xypathos

I second @sacklunch here in that I suggest you finish out your MD, likely residency too, and wait a little bit for the divinity school degrees. The job market for us (PhDs in Theology/Religious Studies) is atrocious and brutal. Too, you'll be starting clinicals soon so that will be a different experience from the classroom. I had three classmates while doing my M.Div that were MDs (well, I think one was actually a DO but same thing). Two were taking classes part time (surgeon and a pediatrician), and one took a break from medicine to completely focus on their M.Div. I think they were a psychiatrist. I also had a classmate that did a joint MD/MDiv and then did a joint PhD in Religious Studies while doing his general surgery residency. But, he was a %*$#ing rockstar like I've never seen before. I think he's at Yale or Harvard now. Which is to say, and I don't recommend it, but you could look at 1) transferring to a school with a joint MD/MDiv (or MA) program or 2) speaking with your school about taking a break from medical school to pursue the MDiv/MA and coming back. The second option isn't all that uncommon but it's usually for research leave, MPH, or MBA students.

You can try but I don't think it'll go anywhere. The Dean of Faculty/Academics will likely pop them on the wrist and warn them that it sounds like they didn't do any actual teaching and got paid for it.

There's not enough information to say. I think you'll stand a good chance. If you're PCUSA, your chances at PTS will be even better. I had classmates with much lower than a 3.4, so that's not really a deal breaker. The MPhil will certainly be looked at, and your success there will help offset much/all the concern of a 3.4 (which I don't think there will be much anyway). Union (Are we talking the one in NYC or Virginia?) Union in NYC isn't that competitive anymore since they're quite strapped for cash. Don't expect much, if any, financial aid from them though.

I don't know your stats (GPA, major, extracurriculars, etc.) so what we can offer in the way of advice is a bit limited. That said, the admission rate for the academic degrees at Harvard, Yale, Princeton Theo., and Duke is lower than their M.Div rates but likely still around 25-33% based on conversations I've had with staff in those schools. Covid has impacted these numbers some but every school is being impacted a littler differently. Some are seeing an uptick in the number of applications but candidates that are deemed actually viable is going up only marginally. Others are receiving less applications. MTS applicants are viewed through a more academic lens than M.Div applicants, who are viewed more holistically. It's not a terrible difference or anything but most M.Div students are looking to go into ministry, non-profit, teaching, etc. If you're a MTS student the presumption is that you want to do a PhD so the question before the AdCom is: Can we, reasonably, get this student prepared to enter a PhD program in two years? If the answer is absolutely no, you certainly won't be admitted. Most MTS students never end up in a PhD program, though but that's a different question/issue. I can't speak to the Dominican House of Studies. As an episcopal priest, I can speak to Sewanee and Nashotah. Both will give you a broad overview of the Christian Church (liturgy, theology, NT and HB, and history). Neither, on their own, will have you ready to enter into a reputable PhD program. So I think you should absolutely expect doing a second M* where you then intensively focus on the NT. Nashotah is deeply traditional in how they view the world. I'm still quite young but in my lifetime, Nashotah didn't allow female candidates for ordination to study there. Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, while Bishop of North Carolina, forbid postulants from studying at Nashotah due to their stance on women and LGBT+. This has relaxed quite a bit but there are still a number of bishops that refuse to send students there. I bring this up because if you attend Nashotah, or any evangelical school, you will have to wrestle with the weight of that school's name on your application. Someone on your committee, given the prevalence of Religious Studies faculty that are Episcopalian, will absolutely know about Nashotah. What they will wonder is: 1) Is this student a traditionalist? and 2) How has/might their beliefs impact their scholarship and their ability to critique and pursue hard questions? Sewanee is more progressive but still considered traditionalist. Your real problem here is that Sewanee's seminary student body is all of like 40 students. School's of that size really can't offer much in the way of electives, and driving up to Nashville to take classes at Vanderbilt isn't reliable. It can be done but Sewanee puts a cap on it and restricts what you can study at Vanderbilt. If you want to maximize your chances of ending up in a reputable NT program, your list should be: Harvard Div. Yale Div. Princeton Theo. Chicago Div. Vanderbilt Emory Duke and that's probably about it.

