Educational Opportunities

Master of Divinity
Carl Leth, Ph.D., Coordinator

The Program and Its Objectives

The M.Div. degree is offered by many graduate institutions of theological education and is widely known as for its role in the preparation of ministers. The M.Div. at Olivet continues that tradition, but with an added focus on ministry as chaplains -- in the US military, in hospitals, and in other situations. Olivet's School of Theology and Christian Ministry stands clearly and firmly in the Wesleyan-Arminian and Holiness tradition of the Church of the Nazarene. Students from other denominations, however, are also welcome.

The course of study in the M.Div. provides a comprehensive education in Bible, theology, church history, and practical studies. It also features the requirement for  "mentored ministry" in which a student engages in ministry under the guidance and direction of experienced ministerial guides. As with the other ministerial master's degrees at Olivet, the M.Div. integrates the academic study with the mentored ministry to provide a comprehensive ministerial education.

In addition to courses that focus on chaplaincy in various settings, the student has the opportunity to use the mentored ministry courses in chaplaincy settings. For students with the goal of hospital chaplaincy, this may be particularly helpful. However, the student can also do their mentored ministry in local church settings, and some positions, such as the military chaplaincy, may prefer the student to have local church ministerial experience as part of their background.

Guiding Values of the M.Div. Degree Program

The purpose of this program is to prepare men and women for Christian ministry in many different contexts while being particularly friendly to preparation for service as chaplains. While it is the task of the church and not the university to make a final assessment of a person's call to ministry and fitness for ministry, the M.Div. program assumes that its students feel a call or at least, wish to explore, a possible call to Christian ministry.

For this reason, the M.Div. program at Olivet, as well as all the graduate ministerial programs in the School of Theology, integrate academic study with various opportunities for actual ministry. Students have a seasoned mentor closely coaching, encouraging, and improving the student's practice of ministry. In addition, in some of the practical courses, the student will have an opportunity to receive encouragement and suggestions from other students. The result should be a focused intentionality in which students form the habitual practice of reflecting on what they are doing.

For this reason, the program emphasizes the role of the mentor in those courses in which the student actively engages in ministry. It does not help to experience ministry if that experience does not lead to improvement. The mentor's role is to help the student towards a life-long pattern of reflecting on one's own ministry in such a way that one's usefulness to the Lord continues to improve over the years and decades. Ideally a student who learns this well would be in a position to assist colleagues and younger ministers, when asked, to develop similar patterns of intentional, reflective, and successful ministry.

Comparison of the M.Div. with the M.A. in Pastoral Ministry

Potential applicants should carefully compare Olivet's M.Div. with its M.A. in Pastoral Ministry. Both are residential programs at Olivet's campus in Bourbonnais, Illinois, both are designed as complete courses of ministerial preparation, and both interweave academic study in the classroom with practical experience in ministry gained under highly competent mentors. Nonetheless, these two programs meet different needs.

      • The M.Div. is a three year program. The M.A. in Pastoral Ministry is a two year program. Some positions, such as commissioned chaplaincies in the US military, require three years (or 72 hours) of graduate study in theology. Other situations, such as ordination in the Church of the Nazarene, may welcome but do not require three years of graduate study in theology.

      • The M.Div. requires 21 hours (27 hours for Nazarene students) of pre-requisites in Bible and Theology. The M.A. in Pastoral Ministry has a more extensive set of pre-requisites and is designed for students who have an undergraduate bachelor's degree from Olivet's own School of Theology and Christian Ministry or from a similar program.

      • While the M.Div. is an excellent choice for students with an undergraduate major in theology or ministry, it is also friendly to an entering student without a theological or ministerial major and/or who does not have all the pre-requisites. It should be noted, however, the student must make up the any missing pre-requisites. This can be done as an M.Div. student by taking specific graduate courses, but this can lengthen the three year program anywhere from one extra course to nearly a year of extra courses. Courses taken to make up the pre-requisites do not count towards the 78 hours needed for graduation. The M.A. in Pastoral Ministry focuses on students who enter undergraduate majors in theology and ministry, and it may be more difficult to make up all the pre-requisites as a graduate student.

