Bachelor of Divinity
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In Western Christian theology, a Bachelor of Divinity (BD or BDiv) is usually an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a courses taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology or, rarely, religious studies.
At some institutions, the BD is regarded as a higher degree than the BA. At Oxford University the BD is still regarded as a postgraduate qualification, however, students at the University of St Andrews study an undergraduate programme, applicants must have already completed a Bachelors degree before being accepted on the course. At St Andrews the main undergraduate degree in Divinity is the Master of Theology (M.Theol.).
In most modern universities, the BD is essentially equivalent to a Bachelor of Arts degree with a specialty in divinity. Relatively few institutions award Bachelor of Divinity degrees today, and the distinction between institutions which do award such degrees and those which award B.A. degrees for theological subjects is usually one of university bureaucracy, rather than curriculum.
Bachelor of Divinity offered in the region of South Asia by the affiliated colleges under the Senate of Serampore College (University) is rather a post-graduate qualification in the sense that only graduates can register for B.D..
The Master of Divinity has replaced the Bachelor of Divinity in most American seminaries as the first professional degree, since the latter title implies in the American academic system that it is on a par with a Bachelor of Arts or other basic undergraduate education.
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