The Professional Doctoral Program is conducted in three trimesters per year. The Winter Trimester runs from December-March, with most seminars and workshops meeting the second and third week of January. The Spring Trimester runs from April-July, with most seminars and workshops meeting the two weeks after the Spring graduation in May. The Fall Trimester runs from August-November, with most seminars and workshops meeting the two weeks in September immediately after the week of Labor Day.
Seminars meet in a variety of formats: at the New Orleans campus, extension centers, or SYNC. Seminars held on the New Orleans campus are broadcast via Compressed Interactive Video (CIV) to specific extension center sites. SYNC allows students to be video conferenced into the classroom from home. Periodically Special Event Seminars are offered in conjunction with selected campus and off-campus events like convention meetings, local church conferences, mission projects, etc. These seminars normally involve interaction with an elected faculty member at the event location. Seminars last 3 days in duration in a compressed format.
Workshops (i.e. Program Overview and Research Writing, Mid-Career Assessment, and Project in Ministry Design) are only available at the New Orleans campus and are between 2 to 4 days in duration.
A current list of workshop/seminar offerings can be obtained HERE.
Students must come to the New Orleans campus for the Program Overview and Research Writing Workshop, the Mid-Career Workshop, and the Project in Ministry Design Workshop. Program Overview is taken in your first trimester. Mid-Career Workshop is taken after half of your seminars are complete. Project in Ministry Design is taken after all seminars are complete.
ON-CAMPUS SEMINARS
At least three of the six seminars must be taken at one of the campus locations (Birmingham, Montgomery, Little Rock, Jacksonville, Orlando, Pensacola, Tallahassee, Duluth, Jonesboro, North Georgia, South Georgia, Alexandria, Monroe, New Orleans, Shreveport, Mid-South, Oklahoma City, Spartanburg, Beaumont, Memphis, and Nashville). Two of these seminars must relate to the student's area of specialization.
DIRECTED STUDY SEMINARS
Three of the student's six seminars (including Special Events) may be taken independent of on-campus meetings under the direction of an elected faculty member.
Directed Studies Paralleling On-Campus Seminars: Students may choose to take an on-campus seminar as a directed study.
Specialized Directed Studies: Students may petition a professor to design a directed study which addresses some specific area related to his/her specialization, project, or other area of interest.
The Providence Guest House, NOBTS private guest house, provides housing for seminary students and families at a low cost. Please visit www.provhouse.com for more information.
Cafe New Orleans is located in the Hardin Student Center. Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner are provided throughout the day. The Cafe opens every morning at 7am. They are closed for Chapel on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11am-12pm. The Cafe normally closes at 5pm Monday, Wednesday and Friday and 7pm Tuesday and Thursday. Evening hours of operation vary.
River City Cafe offers Breakfast and Lunch. Hours of operation vary.
There are many inexpensive restaurants and housing accommodations near the campus and city.
The Doctor of Ministry degree requires a M.Div. or its equivalent. Those whose seminary degrees were either the Master of Religious Education (MRE), the Master of Arts in Christian Education (MACE), or the Master of Arts in Religious Education (MARE) should first contact the Office of Professional Doctoral Programs via the Contact Information to inquire about the various possibilities for attaining equivalency or about pursuing the Doctor of Educational Ministry degree.
Normally for the D.Min. degree, a student holding a MRE, MACE, or MARE degree must earn additional credit hours in Biblical, Theological/ Historical, and Pastoral studies. This equivalency must be satisfied completely before application can be made for any of the D.Min. specializations. The successful completion of the equivalency program in no way guarantees admissions into the D.Min. program.
The Doctor of Educational Ministry degree requires a MACE degree or its equivalent. To find out if your degree meets the requirements, please fill out the application request.
First go through the steps for the Admissions Process. Then consult and be aware of the following important dates for the trimester which you intend to begin in:
