AGingeryGinger

That's something to look into. Thank you for that. I was aware there were some, like I mentioned, but wasn't aware there much were more than that. Doing the MPhil en route would certainly be the preferably option (location and funding wise) than trying to pick up an MA in a related field such as History.

I know the MA/PhD was generally geared more towards History (to name one) than in Religion. Generally speaking, I can only really think of 2 schools that offer a ThM or MA along the way. Talking with one of the professors I am close with, Historical Theology is this really weird field because its essentially rather interdisciplinary. For that reason, I've seen as many professors doing Historical Theology with the BA, MDiv, Phd route as I have seen the BA, Ma (terminal), MDiv, and then PhD. So it makes for a confusing matter. Regarding Historical theology, it can be done going from MDiv to PhD, and many do. However, the field is so interdisciplinary I've seen it go both ways. Which is terribly confusing.

I did my M.Div at Beeson Divinity School. It's a fairly small school, but some good scholars there. I'm also an Anglican. Beeson has a pretty big Anglican presence and a certificate in Anglican studies available. They also have a good track record with sending students to PhD programs (I know we've sent students off to Vanderbilt, Baylor, Duke, and Boston College as well as some UK programs). May be worth looking into for you. I have looked into Beeson. I know there is a student currently studying historical theology there who had his MDiv from Beeson. My only concern was funding. All of the schools I am applying to offer the option for full funding. Although I know Beeson's funding is close to full (about $10k/yr with total tuition being about $13k/yr) that was a slight dissuasion. Assuming the deadline isn't passed, I'm going to definitely check them out again and start the application here shortly. Thank you for the input!

Thank you, that helped immensely. If you don't mind answering, where did you do your MDiv at? As I put earlier, my main goal is to work within the church. And because of the way seminaries (I'm Anglican) work, they generally prefer to hire previous graduates. So while that does tend to limit my application process for Masters Programs, it does at least grantee a better shot at a job upon graduation. The RE seminary was rather interested in my current thesis topic that I want to continue (they currently lack anyone with that specialization in that field). The two main places that I have narrowed down for an MDiv are Reformed Episcopal Seminary and Trinity School for Ministry. RE seminary is my own denomination, while TSM is the "umbrella" denominational seminary. RE Seminary has placed students in University of Pennsylvania, Temple, and Lutheran Seminary. TSM's faculty are from University of Chicago, Oxford, Cambridge, St. Andrews, Durham, and King's College to name a few. And they continually get people into those schools, especially Cambridge for NT studies. So going from Trinity School for Ministry to a larger school for PhD work could be a viable option. My only concern was of the RE seminary. Denomination wise they would be a wonderful fit, and due to my end goal eventually being to work there it would help to go there for studies. However, TSM's program places students in "higher tier" schools.

I've realized the same thing. The difference is often subtle and yet a major one. From what I've looked at from divinity schools at say Duke, Emory, etc. they offer "Christian Theological Studies" which is essentially a catch all for any subject within that field, especially Historical Theology. For even if "historical theology" isn't *specifically* offered, I've seen may people say to get a degree in systematic theology and focus on historical studies, for it is literally the exact same thing. For example, while Duke doesn't specifically offer historical theology, there is a professor at U of Chicago who teaches Reformation studies who's degree is from Duke with the emphasis on Christian Theological Studies. And I agree, I do feel that a seminary or Divinity School would be much better than a religious studies department. At the moment, i plan on continuing my current thesis over the debate between John Frith and Thomas More over the concept of heresy within the Eucharist and Purgatory in Pre-Reformation England, while expanding the debate further to include theologians such as Tyndale and the Lollard 'Heresy'. Essentially doing a catch-all of pre-reformation England, and using Matthew Milner's methodology of Sense Perception to analyze Pre reformation England, which as of today still has yet to be studied at all. Some schools I have looked at (over the spectrum of First and Second Tier, again I'm concerned how much the small Anglican seminary will help or hurt me) are: Vanderbilt (Peter Lake is wonderful), Emory (fantastic early modern), U of Chicago (because of their historical studies program), Marquette, Baylor, Garrett Theological, and Fordham.

