No. Many students arrive as aspirants or postulants, already sponsored by a bishop. The director of Anglican Studies does support Anglican/Episcopal students who find themselves – once at Duke Divinity School – discerning a vocation to the ordained ministry (or to other spheres). These students are then encouraged to proceed with the usual processes of discernment, linked to a parish and diocese, whether in North Carolina or elsewhere.

The focus of all the activities of the AEHS is vocational, aiming to equip people to be wise, faithful, and fruitful servants of Jesus Christ in every aspect of their ministry – whether that be ordained or lay, in a parish or in the academy, in North America or elsewhere in the Anglican Communion. The particular “requirements” for ordination are determined by a sponsoring bishop in liaison with the diocesan Commission on Ministry, not by Duke Divinity School. These are tailored to individual circumstances; in many cases it is agreed that requirements are met at Duke Divinity School but not in all cases. The director of Anglican Studies is willing to serve as a liaison with the relevant personnel in an aspirant’s diocese on these matters when appropriate.

The AEHS functions under the auspices of Duke Divinity School. It aims to serve the Anglican and Episcopal world ─ locally, nationally, and globally ─ chiefly through nurturing and training future leaders and theologians. Founded at a challenging time for Anglicanism in North America and with a divergent range of views and commitments among its students, AEHS is committed to maintaining conversation and communion at the local level even where differing Anglican institutional affiliations are now represented among its students.

You do not apply directly to the AEHS but to Duke Divinity School. Those enrolled in a degree course or special programs of the Divinity School and self-identify as Anglican or Episcopal are invited to become involved in the activities and opportunities of the AEHS. There is no formal membership. Opportunities also exist for participants of other denominations interested in learning about the Anglican tradition.