I'm currently applying to HDS with an interest in comparative religion. I've read through several of the super useful posts on this forum, but I'm still puzzled trying to decide which M* degree I want to apply to. I'm switching fields -- from comp science in undergrad 6 years ago into religious studies; perhaps I'm missing something that's obvious about the differences between these two degrees.
So -- I'm not entirely set on what I'd like to pursue afterwards, but I would like to keep a door open to pursuing an academic route (PhD). I've been told that many PhD programs don't accept an M.Div as appropriate preceding degree because they're seen as "professional rather than academically rigorous", though looking at the program requirements it doesn't actually seem to me that I would be unable to get academic rigor alongside classes focusing on spiritual care. Furthermore, the M.Div has a thesis component whereas the MTS does not -- and this part I'm a bit confused about as doing a thesis before stepping into dissertation sounds like a great idea.
While I do not necessarily see myself going into ministry in a professional/traditional sense for a variety of reasons, I do feel drawn to study the ministerial content (care, sermon writing) as it is incredibly valuable to my community organizing work. Is there any benefit to doing an MTS over an MDiv considering the latter has a built-in thesis component (not to mention more time for language study) ? If I get an M.Div, is it necessarily true that I would need to get another masters before applying to PhD programs? If so, I've been thinking about doing an MTS (and perhaps auditing ministerial classes that are of interest) and then potentially going for a second thesis-based masters program... would appreciate hearing thoughts on all of this! Thanks.