Car buyers and prospective graduate theology students have this in common: the sticker price will shock you, but it's probably not what you'll pay. As with undergraduate education, the price listed in the school catalog is not the student's bottom line. This is because of various financial aid opportunities available from both government sources and the institution. Even when students pay a high percentage of the listed price, they have access to loans that come with low interest rates and generous payback periods, thus lessening some of the sting of accumulated debt. Depending on the nature of the loan, interest accrual may not begin until after the student finishes school.

The institutions that participated in this article were asked to list the financial aid opportunities available at their respective institutions. Following is a summary of their responses.

Alliance offers a range of scholarships, most in the $1,000 to $3,000 range, for academic achievement, graduates of Christian colleges, members of CMA churches, residents of the Eastern U.S., international students, those working in Christian ministries. The school has recently added scholarships for those with undergraduate degrees in psychology or counseling and for students who are or were nurses, firefighters, or policemen.

The ministry scholarship is offered to all M.A. and M.Div. students: part-time students received $22 per credit hour, while full-time students received $45. The school's special scholarship program consists of more than 160 endowed and non-endowed scholarships, ranging in value from a few hundred dollars to full tuition. The typical Asbury student also receives considerable financial aid from his or her (United Methodist) denominational conference.

The Baptist General Conference provides grants to students from BGC churches. The school provides direction towards other denominational and local church grants, relocation grants, a generous multicultural grant, and access to military benefits. Significant grants are available for students in the Monday night modular "SemPM" program or in its distance learning program, which currently serves 282 students. Like many schools, Bethel participates in the Federal Stafford loan program.

Emory University's financial aid office oversees the federal financial aid process, including Stafford and Perkins loans and federal work study. While Candler offers significant scholarship support to students from all denominations, opportunities for United Methodist students are particularly abundant. In the fall of 2003, some 87 percent of Candler students received scholarships, with the average award equaling 80 percent tuition.

Denver's scholarship program includes need-based grants, relocation grants, and half-tuition grants for spouses. The school's church partnership grant is given to students who enroll for at least 12 hours in a semester. If a church pays at least 40 percent of a student's tuition, that student gets a 10 percent tuition discount. The seminary offers 28 endowed and restricted scholarships, and Denver is one of a select group of seminaries to award full-tuition, three-year Kern Scholarships to six incoming M.Div. students who are recent college graduates committed to local church pastoral ministry.

Fuller's financial support for students includes 40 types of scholarships and federal loans totaling $10 million annually. Nearly $3 million in gifts from individuals, churches, and foundations, help to keep students' tuition affordable. In addition, over $250,000 in federal work study funds aid students through on-campus employment.

Phoenix currently does not participate in government student loan programs. It provides financial aid in the form of grants to students. In addition, each semester it offers several full and partial scholarships that are not based on need. Many students receive partial tuition reimbursement from their home churches.

Students who are members of Southern Baptist churches have half of their educational costs paid by the denomination. All students receive scholarships from Southwestern covering ten percent of their costs. As at most schools, work opportunities are available both on and off campus, and the school is active in making students aware of scholarship opportunities from non-seminary sources.

Talbot offers various types of grants, scholarships, and loans. Examples include a need-based graduate grant (maximum of $1,500), a local-church matching scholarship ($1,000), a part-time student scholarship (up to $500 per semester), and a merit-based M.A in Philosophy of Religion and Ethics scholarship (up to $2,000 a year).

—RF