Nov 21, 2024

Academic Catalog - Spring 2025

Doctor of Ministry, DMin

The Seminary’s Doctor of Ministry program aims to equip the student for the practice of ministry at a high level of professional competence. The program provides opportunities for advanced study in intensive seminars, courses, and field settings. It combines academic study and experiential learning under faculty and field supervision to integrate theology and practice.

Student Learning Outcomes

The DMin program promotes the following student learning outcomes:

Students will identify a critical need in ministry.
Students will formulate the biblical and theological foundations for a ministry action.
Students will design a ministry project to address a ministry need, demonstrating skills to research and resolve an issue in ministry.

Program Objectives

The DMin program promotes the following program objectives:

To provide graduate professional training to Masters’s level graduates who have shown outstanding ability and potential for ministry.
To offer effective qualified supervision to students.
To broaden the student’s understanding of the nature and purposes of ministry.
To improve the student’s personal, spiritual, and professional development.
To provide the student with an interactive peer-cohort learning community where experienced ministry practitioners engage each other and world-class scholars to address critical ministry issues.
To strengthen the student’s competence in applying biblical and theological reflection to ministry context.
To expand the student’s knowledge of the basic principles of Christian leadership with special application to Christian ministry both in the church and the community.
To enable the student to establish a growth initiative within his/her respective ministry that is biblically sound, measurable, and effective.
To engage the student in research and practice, producing practical contributions to the Church and to the fulfillment of the Great Commission.
To equip the student to complete a successful Ministry Project by addressing a ministry issue through research and analysis that impacts church and Kingdom life.
To enable the student to move beyond routinely accepted techniques of ministry toward new dimensions, methods, and outreach.

Admission Criteria

The Doctor of Ministry degree is an advanced professional doctorate that builds upon an accredited master’s degree in a ministry-related area and upon significant ministry experience. Students without an accredited Master of Divinity degree may be admitted, provided the school has publicly stated admissions criteria that address the following six areas and provided the school documents how each applicant meets each of these criteria:

The ability to thoughtfully interpret scripture and the theological tradition of one’s ministry context
The capacity to understand and adapt one’s ministry to the cultural context
A basic self-understanding of one’s ministerial identity and vocational calling,
A readiness to engage in ongoing personal and spiritual formation for one’s ministry
An accredited master’s degree (or its educational equivalent) in an area related to one’s ministry setting or vocational calling
Significant ministerial experience that enables the applicant to engage as a ministry peer with other students in this advanced professional doctorate

Additional information may be obtained from the Doctor of Ministry Office, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, P.O. Box 1889, Wake Forest, NC 27588-1889. The Doctor of Ministry Office may be reached at 919-761-2216 or dmin@sebts.edu.

Admission Process

The Doctor of Ministry program seeks to meet accreditation standards for Master of Divinity equivalency by evaluating students through a wide range of academic and ministerial aspects. The DMin Committee will review completed applications by assessing the applicant’s degree, graduate institution accreditation, graduate GPA, total ministry experience, responses to ten key questions, vita, personal statement, sample research paper, and quality of references. Applicants are required to have a master’s degree from an accredited theological institution in a ministry-related field to be considered for admission. Accredited refers to ATS, SACSCOC, or any nationally recognized accrediting agency. Exceptions will be considered on a case-by-case basis and applicants may be asked to complete the Qualification Packet for MDiv-Equivalency.

In order to meet the six criteria established by ATS for MDiv equivalency, students without an MDiv or a master’s degree that a recognized accrediting agency does not accredit must complete the Qualification Packet, in which students will demonstrate mastery to ten questions based on criteria a, b, c, and d, as well as provide a vita and a personal statement consisting of personal testimony, call to ministry, and reason for the desire to attend Southeastern. The DMin Committee evaluates each applicant’s qualification packet to verify that each of the six criteria has been met. The DMin Committee uses an Application Checklist, which has been established as a rubric for evaluating applicants on the same criteria and grading scale. Applicants must receive the minimum score on the Application Checklist, as well as have three or more Committee members recommend acceptance to the DMin program to be unconditionally admitted.

Degree Requirements

In order to continue in the program and to be awarded the degree, the student must maintain an academic average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale. Additional hours beyond those taken to meet the requirements outlined below may not be taken to bring up the academic average to the required level. Students are required to maintain continuous enrollment. Any exception to this rule must be approved by the Director and the Dean of Doctoral Studies.

