Admission Requirements

 
Application: Anyone desiring admission to the seminary must file application at least four weeks prior to registration. (Also students who have not attended in two years must reapply). Credentials to be presented include:

(1) A completed application.
(2) Three letters giving character recommendation.
(3) Transcripts of work completed in other schools.
(4) Statement of church approval.
(5) Admission Questionnaire and Spiritual Gift inventory.

Note: No. 3 is not required for A.Div. applicants. Nos. 5 may be completed during the process of the first enrollment.

Research and Writing Proficiency. All students must demonstrate proficiency in writing and research. Prior academic work, entrance testing and/or previous research papers will be used in evaluating a student’s ability. Students with deficiencies in English and grammar will be required to take a developmental English course at a local college. Students with deficiencies in research and writing will be required to take RE 314. Upon request of not less than two professors, the dean may require any student to enroll in the RE 314 course.

Computer Proficiency. All students must demonstrate a basic proficiency in the use of computers by passing either collegiate/seminary courses or a proficiency exam.

Previous Academic Training. Baptist Missionary Association Theological Seminary is primarily a finishing school for religious workers. The highest academic standards possible shall be maintained. Standards of the Association of Theological Schools and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools limit the number of students who can be accepted from non-accredited colleges.

English Proficiency. Applicants whose native language is not English must demonstrate a minimum composite score of 550 (a paper-based test) or 213 (a computer-based test) on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). TOEFL is a registered trademark of Educational Testing Services (ETS) P.O. Box 899, Princeton, NJ 08540, U.S.A. or http://www.ets.org. This publication is not endorsed or approved by ETS.

Nonimmigrant Students. This school is authorized under Federal law to enroll nonimmigrant students. In addition to general admission requirements, proof and guarantee of financial means of support ($12,000 annually) and a $600 deposit are required of international students prior to the issue of an I-20 student visa.

UNDERGRADUATE ADMISSIONS

Associate of Divinity (A.Div.): Applicants for admission to the A. Div. degree program must be thirty (30) years of age or older and be capable of benefiting from the program of studies. As a rule, these applicants will be required to show proof of graduation from high school. Individuals who did not graduate from high school may be approved for admission by the Admissions Committee on a probationary basis. Capability is determined after the first semester of studies (the probationary period). Students who attain and maintain a minimum grade point average (2.0) are removed from probation and placed in good standing; otherwise, they are discontinued.

Bachelor of Arts in Religion: Applicants for admission to the Bachelor of Arts in Religion degree program must have completed a minimum of fifty (50) semester hours toward an Associate of Arts degree (or hold an A.A. or equivalent) at a regionally accredited college or university (or an institution not regionally accredited [SACS, North Central, etc.] but recognized by regionally accredited colleges and universities in the state where it is located, or accredited by organizations recognized by the Council for Higher Education Association), with the provision that all deficiencies in the A.A. are completed before the bachelor’s degree is conferred. Ordinarily they will be required to have a cumulative grade point average of 2.0 "C." All students must maintain a cumulative grade point average of 2.0 throughout the program. Students who do not have a 2.0 grade point average, but have completed 50 semester hours of studies toward the A.A., or have an A.A. degree (or equivalent), may be admitted by the Admissions Committee on a probationary basis. After one semester of studies, if students have not attained a 2.0 grade point average, they are discontinued.

Transfer: Applicants who meet the undergraduate admissions requirements may transfer up to thirty-six (36) semester hours of work from an accredited institution (or, with approval by the Admissions Committee, from an institution not regionally accredited but recognized by regionally accredited colleges and universities in the state where it is located or accredited by organizations recognized by the CHEA) toward the requirements of the A. Div. degree or Bachelor of Arts in Religion degree, if the courses are considered equivalent to those offered at BMATS and satisfy program requirements, and if an official transcript can be supplied showing a grade of "C" or above for each course that is transferred. Credits earned from courses where a letter grade of "D" is received may not be transferred.

GRADUATE ADMISSIONS

Normally, applicants for admission to master’s studies are required to have a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college with a minimum 2.5 grade point average. Provisional admission may be granted to applicants who do not have a baccalaureate degree, but who have completed a minimum of 100 semester hours of college work (including 75 hours in liberal arts courses), with the stipulation that no more than thirty-three hours of master’s work may be taken before their bachelor’s requirements have been completed.

Students who are enrolled in the Bachelor of Arts in Religion program will be permitted to enroll concurrently in B.A.R. and master’s level courses after they have satisfied the 100-hour prerequisite. The thirty-three-hour limit is also applicable to these students. Applicants who have degrees from institutions not regionally accredited (SACS, North Central, etc.) but recognized by regionally accredited colleges and universities in the state where they are located, or accredited by organizations recognized by the Council for Higher Education Association, or who do not have a grade point average of 2.5 may be admitted by the Admissions Committee on a probationary basis. Students who do not attain a 2.5 grade point average during the first semester of studies (the probationary period) and maintain a minimum 2.5 average throughout the program of studies are discontinued.

Transfer: Applicants who meet the graduate admissions requirements may transfer up to six (6) semester hours of work from an accredited institution (or, with approval by the Admissions Committee, from an institution not regionally accredited but recognized by regionally accredited colleges and universities in the state where it is located or accredited by organizations recognized by the CHEA) toward the requirements of the Master of Arts in Theological Studies degree, thirty (30) semester hours toward the Master of Arts in Religion degree or sixty (60) semester hours toward the Master of Divinity degree, if the courses are considered equivalent to those offered at BMATS and satisfy program requirements, and if an official transcript can be supplied showing a grade of "C" or above for each course that is transferred. Credits earned where a letter grade of "D" is received may not be transferred.

SPECIAL STUDENTS

Applicants who qualify for admission, who will take only a limited number of courses to fulfill requirements for other institutions, are classified as “special” students.

SHORT AND SPECIAL COURSES

Some Extension Work and Continuing Education courses are open to all, regardless of previous academic training. Students who enroll for credit in any course must declare the level at which they desire to receive credit at the time of enrollment.