Questions and Answers with the Dean, Dr. Michael Duduit

Q: How was the Master of Ministry program developed?

A: As we began to create this new program, we knew it was a unique opportunity to create an alternate model of ministry education. There are many great seminaries doing wonderful work, but with the needs of 21st century churches it does seem that there might be a place for an alternate model.

So we essentially said, “Suppose there were no such things as seminaries, and you had to create a program from scratch to train effective ministers for the 21st century. What would you do?” That was the starting point of the program. Our goal was to identify the core competencies of pastoral ministry – in other words, what are the essential tools a minister needs today – and then we would design a degree program that taught directly to those goals.

As a result, we established a biblical-theological foundation, which includes study in the Old and New Testament, plus study in hermeneutics and exegesis – how do you interpret a passage and study it for preaching and teaching. We included study in theology and church history, plus a course in Christian philosophy that emphasizes developing a Christian worldview and apologetics.

Q: Why is the Master of Ministry degree so helpful to persons in ministry?

A: The heart of the M.Min. is the ministry studies area, and this is also where the program offers some unique value. For example, where the typical seminary degree will require one course in leadership or administration, the M.Min. requires three -- almost 20 percent of the degree is in leadership training.

Why? Because that gets to the core of where pastors and church leaders succeed or fail in a ministry setting. Do you understand the dynamics of how a church works? Do you know how to work effectively with people – how to hire and lead staff, how to mobilize volunteers? Do you know how to develop and manage a budget, or deal with the other financial realities of a church? Do you understand how to shape and cast a vision that will guide an organization? Do you understand conflict resolution? All these and more are the kinds of skills that an effective pastor or leader is required to have in the 21st century, so we have put leadership training front and center in this program.

In addition to leadership, we also have a strong component in communication and preaching, plus study in evangelism and church health and pastoral ministry. The capstone course that concludes the program is called “Ministry in the 21st Century,” and it will be a week-long course during the summer. It will be very practical, including lots of case studies of real-life ministry situations.

Q: What is the Ministry Project all about?

A: During that final course, students will present a ministry project they have done in their own church or ministry setting -- a bit like a Doctor of Ministry project, but on a smaller scale. They will identify some need in their church, research it, identify and plan a way to deal with it, carry out the plan, then evaluate and write it up, and finally present it to the entire group. I think that is also a unique element of this program, and one that will be very exciting.

Q: How else does the Master of Ministry vary from a traditional seminary degree?

A: For one thing, at 42 hours it is less than half as long as a typical Master of Divinity degree, which is usually in excess of 90 credit hours. Since we anticipate that most of our students will be employed full-time, we have crafted the program so that they can go to school one night a week most of the year, and still finish the program in two years, versus three years attending full time for most seminary programs. They don’t have to finish it in two years, but that is available to them.

Because we are focusing on the core competencies of pastoral ministry, there are some good courses that we won’t have time to include. It is obvious that when a degree has less than half the required hours of another degree program, something gets left out. So there are a lot of elective courses you’d take in a Master of Divinity that you won’t take in the Master of Ministry.

One distinction that is by design is the study of biblical languages. One requirement of most M.Div. programs is that the student will take 9 to 12 hours of study in Greek and Hebrew, learning to do original translations from the biblical text. That is a worthy area of study, but over 25 years in ministry and working with pastors, I noticed something – once a pastor leaves seminary, very few ever do their own translation again. (The last Greek translation most pastors do is on their final exam in seminary!) For the rest, there simply isn’t time to do original translation and then keep up with all the other demands of a 21st century pastorate. What they try to do is keep enough familiarity with the biblical languages that they can use the study tools in their preparation for preaching and teaching.

If that’s the case, then why not simply teach to the tools? So in our hermeneutics and exegesis course, students will learn about how the biblical languages work, and how to do solid exegetical work using the best software available. The software will do in seconds what you used to spend hours doing – why not recognize that such technology is now available to help you, and work with it? That is one big difference from most seminary programs.

Another distinction is that the full M.Min. can be earned in an online format, as well as in the classroom. Most seminary programs continue to require a third of the degree to be earned in residence, which means a certain amount of time driving to the home campus. And most existing fully-online programs are not accredited, which our program is (through SACS, the regional accrediting agency). With the M.Min., the only thing you cannot do online is that final, one-week summer course. As a result, we already have a number of applicants from places as distant as Florida, Oklahoma and Pennsylvania as well as around South Carolina, and I expect that to grow.

