New Master of Arts degree offered for ministry to women

Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (SEBTS) is now offering a master’s degree to prepare students for effective ministry to women.

The curriculum allows students to take foundational courses for ministering to women in various settings. These foundational courses will cover personal holiness, leadership and cultural influences that impact discipling women for Christ.

Classes that focus on the roles of biblical womanhood, teaching and evangelism provide an insight into counseling and instruction for the practical outworking of the Christian life.

Chuck Lawless, vice president for graduate studies and ministry centers, said, “The Bible is clear that women are to help guide other women. This degree will help prepare SEBTS students around the world who are training for this important task.”

The program enables students to apply the knowledge they gained in the classroom through supervised field ministry.

Denise O’Donoghue, assistant professor of ministry to women, said “The new Master of Arts in Ministry to Women is designed to practically prepare women for many different opportunities to minister to women and girls both within the traditional structure of the church as well as through para-church ministries.”

Students must complete a total of 63 credit hours including 30 semester hours of the standard Master of Arts core studies, 30 semester hours of Women’s Ministry courses and three semester hours of electives.

Mary Beth Martin said she began the Master of Arts in Ministry to Women to be a part of Southeastern’s effort to prepare women to reach women from multiple generations and backgrounds.

Her favorite part of the program is a class on how to counsel women. “In a world where society attempts to dictate what we do as women, the Bible must be the foundation,” she explained.

“This degree program allows for the general theological knowledge that I need as well as specifically focusing on women and how to best minister to them,” Martin said. “While the pastoral degree programs prepare men for pastoral leadership, this degree prepares women for teaching and leading women.”  

“In an age where women’s ministry is often viewed as soft and shallow, my goal is to reverse that trend and bring women to the unwavering truth of Scripture,” Martin emphasized.

Admission to the program is limited to women holding a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent and who meet admission requirements for SEBTS.
 
To learn more about the Master of Arts in Ministry to Women and Southeastern degree programs, please click here.