Divinity School Set to Open, Applications Under Review

The divinity school will open with about 40 students from a variety of denominational traditions and is expected to grow to 135-150 students within three years. The school will offer the master of divinity degree.

Currently, more than 25 students have been admitted for the fall semester. According to Scott Hudgins, director of admissions, a preliminary profile of applicants “indicates a broad representation of denominational affiliations, with Baptists as the largest group. More than half of those admitted so far are women.”

Administrators will continue to accept applications for fall admission to the divinity school until June 1.

“The application period will proceed through the spring on a rolling basis as the divinity school approaches its opening this fall,” said Hudgins. “We feel that this is very important to people who may want to apply, but thought the deadline for application for the fall semester had already passed.”

In April, recipients of the prestigious Samuel and Sarah Wait Graduate Fellowships in Theology and Ministry, the divinity school’s most competitive scholarships, will be announced.

The school’s curriculum is centered in the classical theological disciplines of biblical studies, church history, theology and ministry studies, which includes areas such as pastoral care and preaching. Courses will be taught by divinity school faculty, as well as faculty of Wake Forest’s undergraduate, graduate and professional schools. All students are required to participate in a second-year supervised ministry program, where they are guided by area ministers in field placements.

The divinity school will occupy a major portion of Wingate Hall, adjacent to Wait Chapel on Wake Forest’s Reynolda Campus. Renovations to Wingate Hall, expected to be completed July 1, will provide a new rotunda and additional office space for divinity school faculty and administration.

Prospective students can obtain admissions packets by calling the Office of Admissions at the divinity school at 800-393-4244, or by writing to Office of Admissions, Wake Forest University Divinity School, P.O. Box 7719 Reynolda Station, Winston-Salem, N.C. 27109.

Wake Forest’s divinity school is the first university-based seminary in the United States to start without a formal denominational affiliation.