Advanced Master of Divinity
Purpose
The Advanced Master of Divinity allows students to build upon undergraduate theological training by taking elective courses in place of the introductory courses in the regular Master of Divinity curriculum.
Prerequisites
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 M.Div. curriculum. The Advanced M.Div. 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 presented in the Southwestern 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. 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 I* | HEBRW 4313 | 3 |
| Biblical Hebrew II* | HEBRW 4323 | 3 |
| Hebrew Exegetical Method* | HEBRW 5003 | 3 |
| Hebrew or Greek Exegesis Elective | HEBRW or GREEK Elective | 3 |
| *This 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): | ETHIC 4303, 4313 or 4323 | 3 |
| Philosophy (three options) | PHILO 4313, 4323, or 4373 | 3 |
Preaching or Teaching |
||
| Introduction to Expository Preaching | PRCHG 3313 or WOMST 40431 | 3 |
| Advanced Expository Preaching | PRCHG 3323 or WOMST 40731 | 3 |
| Contemporary Evangelism | EVANG 3303 | 3 |
| Introduction to Missiology | MISSN 3363 | 3 |
Ministry Studies |
||
| Church Ministry: Theology and Practice | PASMN 3313 or WOMST 4003 1 | 3 |
| Christian Leadership | EDMIN 3043 | 3 |
| Applied Ministry - Disciple-making in the Local Church | APLMN 4011 | 1 |
| Applied Ministry - Mentoring | APLMN 4021 | 1 |
Spiritual Formation |
||
| Spiritual Formation | SPFRM 3022 | 2 |
Free Electives/Concentration |
||
| Free Electives2, 3 | 12 | |
| Total | 73 | |
1 Female students complete WOMST courses as listed in lieu of the required PRCHG/PASMN courses.
2 Students seeking a concentration take specific courses in lieu of elective hours. See Master of Divinity Concentrations for details.
3 Students may take up to 6 hours of MODLG courses for elective credit.
Transfers
Graduate-level 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 Information
For additional information about the Advanced Master of Divinity, contact the registrar's office at registrar@swbts.edu.