Why do Christians sign up for seminary? The obvious answer is to prepare for pastoral ministry. The Master of Divinity (M.Div.) degree—the standard academic track for ordination—draws more students than any other program. Yet, pastoral ministry is, in some ways, just the tip of the iceberg, as people are asking seminaries to cultivate them to make an extraordinary impact for the kingdom of God in more vocations than ever before.

"Seminary is first and foremost preparation for a well-lived Christian life," says Justin Stratis, an admissions counselor for Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. "While a seminary is not intended to replace the discipleship ministries of the church, it is precisely a ministry to the church, producing deeply pious and broadly aware believers who are prepared to be an authentic Christian witness in whatever vocation they ultimately pursue."

Historically, seminaries prepared students primarily to pastor churches, with some heading for chaplaincy or various mission fields, a few—mostly women—for Pastors preparing more than careers in sacred music and Christian education. Other seminarians prepared to become theologians, historians, biblical scholars, and other teachers of future generations of kingdom workers.

Over the years, the seminary landscape has experienced gradual but considerable change. From social justice to spiritual direction, from camp directing to campus and youth ministry, from counseling to church planting to small group discipleship, students are exploring ministries that are increasingly varied and nuanced, and seminaries are working with them to meet their needs with sound, effective, and innovative programming.

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"Reformed Theological Seminary has a unique approach to training," says David M. Gordon, senior vice president of enrollment management. "As churches and denominations seek to plant churches, RTS is seeking to do seminary planting." Reformed Seminary has campuses in Atlanta; Boca Raton, Florida; Charlotte, North Carolina; Jackson, Mississippi; Orlando, Florida; and Washington, D.C. The school also has a virtual campus online.

"Of course, this approach has its challenges," notes Gordon, "but it allows the school to have a further reach for theological training and gives many more people access to sound biblical-theological study."

The Antioch School of Church Planting and Leadership Development, headquartered in Ames, Iowa, has taken a radically different approach to ministry training. Basing its educational philosophy on the example of the Antioch church in the book of Acts, the school is not a physical facility but a series of curricula students undertake while immersed in church ministry. Throughout their training, Antioch students receive mentoring and evaluation from leaders who are certified by the school's parent organization, BILD International, a ministry that provides church-based leadership development for congregations and church-planting movements.

"The Antioch School serves those who are already rooted in ministry and want to be better equipped through serious training," says Stephen Kemp, Antioch's academic dean. "It is not so much that people are here at our location, but that people already are where they need to be."

According to a 2001 study published by the Auburn Center for the Study of Theological Education, approximately 80 percent of entering students stated that their goal was a "religious" profession or occupation, and 60 percent planned to seek ordination, though not necessarily with parish ministry in mind.

"People come to seminary— whether in the M.Div. or other masters programs—with all kinds of vocational goals. Especially in the evangelical world, parish ministry is just one of many possibilities," says Barbara G. Wheeler, director of the Auburn Center and president of Auburn Theological Seminary in New York. "When we studied evangelical students, we noticed that they came to seminary pretty sure that they were called to ministry and that God would show them the ministry" or other vocation to which they've been called.

According to recent surveys of entering and graduating students published by the Association of Theological Schools (ATS), 56 percent of entering students—and 76 percent of entering M.Div. students—planned to be ordained or were already ordained, but just 25 percent of all entering students expected to attain a full-time position in parish ministry upon graduation. (Employment expectations of entering students enrolled in M.Div. programs were not delineated in the survey.) Among graduating M.Div. students, however, 47 percent expected to attain a position in parish ministry, most of them full-time. "Seminary is a pretty good recruiter for congregational ministry and various specialized ministries," Wheeler says. "A lot more people are unsure that they're headed in that direction when they arrive than when they leave."

Most of the schools contacted for this story reported that large majorities of their students indicate a desire to serve in congregational ministry, and that particular vocation remains at the core of their missions. "At Beeson Divinity School, we are very careful in our admissions processes to focus on students who are interested in local church ministry," says Paul R. House, associate dean and professor of divinity at the Birmingham, Alabama, school. Noting that 85 percent or more of Beeson students are enrolled in the M.Div. program, he says, "that focus is turning out to be a very helpful recruiting tool."

At The King's Seminary in Los Angeles, founded by nationally known pastor Jack W. Hayford, 80 percent or more of students enroll with full-time vocational ministry in mind. Noting Hayford's reputation as a "pastor to pastors," Paul G. Chappell, the seminary's executive vice president and chief academic officer, says that, "The majority of students coming to The King's have a calling to serve the local church."

According to ATS's 2006 profile of entering students, while 25 percent expected to graduate into full-time positions in parish ministry and approximately 20 percent were undecided, the remaining 55 percent of students chose, in much smaller numbers, from among twenty other options, including campus ministry, inner-city ministry, missions, chaplaincy, evangelism, youth ministry, Christian education, music, spiritual direction, social justice ministry, and professional lay ministry.

Many students who are drawn to professional, specialized ministries are looking to various Master of Arts (M.A.) programs to provide the appropriate training. At George Fox Evangelical Seminary in Portland, Oregon, MaryKate Morse, professor of leadership and spiritual formation and director of masters programs, has noticed an increase in enrollment among people in life transitions, especially in their late forties and older. These students come, she says, "wanting to make a difference for God, but are not really sure how."

The largest field of specialized ministry that attracts students to M.A. study is counseling. Tite Tiénou, dean of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School says, "The largest major, apart from the Master of Divinity, is the Master of Arts in Counseling Ministries, which is indicative of the interest in this field of service."

Reformed Seminary's David Gordon says his school's two counseling degrees are the seminary's most popular non-M.Div. programs. "Most M.A. Counseling and M.A. Marriage and Family Therapy and Counseling students pursue licensure and go into private practice, while others end up in counseling ministries in the church," he says.

Seminaries have created M.A. programs with a host of specialized ministries in mind and courses of study that can be tailored to particular vocations. George Fox Seminary offers three M.A. degrees, including the Master of Arts in Ministry Leadership, which combines leadership training, biblical, historical and theological studies, and spiritual formation for a host of ministry responsibilities in churches, parachurch ministries, missions, and social service. The purpose, Morse says, is to "provide training for people already in the ministry world." The program also includes components that can be customized to meet the particular needs of each student.

Even Master of Divinity degrees can be put to work for other forms of service, especially if the program offers a variety of concentrations. The field education that is a standard requirement of M.Div. students can be another invaluable resource for exploration and discernment. Along with the common courses that are part of the M.Div. curriculum at Emory University's Candler School of Theology, "Students select a concentration to focus their studies in a way that will be useful for them in their ministries," says Shonda Jones, assistant dean of admissions and financial aid. In addition, "Contextual education provides students opportunities to practically engage in church or ecclesial settings and non-profit or clinical settings, with weekly times to reflect on their experiences and how they relate to classroom learning."

Although theological education focuses primarily on ministry professionals, lay leaders also seek graduate- level training in their areas of service. Perhaps this is not surprising: According to ATS's 2006 profile of entering students, 86 percent reported being "active" or "very active" in their worshipping communities, and nearly half (46 percent) reported being elected or appointed to service in leadership within a local church in the past five years. In addition to the pastors, missionaries, and church planters that the Antioch School serves, another large group of students, Kemp says, "are those serving in a non-vocational capacity in churches, such as elders, deacons, and teachers. These folks are very serious about their training for ministry, often because they already have very serious training in some other field and want to take ministry just as seriously."

In keeping with its focus on local churches, Beeson Divinity School offers a Master of Theological Studies that primarily serves local church ministry. "Most of the students in this program are laypersons who live in the area and are working in their local churches," House says. Up to 15 percent of Beeson's total enrollment, he says, are "engaged in M.T.S. studies for the purpose of being better laypersons and part-time ministers in local churches."

