DMin at Houston Theological Seminary

Many of you know that, beginning next Fall, I will continue my teaching career at Houston Theological Seminary. One of the highlights of seminary teaching has been the DMin (Doctor of Ministry) program. So, when I was offered to teach in the DMin program at Houston Theological Seminary, I was delighted to accept the offer. I will be joining my good friend, Lynn Cohick.

(I will also be teaching one course a year, beginning in the Fall of 2025, in the master’s program at Westminster Theological Centre in Bristol/Nottingham England, but more about that some other day.)

Here are some distinctives of the HTS DMin that are high-value for me:

its community focus,

its funding of sizable scholarships,

the opportunity to supervise DMin theses,

and it can all be done in three years.

Seminary students frequently look for friendships and mentorships. They want to get to know their professors. A recent Substack by Mike Bird mentioned this, but I want to drill down just a bit more. A distinctive of DMin programs is teaching intensives — that is, a week-long day-long class. One week with students forms into friendships with one another and often into mentorships with professors. That HTS offers its intensives at a retreat center “intensifies” the intensive into casual evenings of conversations and fellowship. Nearly every day I hear from former and current DMin students – all because of the relationship-building of those intensive weeks.

From HTS website: The challenges of the contemporary world demand that the church has leaders who can rise to the occasion. Some have their heads in the clouds and others have them in the sand, but the church needs Kingdom-oriented leaders whose feet are firmly planted and heads alert to the unique shape of our modern setting. In the Doctor of Ministry (DMin) program offered by Houston Theological Seminary, we provide a Kingdom-focused experience where leaders participate in a community of learning to gain specialist expertise and to be formed spiritually. If, in your time in leadership, you’ve felt the need to expand the efficacy of your ministry, we have a few slots left for Fall 2024, and are accepting applications for Fall 2025. Click here to apply.

From HTS website: As a leader, you regularly pour into others, but opportunities to have others pour into you are not as accessible. To meet that need, our program is built around spiritual formation through intentional community. We foster personal connection through our regular seminars. The one-week residentials each semester are devoted to seminar-based teaching, but also to worship, prayer, and spiritual direction. This is not to mention the time over meals with other leaders and faculty. In this way, we attend to holistic formation of the head, heart, and hands.

Let’s face it, financial and practical support can make the difference for many students. I was thrilled to learn HTS has scholarships for DMin students. Plus, the classes are held at the beautiful retreat center, Camp Allen, where students and professors are together for a week. (HTS shuttles students to the retreat center.)

From HTS website: There are key scholarships to support this program:

• HCU Alumni: $3,000 ($500/semester)

• Cole Scholarship: 25% to 75% of tuition, based off strength of application

• BGCT Scholarship: $4,500 ($150/hr)

Col. Newt Cole has been a great friend to HTS through the years, and he recognized the importance of supporting leaders in the church who are biblically founded and culturally aware. Before he passed in 2021, he generously endowed this program so that almost all who attend will receive some level of support.

Supervising theses has been a joy of mine for the last decade. I do all I can to get students started on the thesis as soon as the classes begin and so avoid the cramming and pressure of waiting until the last year. And HTS has a wonderful list of faculty for the DMin program, including Lynn Cohick, Phil Tallon, Ben Blackwell, David Capes, Jason Maston, and Paul Sloan – all of whom will supervise, along with Mike Licona and Craig Evans, DMin theses.

And all in three years, with a sketch of the three years here.

So, to sum up the HTS DMin program:

• Study Hard with the Experts
  Our program, with tracks in New Testament Studies and Faith and Culture, immerses you in subjects with leading experts who actively publish in our fields.

• Grow through Community
  We intentionally foster personal connection through our courses, and the residentials include worship, prayer, and spiritual direction.

• Be Inspired by Fresh Experiences
  Our Doctor of Ministry program is designed to facilitate encounters with leaders and organizations engaging culture with the truth of the Gospel, and we’ll spend substantive residential time at Lanier Theological Library.

Come study with us at Houston Theological Seminary!

To contact HTS’s DMin program via email: HTS@HC.edu.