Theophany, thank you very much for your answer. That honestly cleared up a lot of the concern I had. And your answer makes a lot of sense. I'm currently doing a senior honors thesis at a secular university over the debate between John frith and Thomas more over the Eucharist and purgatory. My advisor is a reformation historian, and the nature of a lot of his work is sense perception and religion. His work is tied so closely to religion I wasn't sure where exactly the line was between history and historical theology. Taking your answer into consideration, would you say it would be feasible to go from an MDiv straight to a Phd in historical theology? I've seen a couple people recommend doing a MA in history to bolster the application strength. Yet at the same time I've seen people do the BA, MDiv, PhD route Historical theology as well. I know religion is slightly different from history (program wise) where many do terminal MA's then do either a Phd at a school or a combine MA/PhD at a school. Because I've never seen a religion program that offers a combined MA/PhD or MTS/PhD, I wasn't sure whether picking up an MA after the MDiv would help at all. my bachelors is in History and Religion, with departmental honors in both programs and overall university honors.ive had the opportunity to work under very good late medieval England scholars as well as several early modernists, one of which holds a visiting professorship at Harvard. So I hope my undergraduate background will complement the MDiv enough to be able to get into a good PhD program without having to take on a MA on top of it. thank you again for all your help, and sorry for the stream of conscious ramble/answer/response. Regarding the two fields it's hard to get any real evidence differentiating the two.

Hello! I had a question about the differences between a Phd in history and a Phd in religion I was hoping could be answered. Mainly, what are the differences and which is the "best" program? At this present time I will be enrolled in the MDiv program in a small Anglican seminary here in the US. For PhD work I want to examine 15/16th century England with an emphasis on the development of religion, specifically pre-reformation. Now my dilemma is that because my masters is an MDiv could I feasibly go from that to a PhD in religion? Taking Vanderbilt as a case study, many of their students just have an MDiv in the religion Phd. However, in History, the MA is earned along the way. So an MDiv would be a foundational degree that could hypothetically set me up for studies in either program. my main dilemma is what are the differences between a PhD in history and a Phd in religion in this field? In religion the program is specifically labeled as historical studies, and as most Phd programs in religion are mine would focus exclusively on Christianity. my end goal outcomes are to work in a seminary, specifically teaching historical theology. In essence teaching historic foundational Anglican theology to Anglicans. Now with this in mind and the nature of my work being overtly a religious topic, it seems it would make more sense to have the PhD be in Religion, as it's more suited to the field. However, beyond my intentions and knowledge of the program's I am honestly clueless about the differences that exist, if any, between a PhD in religion and a Phd in history. To gain a better understanding this same post was also made in the Religion forum Thank you for your help!

Hello! I had a question about the differences between a Phd in history and a Phd in religion I was hoping could be answered. Mainly, what are the differences and which is the "best" program? At this present time I will be enrolled in the MDiv program in a small Anglican seminary here in the US. For PhD work I want to examine 15/16th century England with an emphasis on the development of religion, specifically pre-reformation. Now my dilemma is that because my masters is an MDiv could I feasibly go from that to a PhD in religion? Taking Vanderbilt as a case study, many of their students just have an MDiv in the religion Phd. However, in History, the MA is earned along the way. So an MDiv would be a foundational degree that could hypothetically set me up for studies in either program. my main dilemma is what are the differences between a PhD in history and a Phd in religion in this field? In religion the program is specifically labeled as historical studies, and as most Phd programs in religion are mine would focus exclusively on Christianity. my end goal outcomes are to work in a seminary, specifically teaching historical theology. In essence teaching historic foundational Anglican theology to Anglicans. Now with this in mind and the nature of my work being overtly a religious topic, it seems it would make more sense to have the PhD be in Religion, as it's more suited to the field. However, beyond my intentions and knowledge of the program's I am honestly clueless about the differences that exist, if any, between a PhD in religion and a Phd in history. thank you for your help!