General theological degrees—such as the M.T.S. and some M.A. programs— are highly adaptable and can be a wise choice for students who wish to remain in non-ministry employment. These students typically bring a heart for ministry to whatever profession they are engaged in, and don't feel called to leave it. "People are here for personal enrichment, seeking to strengthen their walk with God or desiring to integrate their faith more completely into their professional lives," says Trinity's Tiénou. "We have an increasing number of professionals from the business world who want to think about their jobs from a more distinctly Christian framework." Among Trinity's program offerings, the M.A. in Christian Studies is well suited to this goal. This degree "seeks to produce educated, informed, and deepthinking believers who can serve effectively in various vocations," says Justin Stratis. "In 'secular' vocations, this would include the goal of learning to think 'Christianly' about one's work."

"Having more lay-oriented students has created a richer environment for the traditional clergy-bound or academic- bound students," says MaryKate Morse, of George Fox. "Seminaries can offer a unique environment of highly motivated people where critical thinking and spiritual growth go hand in hand." Furthermore, she says, "Having conversations between scholars and 'church-smart' people stimulates the imagination of what the kingdom could be. Laity who are trained in seminaries can infuse the church with high-octane faith and spirituality."

Along with masters and doctoral degrees, many schools offer certificate and other non-degree options. At Grand Rapids Theological Seminary, Theological Education for Professionals (TEP) was designed with lay ministry in mind. TEP, says John VerBerkmoes, dean of the seminary, assists these students "in developing skill at credible biblical interpretation and application," with evening courses in Bible and theology. "It is also designed to foster critical thought about the integration of Christian theology into all of life, including professional life."

In addition to certificate programs, Reformed Seminary offers various scheduling options and other "creative alternatives" through its virtual campus for lay leaders engaged in local ministry, says David Gordon. "We provide graduate-level tools that any individual can use to deepen their ministry in the local church, whether leading Bible studies, conducting evangelism, going on short-term missions trips or serving as an elder, deacon or Sunday school teacher."

At The King's Seminary, lay development focuses on one-year graduate certificates and the two-year Master of Practical Theology. Founder and Chancellor Jack Hayford says, "Because I feel all training is primarily discipling people in truth and values, I would expect that the majority of what students experience in our environment should affect their lives foremost and, thereby, whatever ministry their appointed vocation under God occasions."

In fact, it's difficult to separate the impact of theological education on ministry from its impact on the spiritual journey. For students who are primarily seeking personal edification, a seminary education "gives them a greater understanding of Scripture and theology, redemptive history, and personal sanctification," says Reformed's Gordon. "It takes them to the next level in knowledge and hopefully in love for the deep things of God." Additionally, some schools offer degree programs and certificates with a specific emphasis on spiritual formation, which can be applied to a vocation in spiritual direction as well as personal enrichment.

Community outside the classroom is another vital resource for personal growth. One way Trinity Evangelical Divinity School fosters that growth is with Trinity Growing in Fellowship (TGiF), a fairly informal gathering of students and professors with opportunities to share personal testimonies about a significant area of their lives, network with others around common areas of interest, and present research from dissertations and theses currently in progress—a potentially rich opportunity for interaction across fields, specialties, and programs. "TGiF developed out of a desire to provide a context for students to gather together in a learning community," says Felix Theonugraha, associate dean of students. "TGiF is not just a time to hang out but to further our learning, be it about academics or about life."

The community aspect of theological education is vital to students' overall preparation, Candler's Jones agrees. "The community of students, faculty, and staff at Candler School of Theology are additional factors in students' development, both intellectually and spiritually," she says. "Worshipping, serving, and learning together within a community made of individuals of varying age, race, and ethnicity is one of the most exciting and challenging learning experiences."

Kathy Furlong is a freelance writer living in Philadelphia.

Part 2: Opening Doors

Part 3: The Christian Professional