Preparing for Ordination
Duke Divinity offers abundant resources to provide a rich theological education as well as preparation for ordination in a variety of faith traditions. Our M.Div. degree and Hybrid M.Div. degree in particular offers the broadest and deepest program available in master's-level theological education, providing the academic foundation, spiritual formation, ministerial formation, and practical experience students need to answer the call to ministry.
UMC Ordination
Approximately 50 percent of our M.Div. students and nearly half of the Duke Divinity faculty are members in United Methodist or Wesleyan church traditions. As one of only 13 recognized UMC seminaries, Duke Divinity offers abundant resources to provide a rich theological education as well as preparation for your journey of ordination as an elder or a deacon in the United Methodist Church. Our M.A. in Christian Practice program provides a track for UMC students to fulfill requirements for ordination as a Deacon.
Ordination in Anglican and Episcopal Churches
Through the Anglican Episcopal House of Studies (AEHS) and the Certificate in Anglican Studies, we help students in the M.Div. and other degree programs fulfill the academic and formational requirements for Anglican/Episcopal ministry, ordained or lay. Many students arrive as aspirants or postulants, already sponsored by a bishop. The director of AEHS offers support to Anglican/Episcopal students who are discerning a vocation to the ordained ministry. 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.
Baptist Ordination
The Baptist House of Studies prepares students for Baptist ministry through theological education and participation in a supportive community as they are being formed for Christian ministry at the Divinity School. The Certificate in Baptist Studies is designed to serve the academic and formational requirements of M.Div. students preparing for ministry—ordained and lay—in the Baptist tradition. Interested students declare their interest to the Baptist House director and the Office of Academic Formation and are assigned a Baptist faculty advisor.