Master of Divinity

== History ==
<blockquote>"The formal preparation of clergy began in the 16th century when the Roman Catholic Church created a new environment for the formation of priests called the seminary, which literally means “seedbed.” At the Council of Trent (1545–1563), the Roman Catholic Church officially adopted the term for a place where spiritual leaders would be developed. As education grew in Roman Catholic seminaries, they were later developed by Protestant denominations through universities. When Harvard College was founded in 1636, it was the first seminary prototype in North America. The goal of Puritan theological education at Harvard was to produce a pastor-theologian, or “learned clergy.” This has remained the goal of seminaries to this day. Most of these universities offered a bachelor of divinity degree as the primary degree for clergy preparation. In 1808, the first seminary to prepare Congregationalist clergy was the Andover Theological Seminary. Andover’s founders fashioned the essential seminary experience for the next two centuries, which included a professional specialized faculty and a sizeable library. The 3-year curriculum focused on three areas of study: (1) the Bible, (2) church history, and (3) theology. In 1809, the Presbyterians in New Jersey established Princeton Seminary."<ref>  Maddix. (2016). Master of Divinity Degree Programs. In The SAGE Encyclopedia of Online Education (pp. 722–725).</ref></blockquote>In 2022, The Association of Theological Schools reported that the Master of Divinity degree has seen a steady decline in enrollment. In comparison to 2021, the percentage dropped by 4% and declined 9% since 2018. While the percentage of enrollment in Theological Seminaries have Master of Divinity degrees as the majority enrollment, the decline from 43% to 35% in a decade indicate a concern for professionals in the field. <ref>{{Cite news |last=Post |first=Kathryn |date=December 2, 2022 |title=Theological schools report continued drop in master of divinity degrees |work=Religion News Service |url=https://religionnews.com/2022/12/02/theological-schools-report-continued-drop-in-master-of-divinity-degrees/ |access-date=December 3, 2022}}</ref>