Doctor of Ministry Program in Pastoral Counseling Guiding Souls, Healing Hearts

1. Apply online or over the phone with an admissions counselor by calling (800) 424-9596.
   • A non-refundable, non-transferable $50 application fee will be posted on the current application upon enrollment (waived for qualifying service members, veterans, and military spouses – documentation verifying military status is required).
2. Send official college transcripts (mailed as sealed, unopened copies or sent via a direct electronic transcript system). A regionally or nationally accredited master’s degree with at least a 3.0 GPA is required for admission in good standing. Previous education should show at least 18 hours of graduate-level Bible/Theology or ministry-related courses.
3. The John W. Rawlings School of Divinity requires you to submit a Professional Vita showing:
   • At least 2 years of ministerial experience
   • Experience must be pastoral in nature (pastor, assistant pastor, youth pastor, missionary, etc.) and must be connected to a church body
4. Statement of Purpose Please submit a 300-word minimum Statement of Purpose detailing the following:
   • Your vocational or ministry calling
   • Your vocational or ministry goals
   • A key ministry problem you feel needs to be addressed in today’s culture, which is appropriate to an advanced professional study
5. An ecclesiastical endorsement indicating the agreement of the church (or employing organization) with your participation in the Doctor of Ministry program.
   • This is not a recommendation letter from a pastor telling us that they personally recommend the student. This is an endorsement from the church body for someone who will likely do an internship with them at the end of their program.
   • Some examples of language within the ecclesiastical endorsement that would be acceptable include:
     • We endorse/We support/We recommend
     • This is an ecclesiastical endorsement
     • I recommend on behalf of the church/board of deacons/church staff
   • The endorsement letter must be signed with pen (no typed signatures allowed) and can be faxed, mailed, or scanned and emailed as an attachment.
6. Submit the School of Divinity Questionnaire (login required).
7. Applicants whose native language is other than English must submit official scores for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or an approved alternative assessment. For information on alternative assessments or TOEFL waivers, please call Admissions or view the official International Admissions policy.

If you are sending in a preliminary transcript for acceptance, you must:

• Be in your final term and planning to start your doctoral degree after the last day of class for your master’s degree.
• Complete a Master’s Self-Certification Form confirming your completion date. You may download the form from the Forms and Downloads page or contact an admissions counselor to submit the form on your behalf.
• Submit an official transcript to confirm that you are in your final term. The preliminary transcript must show that you are within 6 credit hours of completion for a 30-48 credit hour master’s degree or within 9 credit hours of completion for a 49+ credit hour master’s degree.
• Send in an additional, final official transcript with a conferral date on it by the end of your first semester of enrollment in the new doctoral degree.

Official College Transcript Policy

An acceptable official college transcript is one that has been issued directly from the institution and is in a sealed envelope. If you have one in your possession, it must meet the same requirements. If your previous institution offers electronic official transcript processing, they can send the document directly to luoverify@liberty.edu.