Is this program for everyone? Absolutely not. Many ministers will find great value in going on to traditional seminary programs and taking the breadth of coursework available. In fact, we expect that some of our M.Min. students may well decide to go on and extend their training at a seminary after they leave us. I value my own seminary experience greatly, and we recognize that is the right direction for many. But for some who are already in ministry and need to enhance their training without uprooting and leaving for three years, or for some who want a jump-start in practical ministry training, we think the M.Min. is a useful alternate model.

Our goal is not to compete with seminaries, but to provide an alternative model for ministry preparation. Just as the SBC seminaries have created baccalaureate programs to extend their own programs, we think it is useful to the churches and denomination to offer a variety of educational options in many locations. We want to be partners with the seminaries in a Kingdom task that is too big for any of us to take on alone.

Q: How is the program organized in terms of schedule?

A: With the online program, students will watch about three hours of video instruction each week, then they will meet one evening a week for an interactive online session with the professor and the rest of the class, having discussion and other activities. Those are done in five, eight-week terms through the year – two in the fall, two in the spring, and one in May-June.

With the classroom option, classes will meet one night a week for four hours – from 6 to 10 pm. Most of the courses are in eight-week terms – two in the fall, two in the spring. Then we will have a four-week May term that meets two nights a week, and two summer intensive courses that meet Monday through Friday in an all-day format. By the way, those summer courses give us a chance to bring in some great visiting faculty. For example, next June Ed Stetzer will be with us for a portion of the evangelism course.

Q: Who will be teaching in the Master of Ministry?

A: For the past year I have been the sole faculty member of the David T. Clamp Graduate School of Christian Ministry, so we’ve been able to have faculty meetings at any moment, and every vote has been unanimous!

In terms of full-time faculty, we are adding a second faculty member this year in the biblical studies area, then over time we will probably add a couple more full-time instructors. But because of its intensely practical approach, this program is intentionally designed to make strategic use of gifted pastor-teachers who will be a part of our teaching team but won’t be full-time. Right now we have 11 top Baptist leaders who are part of our Strategic Faculty team, including Frank Page, Don Wilton, Mike Hamlet, and many more from in and out of the state. And through the video instruction for the online program, we’ll be using dozens of other great teachers who otherwise couldn’t travel to Anderson regularly to be part of our teaching team.

Q: What kinds of students will be attracted to the program?

A: The core of our student body will be persons who are already serving in ministry, either full-time or part-time, who want to take their training to the next level. Some already have a few seminary hours under their belt, but never completed a degree and want to do so now. Others never had the chance to do advanced ministry training and they now recognize the need for it, and our program is designed to make it convenient for them to move ahead.

We will also have a certain number of recent college graduates who see this as an alternative option for ministry training. Some of them will begin with us and go on to seminary, while others may use the Master of Ministry as their entry point into full-time ministry. We also have several students who are lay leaders in their church and see the M.Min. as a way to increase their effectiveness in their current churches, not as preparation for full-time ministry.

We also are offering a non-degree option for those who do not have a baccalaureate degree. In 1856, when James P. Boyce laid out a vision of theological education for Southern Baptists, he emphasized that there should be a place for any minister regardless of academic preparation. While we are primarily involved in graduate study for ministry, there will be a certain number of spots available for persons who have not completed a bachelors degree but who wish to strengthen their effectiveness in ministry. They will take the same courses, but will not earn academic credit; they will receive certification of their work as they complete various portions of the curriculum.

I think the Master of Ministry will be a valuable program for anyone who seeks training in ministry that is solidly biblical and intensely practical.

Q: What does the program cost?

A: The cost per credit hour is $290, which makes the cost of a three-hour course $870. Multiply that over the 14 courses in the M.Min. and the whole program costs just over $12,000. That cost is spread over two years, three years, or however long the student takes to complete the degree program. If needed, Stafford loans are available to let a student spread that cost over a longer term.

That does not include books -- which typically will run just under $100 per course -- or the cost of the Logos Bible study software we’ll be using for exegetical work, which will be available to our students at a significant discount. (A student can purchase the required level of software for under $400.)

Compared to most seminary programs, that is quite attractive. And when you consider that this program is designed to let you continue in full-time ministry service while you study, it becomes even more practical for many pastors and church leaders.