So I know Thomas Worcester personally. He's a racist. Low key, but a racist none the less and doesn't take kindly to the influx of Asian students in Toronto. So, here's how you handle this: Hit 'Reply' BUT add Pamela Couture (pamela.couture@utoronto.ca), she's the Executive Director of TST. You're also going to want to CC, and probably individually reach out, to the ARCDO office (antiracism@utoronto.ca) at the University of Toronto (https://antiracism.utoronto.ca/resolution/). Write what you want in the email but call out Thomas. This isn't the first complaint against him. He'll apologize profusely, likely want to buy you a meal and "mend wounds." If you decide to accept, don't give in. This is what he does.

Your profile says you're at Yale, so I'd reach out to your advisor and/or a dean about securing funding for a STM. I don't know how prevalent they are, but I've had friends get one funded by being a research assistant or a GA'ship. Outside of Yale, funded one year M* degrees are rare. Western Theological Seminary has often funded Th.M. students.

I want to stress this one. My wife is a tenure-track professor in Education. Her extracurricular work is only sitting on the Curriculum Planning Committee. Otherwise she has a 2/2 load and advises 12 upper-level students that she might see for an hour 3 times a year. Her salary? 85k The adjunct pay for the professor teaching the same exact course as her? $3,500 EDIT: Adjunct also has a Ph.D.

Of these schools, presuming mainstream academia, the only ones worth doing (assuming you have a choice) is Penn, Yale, and Brandeis. That said, I'm pretty sure Penn is shutting down their Biblical Studies field or at least no longer accepting students for it for a while. The reality is that any of the top schools are capable of giving you more than sufficient preparation for a PhD program in the Hebrew Bible. This preparation of course becomes much more easy if you know you want to do that coming in and don't sway. In reality, you should look at Harvard, Yale, Chicago, PTS, Duke, Vanderbilt, and maybe a few others. At the master's level, go where the money is.

There were no "planned" group outings. Sometimes we collectively went to a Predator game, movies, happy hour restaurants (we're all grad students, no one wants to pay full price!), BBQs at the apartment, or more likely hung out on the couch and watched a movie. As long as you were doing something and making an effort, you're good. The only times I ever saw someone get dinged was when they locked themselves in their bedroom or spent every waking moment away from the apartment, hanging out with friends. They know you're a grad student and many of us also worked. They're not oblivious to that. They just want to see an effort.

i had married classmates that lived in the Disciples House. That said, while I attended for parties for social functions, I never saw the inside of a suite or bedroom so I can't tell you how big they are. That said, they made it work. I can say though that I didn't know anyone living there with kids, if that's a concern/need.

I didn't see the video but I've worked with people with disabilities, particularly intellectual and developmental. Generally, that language is meant that they're not living with parents and/or institutionalized (group homes, etc). My roommate for two years and I had separate bedrooms, split by a bathroom on the second floor. Downstairs was a spacious galley kitchen, living room, and a shared large back porch. No one there had a pet but I don't recall them saying they weren't allowed.

Not in the residence I lived in. They've since added 3-4 other residences so I can't say for sure.

So one covered tuition and the other one? I'm presuming from your tone that it was worse. Anyway, absolutely do not take out loans for a PhD, even just to help augment living costs. You're not the first to decline an offer and try again next year. You can go work for a year, try to hop into a one year program, etc. I'd also suggest reaching out to your POI at the school's and/or the director of graduate studies for the department. Explain your situation and see what they have to say. Odds are they won't have more funding for you, but they might have resources and/or suggestions.

I think a bachelor's and master's in engineering, in addition to a master's in theology, would make you a hot commodity!

