By Abigail Gan | Reporter
Theology isn’t the only thing graduate students are learning about during their time at George W. Truett Theological Seminary. Truett students have the opportunity to pursue joint degree master’s programs to supplement the master’s of divinity (MDiv) degree.
These joint degrees include law, business, music, education and social work.
Dr. Angela Reed, associate professor at Truett, said the joint degree programs enable students to get their degrees faster than if they were to study the disciplines individually.
“What we’ve been able to do is cut back on some of the electives and some of the requirements that at some points seem to overlap,” Reed said. “We would cut that out and let the opposite degree fill in. Say in music, most electives that would be in the MDiv are going to be music courses.”
Reed said a theological education has different purposes for different people, with the most popular joint degree program being a master’s of divinity and master’s of social work.
“They have a sense of calling of some kind to serve God, and they want to do that,” Reed said. “As they’re here, they discern, you know, ‘Actually, I think I want to be a social worker, but I want the theological education to help serve me. So I may not be working in, but I’m working alongside the church in a kind of ministry — perhaps in a nonprofit or in a school system or in working for the state.’”
Madison, Ala., graduate student Leah Boyd is pursuing her master’s of divinity and master’s of church music. She said she wanted to further her musical training after getting her bachelor’s in music education at Mississippi State University, but she was also interested in serving in the church.
“I wanted to go to seminary, but I didn’t want to give up the music side,” Boyd said. “I was really excited that the dual degree offered me the best of both worlds. I was able to get that seminary training, so when I serve in the church, I have that, but I also get the world-class music education that Baylor has to offer.”
After graduation, Boyd said she will begin a music education job and be serving in the church.
“I know that I’m able to minister to my congregation better as not just a musician, but also a minister, and that’s really meaningful,” Boyd said.
Waco graduate student Brittany Myers is pursuing her master’s of divinity and master’s of science in education. She said the joint degree program aligns with her professional goals and supplements her bachelor’s in English education from Colorado State University.
“My goal with this program is to write curriculum for youth ministry aging at that same secondary age range from my education background, but focusing on Bible literacy, how to read the Bible, how to study the Bible,” Myers said. “At a level that students can understand to where they can really kind of engage with the text on their own.”
Myers said many of the skills in her studies overlap and blend well.
“I infuse a lot of the education side here at Truett and then a lot of the Truett side in my education classes,” Myers said. “You learn the different skills, and you get to take a bird’s eye view and see it all come together at the end of each year.”
