MA/MDiv: does the order matter?

[AGingeryGinger]

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!

[dr. t]

Do you want to go into ministry? If not, why the MDiv?

[AGingeryGinger]

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.

[nevermind]

Do an MDiv first and then apply for a PhD. Many programs give you an M.A. enroute to a Ph.D...however, I'd suggest you focus on your first round of applications and take graduate classes to assess if it's the right path for you. 

[Josh J.]

I agree with Nevermind, in that the majority of people you are seeing with an MDiv and an MA got the MA en-route, as in, they were awarded the MA as part of their PhD program for passing qualifying exams or after also being required to write an MA thesis or multiple research papers. So many of them didn't get a stand alone MA.

However, that said, many church historians do get multiple masters, because having extra training in theology and philosophy is considered a requirement or at least a major perk in some traditions. The MDiv usually qualifies you for PhD studies, however, at most schools, so unless you really want or feel the need to study multiple fields in religion, I would suggest moving from the MDiv straight to the PhD.