I received my MTS from HDS in 2009. Personally, I don't think taking a few years off would make a huge difference for you. The thing you need to tease out is what exactly you want your experience to be like and what do you hope to do with it (this should also be the guideposts for your SOP, by the way).. One of the more compelling reasons to attend HDS, for me, was the flexibility to take courses at other schools (the kennedy school of gov't, for instance). I found HDS to be a great place for those who weren't quite sure what they wanted to do with an MTS degree, but also accommodating to those who had a more specific focus (in most cases, those folks would split time between HDS courses and courses offered within the larger university)... If you are interested in pursuing your PhD, I would recommend the MTS. It doesn't really make sense to spend one extra year getting your MDiv when your goal is to get a PhD - an MTS can get you there the same as an MDiv, and in some instances might actually be more helpful... One downside to HDS at the present moment is that it appears to be going through a bit of an identity crisis. Dean Hempton just recently took over, and seems to be doing a good job, but I couldn't help but feel that HDS was in a bit of a transition mode during my time there.