Hi all, As I am typing this I'm currently taking a break from my finishing touches on my application for Emory's MDiv program, I had a couple questions. First off, is it possible to send in the application if all the materials are completed except for the letters of recommendation? Secondly, though it is late November, for schools such as Emory, Duke, and Wake Forest that are all rolling admissions, do you believe there is still a chance of acceptance? From what I've read this is the usual time that applications get sent in, and given that I am going for an MDiv program I have been told I shouldn't have too much to worry about. I was just unaware if anyone knew more about the timeline to get the applications in. I plan on sending in my Duke and Wake Forest applications in this weekend. Thanks!

I want to go into ministry, but at the same time I don't want going into ministry to stop my academic studies or research. It's honestly a really really tough dilemma. Because I want to somehow do both.

I'm not sure if this had been posted on here before, but I had a question regarding MDiv and MA programs and the order to proceed in. I currently plan on applying for MDiv programs (there's a post I made earlier today about this), but when it comes to the field of Church History-especially reformation era, I've noticed that a lot of faculty have both an MA and MDiv degrees. My MDiv will be in Anglican theology (if accepted at Yale the Berkley Divinity School for Anglican studies is rather wonderful), however I wasn't sure if it was better to get an MDiv then go for the MA or do an MA then MDiv. Admittedly, what I will be studying is essentially the same thing, 16th century Anglican theology, albeit from two different angles. I am currently in the midst of writing a 100 page Senior Honors Thesis entitled A Detrimental Dialogue: The Relation Between Sense Perception and Heresy in 1520s England. (working title, but you get the gist). The intention of the Honors program I am doing (for my B.A.) is essentially a crash course in how to prepare for and write a Masters Thesis. At the moment I have full intention in continuing my Senior Honors Thesis in the form of a Masters thesis, and my work is inspired by the likes of Keith Thomas, Eamon Duffy, and Matthew Milner to name a few. With all this being said, I have seen a lot of religion and history of religion faculty with both an MDiv and MA if their field is related to Church History. Does the order matter when it comes to the degrees, seeing as they both lead to a PhD? Thanks!

Thank you both for the advise. When i apply for PhD programs I should have my GRE much higher by then. However since programs such as Emory, Vanderbilt, and Yale don't require it it gives me more time until I absolutely have to take it. Other than the school's requiring the GRE, which I admit are a long shot, how well do you think my chances are at say Yale, Emory, or Vanderbilt? Thanks again!

Hi all! This is my first post on the grad cafe site, and with it being that time of year for applying to graduate school I thought I would ask about how feasible my options are for the schools I am applying to. I am applying to the MDiv programs at: Yale, U of Chicago, Emory, Harvard, Vanderbilt, and Asbury Theological. I will have a B.A. from Miami University in History and Comparative Religion-University Honors, Departmental History Honors, and Departmental Religion Honors. Although my overall GPA is a 3.68, my History Major GPA is a 3.80 and Religion Major GPA is a 4.0. I have also won several research grants and currently am working on the completion of a 100 page senior honors thesis covering the development of the concept of religious heresy in 1520s England. My GRE scores are average: Verbal (149) 41%, quantitative (140) 08%, and Writing (5.5) 98%. However only Harvard and U of Chicago require the GRE. Although I plan on eventually entering the Ministry in some form later in life (which is why i chose the MDiv), the language requirements and overall intensiveness of the MDiv i have been told is a good preparation for PhD programs. In extra-curriculars I am currently the Coordinator for the Comparative Religion Student Group at Miami, Pastoral Care worker at a local hospital. With all these in mind, would my GRE be too much of a dissuasion at Harvard or U of Chicago? My goal is Yale University, however I am not certain how possible it would be to get accepted. Thanks!