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How to Apply to HDS
Application Information | Reapplication
Process | Decision
Notification
Application Information
Thank you for your interest in applying to Harvard Divinity
School!
Applications for the ThD program are due on December 14, 2009, at 11:59
pm (EST). Applications
for the master's and Special Student programs are due on January 11, 2010, at
11:59 pm (EST). All materials,
including official transcripts and GRE scores, must arrive by the deadline.
The following application
materials are required:
- Online application form and fee
($75). Applicants must apply and submit the application fee using the online application.
- Résumé or curriculum vitae are uploaded and submitted electronically
through the online application system.
- Official transcripts must be submitted from ALL schools
attended on paper via postal service. Transcripts must include grades for all degrees
as well as any additional coursework, including
transfer credit, study abroad, incomplete degree programs, and continuing
education. An official transcript
is a printed record of a student's academic history that is issued by the Office of
Records and Registration. Transcripts are stamped and/or marked "official"
and are enclosed in a sealed envelope marked "Unofficial if
Opened." Transcripts must be obtained from all related registrars.
Important note for students taking courses and/or in the process of completing a degree program at the time of
application: Please note, if you are taking classes in fall 2009, all courses in progress
must appear on the transcript(s) submitted from the institution(s) in which you are enrolled.
Furthermore, if you are admitted to HDS your offer of admission will be contingent upon the
successful completion, by August 15, 2010, of all degree requirements of any degree in progress
at the time of the offer of admission. In addition, if you accept our offer of admission, you
are required to submit new updated official transcript(s) from said institution(s) to reflect
the successful completion of the courses and/or degree in progress at the time of the application.
To be able to enroll at HDS, these new updated official transcript(s) must be received to the
Office of Admissions at HDS no later than August 20, 2010. Failure to fulfill this requirement
does not warrant approval of a deferment request.
- Three letters of recommendation are requested by the applicant and
submitted by the recommender via the online application system. Applicants must
have three letters of recommendation submitted on their behalf. The letters should address the applicant's
intellectual abilities and promise for the professional direction under consideration. At least two of
these letters must be solicited from college, university, or seminary professors who have taught the
applicant and are therefore well acquainted with the applicant's academic qualifications. Applications to
the master of divinity program should include a letter that speaks to the applicant's ministerial promise. The Admissions Committee will not review more than three letters of
recommendation.
- The statement of purpose is
uploaded and submitted electronically through the online application system.
Required for applicants to all HDS programs, the statement of purpose is
an integral part of the application and is evaluated with great care by the
Admissions Committee. The statement must be no more than 1,000 words in
length and should represent original work by the applicant alone. It
should discuss the applicant's general background (education, work
experience, volunteer work, and/or relevant personal experience) and how
this background has prepared her/him for graduate theological study.
Applicants should outline their vocational or career objectives in the
context of theological study. The applicant should provide specific
reasons why he/she believes there is a good fit between her/his objectives
and the academic program to which he/she is applying.
The following program-specific information must also be incorporated into
the statement of purpose:
- MDiv applicants must include a
description of the type of ministry they intend to pursue as they address
their objectives for graduate study. Candidates who propose nontraditional
forms of ministry must discuss their understanding of ministry in the
context of their professional aspirations.
- MTS applicants must discuss their academic preparation and interest in
their intended Area of Focus as they address their objectives.
- ThM applicants must discuss the nature of the program of study that they
intend to follow as they address their fit between their objectives and HDS
academic resources. Applicants should outline specific coursework they would
like to complete and list particular HDS faculty with whom they would like
to work.
- ThD applicants should discuss their motivation for pursuing doctoral
studies, their preparation for the intended field of study, research
ambitions while pursuing the degree, and academic and vocational objectives.
- Special Student applicants should indicate the reasons for seeking this
status and the nature of the program of study they intend to follow.
- The essay is uploaded and submitted electronically through the online application system.
It is required of master of divinity and master of theological studies
applicants only. This essay (500 words) answers one of these two questions:
- What are the imperatives and potential pitfalls of graduate study in a multifaith environment?
