Church boards, missions agencies, denominational leaders and committees charged with making decisions concerning the hiring, placement, reassignment or advancement of individuals in ministry must consider a wide range of issues and qualifications.  Increasingly, one of the more important aspects of a person's qualifications for service is his or her educational accomplishments.  As an institution of higher learning, Master's International School of Divinity (MISD) is obviously concerned with the importance and value of training for ministry service.  In order to assist those who may be charged with the responsibility of measuring the value of an MISD graduate's educational qualifications, we trust the following information will be helpful.

Are all graduates of MISD equally qualified for ministry service?  Of course not.  In fact, education alone is not a qualification for ministry service.  We firmly believe that the primary qualifications for ministry service are (in this order): a genuine born-again experience, the call of God upon one's life, complete surrender to holiness of heart and daily living, and educational preparation in the Word of God for initial and continuing service.  We must never forget that some of Christendom's most effective ministers did not hold earned degrees (including Charles Finney, Dwight Moody, Lewis Sperry Chafer, and A.W. Tozer, to name but a few).

The graduates of MISD come from a wide and diverse background, each one possessing his or her own unique gifts for ministry service.  Nevertheless, we can assure you that anyone who graduates from an MISD program possess several unique qualifications.

What marks a graduate of MISD as being unique?  The average age of our graduates is forty-four.  About 60% of our graduates held an undergraduate degree prior to enrolling with MISD, and about 60% served in ministry long before considering a degree program with us.  In other words, the average graduate of MISD is a seasoned adult, and most likely already a veteran of many years of Christian ministry.

Graduates of MISD are not interested in further ministry education as a means for gaining respect or prestige.  They are interested in further ministry education as a means for greater service, and a deeper understanding of the Word of God.  In a world overpopulated with individuals seeking self-gain, our graduates are a clear reminder that selflessness is still the standard for God-called ministers.

Another thing that marks our graduates as being unique is the very nature of the program.  In order to graduate from MISD, one must be a self-starter, strongly self-disciplined, personally determined, single-minded, willing to make personal sacrifices of time and financial resources, and not worried about what others may think.  Students in an MISD program get no credit for showing up in class and being a cooperative day-time student.  All course work must be completed through a guided distance education format.  This kind of format is well regarded as being among the most difficult methods of study.

No course can be successfully completed unless the required minimum grade point average is maintained for each and every project within a course.  Unlike with many traditional degree programs, MISD students cannot graduate with a less than passing grade in "any" course.  We do not grade average so that a student is allowed a less than passing grade in one course so long as the average is pulled up by a higher grade in another course.  At MISD students do the work...all of the work...or they simply cannot graduate.  Graduates of MISD should be accepted as highly motivated, intelligent, well educated and dedicated servants of God.

Click HERE for more information on exactly how students complete courses at Master's.

What marks MISD as being unique?  We are a distance education Divinity School.  We bring the Divinity School to the student rather than asking the student to come to the Divinity School.  We are an International School of Divinity serving students in seventy world areas.  MISD is not associated with any denomination or church group.  We serve students from all of the major branches of the Christian faith.  However, we are Christ-centered, Bible-based and unapologetically evangelical.  Also, we are a Divinity School, meaning that we offer practical ministry training specifically designed for practitioners of Christian ministry.  We are not in the business of training professional theologians or those hopeful of university professorships.  We are in the business of training individuals for ministry.

Click HERE to read Master's Doctrinal Creed.
Click HERE for more information about Master's in general.
Click HERE for more information on why Master's is unique.

Is Master's credible and academically solid?  At MISD, we operate under the same general guidelines as all credible Bible Colleges, Seminaries and Divinity Schools.  Entrance requirements and degree program completion requirements are basically the same as those for credible theological distance education institutions.  Master's is a certified institution of the Council of Private Colleges of America, and is an affiliated institution of the Association for Biblical Higher Education.  Additionally, MISD has been granted status with a number of State Higher Education Commissions, and holds strategic partnerships and agreements with many highly credible institutions.

Click HERE for complete information on Master's Institutional credibility.

Could you give us an overall reason why we should consider a graduate of MISD?  The answer to the question may be best given in the form of another question.  Why would anyone complete such an intellectually and spiritually challenging degree program totally through distance education, and do so while still maintaining the responsibilities of family and ministry?  Why?  They do it because they know that ministry education is a life-long endeavor; because distance education is the preferred way for most working adults; because they believe God is directing them to a deeper and more complete study of the Bible; because they have a profound sense of need to be competent students of the world's most important subject; and because they cannot be comfortable being average.

While it is true that no school can actually guarantee the personal integrity of its students, and no Divinity School can give total assurance concerning the spiritual character of its alumni, we do feel justified in believing that anyone who graduates from Master's International School of Divinity has completed a ministry degree program worthy of full honor and respect.

Click HERE for a representative sample of MISD alumni.

For further information concerning degree programs at Master's, please contact us by calling 1-800-933-1445 (1-812-471-0611) or by email at: request@mdivs.edu.