So private schools can broadly be separated into two categories: day school and boarding school. It's as they sound, day schools end at 3-4 and then there's some extracurricular work and students go home. Boarding schools, easy enough, the students live there. Some do both but they generally "specialize" in one or the other. The jobs increase in abundance if you have multiple subjects and/or skills that you can bring to the table. For instance, if you only want to teach religion you limit your options. But, if you have done coursework and have an interest in teaching history, literature, philosophy, etc, then your options increase. An increasing number of your more privileged boarding schools are looking for candidates that specialize (say religion) but are qualified to teach in Humanities broadly. My friend at St. Paul's, for example, primarily teaches religion, but they also teach the occasional course in existential literature in the English Department, religious history in the History Department, or ethics over in Philosophy. You'll also be expected to take up some amount of administrative or "residential life" duties. Working as a "dorm parent," coaching a sport*, advising students on courses and/or college applications, supervising volunteer experiences, etc. These all get factored into your workload. I * coaching because sometimes you're legitimately coaching if you played a sport in high school or college, and sometimes you're really just handling the administrative duties but they still call you a coach. Of the people I know teaching at boarding schools, especially the more privileged ones, one of the perks I've heard passed around is the networking you're able to do with parents. Namely, and these are all rumors (in the sense that I don't have names), that parents have gotten to really love their kid's teacher and when their kid graduates, they make some phone calls and a well regarded university is willing to offer you a position on their faculty. Some teachers have also only had their master's degree and leveraged these connections to get into PhD programs, though these are also rumors. On the church side of things, I know for a fact that episcopal chaplains at elite boarding schools have been able to leverage connections and end up as a bishop (making six figures with hefty benefits) or landing a cushy church job in a highly desirable area. EDIT: The National Association of Independent Schools is the largest networking and job site for these positions. Their main website is here and their job listings here.

@sacklunch makes great points on leveraging your PhD in non-academic jobs. People do it, but your colleagues (and more so bosses!) will always ask, "What the hell are you doing here?!? Wouldn't you like to be teaching?" Say what you will about the job market but unless they're plugged in and fellow academics, many of them will either 1) See you as some kind of weirdo that couldn't get hired at a school and/or 2) Someone to be weary of. You're biding your time and will jump ship as soon as you can. Basically, someone that can't be trusted and someone not to give long-term projects to. Of my friends that haven't gotten a safe full-time academy job, some went into administration. I have two friends that work in student affairs, one as a college chaplain and the other runs a school's Office of Religious Life but it's a purely administrative job. Some went into teaching at boarding schools which can be fairly lucrative, salaries in the 40-60k+ but it comes with housing and they legitimately have the summers off. One teaches at St. Paul's in NH and makes significantly more than 60k. I also had two former classmates go work for the foreign service at the State Department! A former M* classmate from VDS also works at the State Department but in their Office of Religion and Global Affairs. Some went into non-profit work. Jobs are there but yea, probably none that directly utilize your PhD outside of teaching at an elite boarding/prep school. They have significant curriculum and financial well-being that teachers can teach seminars in their respective areas, something you aren't going to find much of anywhere else.

As a VDS alum: Merit aid only covers tuition. A very select few are offered stipends. It only covers the academic year and there's no housing included in aid. That said, while housing is not included, there are avenues to pursue! Some of my VDS classmates worked in Res Life and were able to secure an apartment in one of the dorms in exchange for services. There's also the Disciples House that is basically on campus and open to VDS students. It's first come, first serve so reach out now! Finally, there is also Friendship House (It's also called Our Place Nashville). You share an apartment with a Nashville resident (separate bedrooms, etc) that has a developmental disability. You don't provide ANY medical care or anything like that, but you are required to share the occasional meal with them and be involved in the community. I lived there for two years and it was absolutely amazing! The program heavily subsidizes rent in exchange for you being an active member. That said, they will kick you out if you stop participating and attempt to take advantage of them for an almost free apartment. I don't know what rent is now but I was in the first cohort and it was $400/month in a REALLY nice apartment.

But do they offer other courses in the realm of Hebrew Bible? I suspect not, especially if Hebrew isn't offered. Have you also looked to see if it's housed in another department, such as Near Eastern Languages. Are you sure your institution and the second institution would permit you to take courses there? Sure, schools often have inter-institution agreements but often scheduling them to fit your schedule is a hassle. None of us can say if it's a waste of time. That said, if your ambition is to get a PhD in Hebrew Bible, you need a M* degree and extensive coursework in that field. Also, second or more master's degrees in language intensive fields like Hebrew Bible or New Testament are not uncommon. Many go to a middle of the road, even very lowly ranked school and climb to another school. There's no shame in that. That's hard but just pursue tangential areas. I had friends that taught religion at private schools, worked for publishing houses, some went to work for NGOs or the State Department (Civil and foreign service). I had classmates at VDS that volunteered for local campaigns and now work for US Senators, Reps, think tanks in DC, or state politicians. Just identify what some of these interests are for you and pursue them as you can, even as a volunteer since you'll still be making connections.

