Frequently Asked Questions

1. How do I apply to New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary if I want to attend an extension site?

Those wishing to attend an extension center of NOBTS must apply through the main campus in New Orleans and indicate which campus they wish to attend. All application and other necessary paper work must be submitted to the main campus. You may apply online here. Ccontact the enlistment office at enlistment@nobts.edu for more information.

2. How long does the application process take?

Much of the application can be filled out in a short period of time. Parts of the application, however, require you to obtain information from other sources. For example, you'll need reference letters from friends and church leaders and a health certificate from a doctor. Transcripts will also be required. In other words, you need to allow plenty of time for other people to get their information to the main campus. We recommend starting a couple of months before you plan on attending classes, but the application can be completed in a short time if you chase down all the information.

3. What degree plans are offered through the extension sites?

The Associates degree is offered at Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Monroe, Shreveport, and Jackson. The MDiv is offered in Alexandria, Monroe, Shreveport, Clinton, and Blue Mountain, and the MACE is offered in Pineville and Clinton. After the Spring 2013 semester, the Alexandria site will be closing, but we anticipate opening in Olive Branch at Longview Heights Baptist Church in August 2013.

The complete Bachelor's degree and specializations for the graduate degrees are not offered in the LA/MS extension centers. However, students may take portions of these degrees through the extension sites.

4. Can I take all the courses I need at an extension site?

Graduate Students: No, 18 hours of your degree must be taken on the main campus in New Orleans. In addition 12 hours must be taken at the main campus or at a "hub" site like New Orleans, Atlanta, or Orlando. These may be taken in a variety of ways. The main campus offers week long workshops throughout the year, and they offer Saturday classes which require you to go to the main campus once a month. In addition, there are a variety of hybrid classes that only require you to be on campus 4x a semester. Some of these can be taken in Clinton where the student only attends 2x in New Orleans. For information on workshops click here.

Undergraduate Students: No, to complete the Associates degree at the extensions students must take the following courses either online with us or from a local college and transfer them to Leavell College:

English Composition (3 hours), World History (3 hours), Oral Communication (3 hours), General Mathematics (3 hours), Introduction to Computers (3 hours)

5. Why does it cost more if you are not Southern Baptist?

A large portion of the seminary's budget comes from the Cooperative Program of the Southern Baptist Convention. Each year about $500 million is given to the Cooperative Program through the 40,000 SBC churches. Thus, any student from a Southern Baptist church receives a discount of what if costs to provide their education because their church is supporting the seminary financially. Functionally, each SBC student receives a scholarship of about $4,000-$5,000 a year.

6. Why does it cost more if you are at an extension center than on campus?

NOBTS is committed to seminary extension center work because it makes education available to people who would otherwise not receive it. At the same time, the Southern Baptist Convention primarily funds on campus education. We are only allowed to count a small portion of our off campus enrollment in the funding formula that supplies a significant portion of our budget from the Cooperative Program. Therefore, in order to make the education available at the extension sites which are more convenient to the student, we have to charge slightly more. We are committed to keeping the costs down as much as possible and work diligently to do so.

7. Do you offer online courses?

Yes, please see the Leavell College or graduate schedules at www.nobts.edu  to see which classes are being offered in the next semester.