Southern Seminary to Offer All PhD Concentrations in Modular Format Starting Fall 2027

The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary will offer every concentration of its Doctor of Philosophy program in a modular format beginning in fall 2027. This change allows pastors and scholars to pursue the seminary’s highest level of theological study through focused weeks on campus, while continuing their current ministries.

The shift brings five concentrations previously offered only in residence—New Testament, Old Testament, Systematic Theology, Church History and Historical Theology, and Biblical Theology—into the modular format already used across most of the program. It also establishes a single, consistent structure for every PhD student, regardless of concentration.

President R. Albert Mohler, Jr., emphasized that the change continues two founding commitments of the seminary: offering the highest level of doctoral research for the service of the Christian church and making those programs as accessible as possible. “This change honors both commitments,” Mohler said. “The standard of our PhD program will not change. What changes is that more pastors and scholars will be able to meet it without leaving their churches and ministries.”

The new structure streamlines the typical seminar schedule, allowing students to complete two seminars on campus in six days. Each seminar begins with live online sessions in the months before the campus week, followed by three days of in-person study in Louisville.

Students in every concentration take five seminars in their discipline and three in any area, complete four semesters of departmental colloquium, and move through Comprehensive Exams and a dedicated Prospectus Development process before writing and defending their dissertations.

The program also adds a seminar called Teaching in Higher Education and the Church, which prepares students to teach in both Christian higher education and to lead theologically in the local church.

Provost Paul M. Akin said the program was designed with the life of a pastor in view. “The church needs pastor-theologians, and many of our PhD graduates serve the church from the pulpit,” Akin said. “We know the challenge of a pastor being away from the congregation, so we built the schedule around his ministry. A pastor can come to campus, complete two seminars in a single week, and be home to preach on Sunday.”

Akin added that the format also serves students preparing for academic careers. “Whether God has called a student to the pulpit or to the classroom, the goal is the same: to strengthen and serve the church. This structure allows us to do both with the same staff.”

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