Doctor of Ministry

The Ph.D. is a research-based degree that involves research languages, work in the biblical languages, and a dissertation and defense. The goal is that students would contribute in a meaningful way to the ongoing academic conversation. The Ph.D. program is designed to train students who desire to teach and research. This is the highest degree one can attain in biblical scholarship. 

The D.Min. focuses not on current trends in biblical scholarship or the preaching of a fourth century church father (for example), but your preaching. You will still need to research, but it will be research that is aimed to make you a better preacher for your local church. Every assignment will be directed at your personal homiletics in the context of your local church.

The Ph.D. is for the man who wants to research, write, and teach at the highest levels of academics. The D.Min. is for the man who wants to refine his preaching. It’s for the busy pastor who desires to serve his church better, and to become a more useful instrument in the hand of God.

The Doctor of Ministry program at The Master’s Seminary is a 3-year, modular program. For the first two years, students travel to Los Angeles for on-campus, intensive courses in the summer and winter. These on-campus sessions are taught by some of this generation’s most gifted preachers—men such as Joel Beeke, Daniel Block, Derek Thomas, H.B. Charles Jr., Michael Reeves, Thomas Schreiner, John MacArthur, and more. 

The final year is spent writing the dissertation—the Preaching Project. Students do not come to Los Angeles in this final year for instruction. In this year, students work closely with their advisor, the staff, and a second reader as they research and write. The Preaching Project is a 125–175 page dissertation that students work on throughout the entire program. The final two semesters are devoted entirely to this project. The focus of the paper is the pastor’s personal exposition and local church. 

The program is designed around a mentor model. Students are assigned several preaching mentors who will listen to their preaching and give them personal feedback. As a result, students’ preaching will receive attention and feedback from the faculty and staff throughout the program. 

A seminary is nothing more nor less than its faculty. Your professors will be the men who influence your life. In the D.Min. program, we bring in some of the finest expositors in the world as our visiting professors. These men bring a perspective and nuance to our program that students do not receive in the M.Div. 

Who better than Joel Beeke to lecture on the Puritans? Who better to speak on the ministry of the Holy Spirit than Sinclair Ferguson? Who better to lead a study through the book of Deuteronomy than Daniel Block? The answer is no one. We bring the leading professors on a variety of subjects to come teach our D.Min. students. 

Some have expressed concern that not all of our lecturers align at every point with the doctrinal statement of The Master’s Seminary. This is true. But we do not have these men lecture on issues where they differ. And by bringing these men to TMS as lecturers, students are given perspectives that they would not otherwise have access to. Thus, our lecturers for this program are a combination of TMS faculty and visiting scholars, giving students the best of all possible doctoral programs. 

The first thing that needs to be said is that this is not the M.Div. There will be no conjugation exams or vocabulary quizzes. There will be no quizzes on Greek paradigms. But we do want pastors to feel comfortable working in the biblical languages as they craft their sermons, using every tool available to them. 

There is the expectation that men will be working in the original languages on their projects. But they will be given months to work on these projects, and they will be free to use every resource available to them. 

In sum, yes—this program will use the original languages, because the preacher needs to feel comfortable handling the text in its original form. But no—this should not deter students who have not handled the languages recently. This will be a time of refreshing and strengthening. And students will graduate with a chest of language resources to aid them in their current ministry.

At The Master’s Seminary, the focus of the M.Div. is getting the text right. Students learn the basics of the biblical languages, a proper hermeneutic, theology, and are introduced to preaching. The degree is broad and foundational, and necessary for both of those reasons. Yet because of its breadth, students aren’t given the opportunity to become specialists in any one area. 

The Doctor of Ministry program gives students the opportunity to specialize in expository preaching. The faculty address the nuances of preaching, not only in general, but the nuances of your preaching. Three years are spent shaping and maturing your own preaching within the context of your local church. The M.Div. lays the necessary foundation for this program, but the curriculum of the M.Div. cannot rival the focus and depth of the D.Min.

If you want to hone the gift that God has given you, enroll in the TMS D.Min. program. 

The D.Min is designed for:

1. Consistent Preachers. First and foremost, this program is designed for men who preach week-after-week in their local church. Whether it’s preaching for the youth group, Wednesday-night service, or Sunday morning, the D.Min. was designed to help men who have a weekly preaching ministry. 
2. Seasoned Preachers. For applicants with an M.Div., ideal candidates will have at least 3 consecutive years of preaching before applying. For applicants with an M.A. (72+ credits) in a biblical field, ideal candidates will have at least 5 consecutive years of preaching before applying. 
3. Humble Preachers. This program is designed for men who realize their preaching needs to mature and develop. Men who desire to learn and grow will thrive in this program. 
4. Busy Preachers. We understand that you are a pastor, a husband, a father, and a friend. This program is designed for the busy pastor who wants to sharpen his preaching. The assignments are directly applicable to your own preaching and local church, so they will not be a waste of your time. Instead, the workload will make you a more effective pastor.
5. Motivated Preachers. A guy who has a drive. Working hard week after week, and they’re so motivated that they want to do the DMin.   
6. All Preachers. Whether you preach at a church with 30 or 3,000 members, this program will elevate and mature your preaching. Whether you are the youth pastor, counseling pastor, or senior pastor, if you are preaching regularly, this program will refine how you handle the Word of God. Whether you are 27 or 77, God wants you to serve the church in the way that He has gifted you. If you are called to preach the Word, then you need to fan that calling into flame.