      • The M.Div. the classic degree for general ministry; that is, it provides the foundation for ministry in a wide variety of settings including the local church. The Olivet M.Div. continues this tradition but is particularly friendly to the chaplaincy without excluding any of the other roles. Olivet's M.A. in Pastoral Ministry has a focus on ministry in a local congregation.

Program Format

The M.Div. at Olivet follows a variety of time periods and formats. The courses can last from a week to a traditional semester and use a variety of formats such as the traditional lecture, practical hands-on ministerial experience, and opportunities for self-reflection. It should be note that the majority of courses last a semester. To complete the M.Div. at Olivet, the student must be able commute regularly to Olivet's home campus in Bourbonnais. Some courses, however, are intensive modules (defined elsewhere), lasting one week with preparation before and follow-up after that week. The course in Clinical Pastoral Education normally lasts from ten to twelve weeks. And the mentored ministry courses taken normally in the final year of the M.Div., while each a semester long, form a year-long sequence, which may require the student to live away from the Bourbonnais area.

Time Limits

A student is allowed six years from beginning the first graduate course to complete the entire M.Div. program. Coursework beyond six years is evaluated by the Program Coordinator, the Director of Graduate Studies, or the Dean of the School of Theology & Christian Ministry. Students granted permission for more than six years may be expected to meet current program requirements, and that may mean retaking one or more courses.

Scholarships

District superintendent scholarships are available to serving ministers in the Church of the Nazarene in the Olivet educational region. Application for these scholarships should be made directly to the pastor's officiating district superintendent. Churches are encouraged to consider a matching-funds plan to assist serving ministers in their continuing education.

Admission Requirements

Admission to the M.Div. assumes that the student has or wishes to serious explore a call to  Christian ministry. For admission to the Master of Divinity program, applicants should complete the following steps:

1. Submit a completed Olivet Nazarene University application form.

2.  Possess a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college or university with a grade point average of 2.7 or better (4.0 scale).

3.   Submit an official transcript* of the student's undergraduate college work and of any graduate work being used to support the application for admission.

*Note: An official transcript must bear the registrar's seal from the institution granting credit and should be sent directly to the Olivet Nazarene University, School of Theology & Christian Ministry Box 6048, Attn: Graduate Program Specialist, One University Avenue, Bourbonnais, IL 60914-2345.

4.   Demonstrate the ability to succeed in the graduate-level Master of Divinity program, as evidenced by two or three recommendations -- one from a pastor or other spiritual adviser and one from a person who can speak to the applicant's academic capacity. If pastor or spiritual adviser is different from the student's supervisor in ministry, the student is encouraged to include a third recommendation from a ministry supervisor such as, in the case of a Nazarene applicant, the District Superintendent.

5.   Submit a $25 application fee.

6.   Possess moral character consistent with attendance at a Christian university.

7.   Complete the required pre-requisite courses.*

*The following undergraduate courses are required for admission to the M.Div. program. Students from other colleges or universities may submit equivalent courses. Students who enter Olivet's M.Div. missing one or more pre-requisites are required to take the graduate replacement listed immediately below each undergraduate course:

Total Pre-requisites: 21 hours for non-Nazarene students. 27 hours for Nazarene students.

Biblical Literature. 9 hours:

Christian Theology. 9 hours:

History of Christianity. 6 hours from:

The following courses are additional pre-requisites for Nazarene students:

Graduation Requirements

1.   Satisfactorily complete a total of 78 hours of course credit. Please note the course plan immediately below, which describes specific courses that are to be included in the program track.

2.   Achieve a minimum grade point average of 3.0 (4.0 scale), with no grade no lower than a B-.

3.   Fulfill all general graduation requirements of the School of Graduate and Continuing Studies.

Curriculum

The Master of Divinity requires 78 total graduate level credit hours for completion along with 21-27 pre-requisite hours, for a total of 99-105 program hours. Click here for a printable checklist of required courses. Click here to view course descriptions.

General Requirements (36 hours)

Core Requirements (27 hours)

For more information regarding the Master of Divinity, please contact the Graduate Religion office by phone at 815-928-5670 or by e-mail at onugradreligion@olivet.edu.

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