses for which transfer credit is requested and be completed with a “B” or better.
Additional Resources
Students interested in more information regarding the program should contact the Fish School of Evangelism and Missions Dean's Office at 817-923-1921 extension 6405 or by emailing FishSchool@swbts.edu. Students may also contact the Office of the Registrar at 817-923-1921 extension 2000 or in Fleming 204.