YoungTimothy

I was accepted into YDS! So thankful, especially as it was the only school I applied to lol

Cool! Out of curiosity, did you apply to Andover Newton or Berkeley too? I didn’t apply to either, but I found that most YDS MDivs I know or have read about applied to one of the two.

I visited YDS this past fall as well and I’m afraid I might’ve missed this. Do you remember when they showed the QR code? I mention visiting in my personal statement so I’m not too worried, but I can see how they’d like the proof. As someone who’s also in the application cycle, it’s hard not to be anxious and want the days to fly by. But what’s helped me is focusing on making each day the best it can be and making time for my passions. As important as it is, there’s more to life than school. At least that’s what’s helped me make of it what you will

Thanks for the info!

Applied to the MDiv program at YDS. Wondering if anyone would know if people are invited to interview like at other schools. From what I can tell from the website and from friends who've gone, they don't seem to do formal interviews. I attended the Fall Open House and got to talk to some faculty and staff, which may have been what they meant. The website only says, "The Admissions Committee encourages, but does not require, personal interviews during the application process." Wishing everyone the best! Would love to hear if anyone else is applying to YDS' MDiv this year.

I feel this—I only ended up applying to one program too! I planned at first to apply to MAR/MTS programs at each of the divinity schools (Harvard, UChicago, Duke, Candler), and then realized that I'm not as interested in an academic career as I first thought. I'm a pastor and to be ordained I'd need to complete my MDiv. However, burnout and other stressors made me rethink whether or not I wanted to stay in ministry. Eventually I realized that I do greatly enjoy it, but that I needed also to take better care of myself. So I've applied only to the MDiv program at Yale Divinity School. Financially, with tuition being free, there was never really any other option, and I fell in love with the school during Fall Open House. The results come out March 15, but I've pretty much pinned my next three years all on this one application, so I keep checking my email anyway lol. I trust it will all work out in the end, but I'm glad I'm not alone in this anxious waiting period!

I’m applying for the MDiv program at YDS and Candler, and I’m wondering if there’s any benefit to submitting my application as early as possible. I had hoped to submit them back in October, but felt I needed the extra time. Both are due January 15. I understand that they don’t have rolling admissions, but anyone have an idea if it would be advantageous to submit sooner?

Thanks @xypathos that’s very helpful to know. Especially concerning the written sample—I can think of a few papers I’ve written that I could submit with tweaks. Just as an update, I’m considering MDiv programs, mostly at the same schools. Figuring that I could scratch my itch for research and learning outside of a PhD. Plus I still enjoy pastoral ministry P.S. super late reply only because I’ve been struggling to log back into my account and I couldn’t reset my password for a while.

Hello, I'm planning on applying to an MTS / MARc (YDS), concentrating in Christian History, this with the hopes of pursuing a PhD in American Religious History. I was wondering whether I might be a competitive applicant. I'm applying at YDS, HDS, PTS, Notre Dame, Duke, Candler (Emory), UChicago, Wheaton, and BU. - BA in Theology - 3.98 GPA with Honors - Member of Theta Alpha Kappa - Honors thesis in the sciences, specifically anticancer research; I'd planned on applying to medical school but followed my gut that it wasn't for me and didn't follow through (and glad for it! I have a number of friends in medical school. Props to them but it couldn't be me) - Languages: Hebrew and Greek in undergrad, Latin in high school, and I speak another contemporary language (if that helps) - Pastoring now for three years; volunteer at a local school; active in prison ministry For the academic writing sample, I have two undergrad papers on ecclesiastical history. One pertains to the early medieval period and the other to the early American period. Both need some touching up and aren't ultimately what I want to research. I didn't explore any of my current research interests in undergrad, first because I was focused on medical school, and also because I hadn't even thought to research what I'm not interested in. So my questions, besides asking do I have a shot? Does my academic writing sample have to relate to my field of interest? If so, can and should I write a new paper for the academic writing sample? If not, can I rewrite the one mentioned above and if so to what extent? HDS has some info on this; it says you can submit "An original work that is based upon a topic that you are interested in studying here at HDS." But I looked and around haven't seen any other schools touch on this. Any recommendations on who to ask for letters of rec? Most schools ask for three; should it be two professors, one professional? I have three professors who I feel could write strong letters, and also my former senior/mentor pastor could speak to my work as a pastor. Finally (I promise!), Duke's website says that it requires "a commitment to some form of diaconal or lay ministry". I hope to serve my denomination and the wider Christian church as a historian, but is there anything more specific they're looking for? Sorry for all the questions. This is bringing me back to my days preparing for medical school, stressing myself out comparing myself with other people's stats! I'm definitely more confident in God's leading now then I was then! Thank you for any feedback!