Centers at Southeastern

The opportunity to serve as Research Associates in the Caskey Center for Text and Translation Studies is restricted to residential students enrolled and in good standing in the Doctor of Philosophy program in Biblical Studies, Old Testament, or New Testament at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Research Associates must qualify for employment under the policies of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Applicants must compete for these positions when openings exist. Preference will be given to those students who have demonstrated academic excellence in their previous studies, have surpassing knowledgeable of biblical languages (and other ancient languages useful in biblical studies), have competence in the praxis of biblical textual criticism, and demonstrate the desire and ability to improve Bible translations.

Applicants to the Doctor of Philosophy program who wish to compete for the opportunity to serve as Research Associates in the Caskey Center must demonstrate their suitability by completing the following:

1. A two-thousand-word essay identifying and summarizing the various approaches to biblical textual criticism, identifying the approach preferred by the student, and explaining the importance of continued work in the field.
2. A two-thousand-word essay identifying and summarizing the various approaches to Bible translation, explaining some of the challenges Bible translators face in their work, demonstrating the need to improve a major English translation, and suggesting methods for seeking to improve this translation.

Students should focus both essays on the portion of Scripture related to their anticipated concentration in PhD studies, either Old Testament or New Testament. Special consideration will be given to students who express a desire to pursue dissertation research related to textual criticism, translation studies, or that may otherwise directly impact the accuracy of Bible translation. Such students should provide a mini-prospectus that includes a proposed title, a thesis or research question, and a brief summary of the proposed research (not to exceed one page single-spaced).

Research Associates will be selected from the pool of applicants by a committee consisting of the Director of the Center, the Associate Director of the Center, the Director of Research Doctoral Programs, and a Biblical Studies faculty member. Please email the two essays (and the mini-prospectus, if applicable) to the attention of the Associate Director at [email protected]

Research Associates will be responsible for weekly research projects and other responsibilities assigned by the director of the center. The research will be published anonymously under the auspices of the Center for the benefit of textual critics and translators around the world. Although the intention is to continue the support of doctoral students for the duration of their doctoral studies, continued support will be conditioned upon the diligence of the student in conducting the assigned research and the quality of that research. Research Associate positions are awarded on an annual basis contingent upon the continued support of our generous donors.

Benefits Provided to Research Associates include:

• Tuition waiver
• Insurance benefit
• On-campus student housing benefit
• Annual stipend