- What do you see as the challenges of ministry, religious studies, or
theological scholarship, and what do you see as the rewards?
- GRE General Test scores (required of doctor of theology, master of divinity,
master of theological studies and master of theology applicants.)
Official score reports must be received from ETS by the application deadline.
Please plan to report your GRE test date on your
application. Information about the GRE General Test can be found at
ETS.
- TOEFL scores. The Test of English as a Foreign Language is required for all applicants
whose native language is not English. Official scores must arrive from ETS by
the application deadline. MDiv and MTS applicants must receive a score of 600 or higher on the paper-based
test or 100 or higher on the Internet-based test. ThM and ThD applicants must receive a score
of 620 or higher on the paper-based test, or 105 or higher on the Internet-based test.
If you have completed your baccalaureate or two years of graduate study at an institution where the language of
instruction is English, you are not required to submit TOEFL scores. However, you must provide documentation
that the language of instruction for your individual program was English (i.e., indication of program's
instruction in English on official transcript; letter from Registrar). Information about the TOEFL can
be found at
ETS.
- Abstract of courses (required for ThD applicants only) is uploaded and submitted electronically through the online application system
- Writing sample (required for ThD applicants only) is uploaded and submitted
electronically through the online application system.
ThD applicants must submit an 8-10 page writing sample. Works longer
than 10 pages, including entire theses or books, will not be reviewed.
Reapplication Process
Applicants may apply for admission to HDS up to three times, regardless of the program or combination of
programs. If you applied for admission for the 2007-08, 2008-09, or 2009-10 academic year,
you are eligible to reapply for the 2010-11 academic year without resubmitting all supporting
documents. If you applied for an academic year other than 2007-08, 2008-09, or 2009-10,
you must resubmit a new application and all your supporting documents when you reapply.
If you applied for admission for the 2007-08, 2008-09, or 2009-10 academic
year, you must submit the following:
- HDS Reapplication Form
by December 7, 2009 (ThD), or January 4, 2010 (MDiv, MTS, or
Special Students). Please mail the completed and signed HDS Reapplication Form to:
Harvard Divinity School
Office of Admissions
14 Divinity Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
In addition to the HDS Reapplication Form, reapplicants must submit the
following materials online by December 14, 2009, at 11:59
pm (EST) for ThD, and January 11, 2010, at
11:59 pm (EST) for the
master's programs and Special Students.
- A new online application form
- $75 application fee
- New or updated statement of purpose
- Updated résumé or curriculum vitae
- At least one new official letter of recommendation, updated from a previous recommender
or a new letter from a new recommender
- A new abstract of courses and a new writing sample (ThD applicants only)
- A new or updated essay (MTS and MDiv applicants only)
- Your valid GRE score report, if (a) you did not include one with your
previous application or (b) if your previous score report is now invalid. (Note: Your GRE score report is invalid if it is from
a test administered before February 1, 2005).
You do not need to resend the following:
- Your current official transcripts. (Note: A current official transcript is an official
transcript that if requested at the time of this new application would be exactly the same
as it was when submitted with the previous application. This means that additional courses,
degree programs or graduation dates have not been added to the transcript since your last application).
- Your valid GRE score report. (Note: Your GRE score report is invalid if it is from
a test administered before February 1, 2005).
- Your valid TOEFL score report. (Note: Your TOEFL score report is invalid if it is
from a test administered before February 1, 2008).
Reapplicants who request reapplication for the 2010-11 academic year and request reuse of eligible
materials from a previous application will receive an email from the Office of Admissions within a
week of our receipt of the reapplication form. This email will serve as a notification of their
eligibility to reuse the appropriate credentials from a previous application.
Decision Notification
Doctoral admissions decisions will be available online in late
February. Master's and Special Student admissions decisions will be available online in mid-March. Information
about our Open
House in early April will be included in the admissions packets.
More information about the admissions process is
available on our Frequently
Asked Questions page.
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