Duke has arrangements with a number of small UMC churches. They are willing to pay Duke MDiv students to work there as basically their summer pastoral intern. Sometimes you more so work alone, sometimes there's another pastor to help mentor, and sometimes it's lay mentorship. I don't know how the funding currently works but friends that went there made 2-3k/month and most often free housing. Some lived in the parsonage, others made use of an apartment or room offered by someone tied to the church. So, 6-12k over the summer and not having to pay for housing. The arrangement is sweet if you identify as UMC. An Episcopal friend did it for a summer and got in a massive amount of trouble with his bishop later on for it.

To another school or from like PhD to Master's? Cause I've seen the latter. I've only seen the former at the M* level when the applicant was a bad socio-political fit.

Same sentiments as @bigsh, largely. ThM are often treated as a cash cow for a university but if you go to one that you did your MDiv or one that has an established reputation as being a feeder school, it could work. They often have later deadlines because of the very situation you've found yourself - getting shutout from every school and now needing a Plan B. That said, ThMs have a hit or miss reputation on these forums. If you have a particular area that you know you want to focus on (moral theology) and enough material to have an inkling of an idea for a thesis, great! If you still don't know and want to spend time poking around, avoid a ThM at all costs. There hasn't been a lot of discussion here on ThMs and funding so I can't help much there. So while places like Yale, Duke, etc tend to offer some funding, I don't know if any routinely offer all/mostly funded post-MDiv routes. Maybe others will be able to chime in there and suggest programs!

That's going to vary a lot. I saw it at Harvard, Yale, Chicago, Vanderbilt, etc. There are people that fully recognize and cherish the perspective that a Divinity School student has to offer to a class, committee, and/or the school as a whole. There are also some that are fully aware that getting into Divinity School is astronomically easier than say law school, business, or undergrad. As such, you will be viewed as less than. This doesn't always play out in public but often in snarky conversations overheard in dining facilities, the library, or wanting to take a class outside the Div School and the professor wanting to meet with you in order to gauge/screen your aptitude/preparation. At Yale, I think every year that I was there, there was an op-ed from an undergraduate student about div students having not earned their right to be at the school. Occasionally a professor weighing the benefits of Yale still engaged in the practice of producing clergy, etc. Divinity School students aren't the only ones to face this "prove yourself" problem. I've made several friends that were graduate students in School of Ed that found themselves having to justify being on campus.

Faculty, Admissions staff, and depending on the school upper level students are sometimes used as a "reader." Admissions reviews every application before it goes up to a vote. Mainly to certify that it's actually complete and also for content. Content screenings are generally merely a formality but every now and then you hear of someone applying to a progressive program and they let it "slip" that they're deeply homophobic, racist, antisemitic, etc. I obviously don't mean "My views are still evolving on this..." but more like "I'm in a white nationalist heavy metal band back home in Idaho, and hope to engage in some street preaching while at your fine institution." These never make it to the vote process. Generally every application is reviewed by two people. Sometimes bare minimum thresholds are set and if these aren't meant then the application is read by one person and sometimes no one (they get screened out via an analytics program). This latter bit is rare but it happens. I've seen some real doozies! Usually screened out applications get assigned a student to verify that the boot is appropriate but these are rarely overturned. Student readers vary from school to school. Some don't use them at all. Some use them as a basic: Could you see this person as a contributing member of the school? But, they don't get an actual Admissions vote. Some schools let students vote. Student readers are important in the process, after all they're going to be your peer, but their opinion isn't given much weight with good reason.

Acceptance chances are good at all of them. Probably north of 70% at all but Yale. It's still high at Yale so don't worry. Funding is trickier. Duke's aid is generally bad, though UMC M.Div students get the most due to summer funding. Realistically, I'd expect somewhere around 25% aid package. PTS gives PCUSA students 100% tuition by default, or at least has for years. It's also traditionally been the case that non-PCUSA students are capped at 80% aid. BU - probably 50% but they also sometimes surprise year to year. YDS - 50-75%. Outside of Episcopalians, I think most students have had to take out small loans or pursue additional scholarships. There's been a push among higher up Yale University administration that the divinity school needs to become a profitable enterprise.

Confirming @akadiva's point. I'm an alum and was asked to sit in on a "applicant discussion" last month b/c they had specific questions about working as clergy full-time while being a PhD student full-time. Which is the position I found myself in while a student at GDR. Low and behold, turned out it was an interview of the applicant. I think they said everyone opted for remote interviews but yea, I can't speak to what tracks didn't/did interview.