Transfer of credit from other accredited DMin programs or post-MDiv programs will be considered by the Director on a case-by-case basis. Minimally, all transfer students must satisfactorily complete at least 11 credit hours of DMin work at Southeastern Seminary (which includes the Ministry Project and Project Report (6 credit hours), the Project Design Workshop (3 credit hours), and Contextualized Learning Experience (2 credit hours)).

Fees for the program are based upon a per-hour tuition rate along with an initial non-refundable deposit and admission fee. The Doctor of Ministry Office can provide more information.

The DMin program is designed to be completed in three years. Enrollment beyond three years requires the consent of the director and the faculty chair. Continuous enrollment and extensions may be granted with additional fees.

Curriculum Design

Applicants in the Doctor of Ministry Program will select a specialization and be assigned to a cohort team. Upon admission, the student will participate in the program with his or her cohort throughout the course of study. The vocational emphases are:

The Doctor of Ministry program requires a total of 31 hours involving 4 trips to campus for seminars. Curriculum offerings are:

General Studies - 0 Hours

GEN 0000 - Sexual Abuse Prevention & Response Training 0 semester hr(s).

Program Orientation Workshop - 1 Hour

The workshop provides orientation on the various aspects of the program.

DMN 8160 - DMN Program Orientation Workshop 1 semester hr(s).

Integrative Theology Workshops - 5 Hours

The course focuses upon a contextual examination of the biblical and theological basis and nature of missions, evangelism, and church growth. These workshops are designed in two-day formats meeting on the same days as the seminars.

DMN 8170 - Integrative Theology Workshop 2 semester hr(s).
DMN 8161 - The Minister as Person and Professional 3 semester hr(s).

Intensive Seminars - 12 Hours

The seminars are presented in three-day formats designed for each specialization in the program. The student is a resident on the campus for that week with access to faculty, library, and other Seminary resources. These seminars provide the student a peer learning experience with fellow students as well as interaction with faculty and guest facilitators. (4 seminars at 3 hours each)

Contextualized Learning Experience - 4 Hours

The CLE course requirements are accomplished from the student’s field of ministry between the on-campus seminars. Each course contains an online component to maintain interaction between the student, cohort, and faculty. The course assignments correspond to the previous and upcoming seminars and application of content to the ministry context.

DMN 8111 - Contextualized Learning Experience I 2 semester hr(s).
DMN 8112 - Contextualized Learning Experience II 2 semester hr(s).

Project Design Workshop - 3 Hours

This workshop will be conducted in a two-day format on the Friday and Saturday prior to seminar 4. The workshop provides the necessary instructions for conducting the project and writing the report.

DMN 8141 - Project Design Workshop 3 semester hr(s).

Ministry Project and Report - 6 Hours

The student submits a Ministry Project proposal to his or her supervisory committee following the Program Design Workshop. Upon acceptance, the candidate begins his or her project. The candidate begins meeting monthly with his or her field mentor and faculty supervisor. Final draft copies of the project report must be submitted to the supervisory committee at least 14 days prior to the Oral Defense.

DMN 8151 - Ministry Project and Project Report Writing I 3 semester hr(s).
DMN 8152 - Ministry Project and Project Report Writing II 3 semester hr(s).

Additional Information

Candidacy for the D.Min. degree is declared when the student has completed the required courses, has maintained at least a 3.0 grade point average, has an approved Ministry Project Proposal, and has the approval of the supervisory committee for candidacy. Candidacy permits the student to begin the 6 hours of supervised field experience in the ministry project and in the writing of the project report.

The ministry project shall require the supervision of the committee. The candidate submits monthly reports to the supervisory committee chair.

Upon completion of the project, the candidate writes and submits a copy of the final draft of the Doctor of Ministry Project Report to each member of the supervisory committee at least 90 days before graduation following the calendar established with the committee. The committee will then review the report and meet with the candidate for an oral evaluation. The project and the report are graded on a pass-fail basis. Committee approval of the report is required before credit is granted. Such approval should be achieved no later than the catalog deadline for submission of the report for binding or else an extension may be necessary and graduation may be delayed. Extensions in enrollment require additional fees.

A copy of the Project in Ministry Report in final approved form should be submitted to the director. The copies must conform to the regulations provided by the director. The copies of the report must be in the Library for binding 15 days prior to graduation.