Baylor University

[MicahJF612]

I want to attend Baylor for a masters in Philosophy, and (hopefully) eventually a doctorate, with a minor in Comparative Religions and Theology.

Should I look somewhere else, or give up entirely? Is it a good college? Anything I should be worried about?

 

[mandym]

If you are looking for a left leaning college then you have found it.

 

[Ruiz]

I want to attend Baylor for a masters in Philosophy, and (hopefully) eventually a doctorate, with a minor in Comparative Religions and Theology.

Should I look somewhere else, or give up entirely? Is it a good college? Anything I should be worried about?

The previous post is good, I would begin with what your theology is. Define who you are theologically and then choose a school that fits where you are at this moment. If you are left leaning, more modernistic, Baylor may be a good choice. If not, I may have some places for you to consider.

If I were going to attend a school to get my Ph.D. in philosophy, I personally would probably choose Westminster. From my understanding of more conservative schools, they may be the most equipped of the schools I know in the philosophy department along with having a number of respected men graduate from their program. I don't know if they have a Masters in philosophy program, but their PhD program is highly regarded and their MDiv program hits hard on philosophy.

 

[Greektim]

The previous post is good, I would begin with what your theology is. Define who you are theologically and then choose a school that fits where you are at this moment. If you are left leaning, more modernistic, Baylor may be a good choice. If not, I may have some places for you to consider.

If I were going to attend a school to get my Ph.D. in philosophy, I personally would probably choose Westminster. From my understanding of more conservative schools, they may be the most equipped of the schools I know in the philosophy department along with having a number of respected men graduate from their program. I don't know if they have a Masters in philosophy program, but their PhD program is highly regarded and their MDiv program hits hard on philosophy.

Biola has a great philosophy department. They may be a bit more conservative and what you are looking for. Friend and colleague earned his MA in philosophy from Biola after getting his MDiv from TEDS. He highly recommends Biola.

 

[StefanM]

What is your purpose in pursuing these degrees?

This will determine whether or not Baylor is a good choice for you.

If you are wanting to become a professor, I would suggest changing your plans. It is extremely difficult to get a faculty position in a field like philosophy. With this degree, you probably couldn't even reliably find adjunct opportunities.

Baylor is a respected university in most academic circles, although among conservative churches it is often viewed as being liberal and therefore questionable.

 

[RG2]

I think it depends on where your at. Here in Texas there's a lot of fondness for Baylor, of course a lot of that is "My father and grandfather went to Baylor" type stuff. I would say though it's got a bit of a bad rap for being liberal. One person's liberal is another person's moderate. Plus liberal in the Baptist sense but far from liberal when you consider other schools.

That being said as others have mentioned if your end goal is professorship, I think Baylor would limit your choices. As StefanM said, most conservative churches/schools would look at it as liberal, but on the flip side most state/liberal private schools would look at as religious and conservative.

 

[Greektim]

I think it depends on where your at. Here in Texas there's a lot of fondness for Baylor, of course a lot of that is "My father and grandfather went to Baylor" type stuff. I would say though it's got a bit of a bad rap for being liberal. One person's liberal is another person's moderate. Plus liberal in the Baptist sense but far from liberal when you consider other schools.

That being said as others have mentioned if your end goal is professorship, I think Baylor would limit your choices. As StefanM said, most conservative churches/schools would look at it as liberal, but on the flip side most state/liberal private schools would look at as religious and conservative.

Academically, I hear they are doing excellent work in the field of Biblical Studies. I've read blogs of those in their PhD program (Good example of a PhD student and their academic rigor here), and they are sharp. They have good profs. And they are putting out an awesome commentary series on the GNT. I would use that commentary as one of the textbooks for an exegesis class (Check it out here). They are short and concise, but they tackle issues in grammar and syntax that most avoid.

If I ever pursued a PhD for NT studies, I would definitely consider Baylor.

 

[RG2]

Academically, I hear they are doing excellent work in the field of Biblical Studies. I've read blogs of those in their PhD program (Good example of a PhD student and their academic rigor here), and they are sharp. They have good profs. And they are putting out an awesome commentary series on the GNT. I would use that commentary as one of the textbooks for an exegesis class (Check it out here). They are short and concise, but they tackle issues in grammar and syntax that most avoid.

If I ever pursued a PhD for NT studies, I would definitely consider Baylor.

I agree with everything you have said. However, I must say while I would consider Baylor a strong choice for a Biblical Studies degree... my original opinion stands on the standpoint of a Philosophy degree.

 

[Greektim]

I agree with everything you have said. However, I must say while I would consider Baylor a strong choice for a Biblical Studies degree... my original opinion stands on the standpoint of a Philosophy degree.

Good point. That's why I mentioned Biola. I forgot what we were talking about.

 

[MicahJF612]

So, is Baylor considered 'liberal' because it doesn't require a Calvinistic set up (I couldn't survive in Geneva haha), or because it somehow leans towards atheism?

Is Westminister a Christian school?

And yes, I will (hopefully) be pursuing a career as a professor... And I know the options are limited. But I would much rather go to a Christian 'liberal' school than an atheistic 'conservative' school.

 

[Gina B]

I was looking into it a while back as a possibility for one of my children. What threw me off of it was cost. They don't seem to have a very good scholarship/assistance program and while they kept sending and sending stuff (I actually started marking it as spam) I was pretty surprised at what appears to be such low help for even the best of prospective students. Unfortunately, we aren't going to be of much financial help to our kiddo, despite the desire, but her scores and achievements are giving her the opportunity to pretty much choose from anywhere, so while I'd love to get her interested in a place that has more of a Christian environment, it's simply not affordable.

So that's something major to consider if cost is going to be an issue for you, and I think the majority of us would consider that an issue, especially with the rising costs of education. They may have changed things since I last looked, but definitely check into it and make sure it's something you can afford.

I've heard nothing but good though. No matter what you choose, there are going to be people who will consider it liberal. Half these people have kids in public grade schools, so that kinda makes me laugh that they get so picky over the college. Public high schools generally are not exactly places where Christian values are expounded. If anything, it's quite the opposite!

 

[Greektim]

I was looking into it a while back as a possibility for one of my children. What threw me off of it was cost. They don't seem to have a very good scholarship/assistance program and while they kept sending and sending stuff (I actually started marking it as spam) I was pretty surprised at what appears to be such low help for even the best of prospective students. Unfortunately, we aren't going to be of much financial help to our kiddo, despite the desire, but her scores and achievements are giving her the opportunity to pretty much choose from anywhere, so while I'd love to get her interested in a place that has more of a Christian environment, it's simply not affordable.

So that's something major to consider if cost is going to be an issue for you, and I think the majority of us would consider that an issue, especially with the rising costs of education. They may have changed things since I last looked, but definitely check into it and make sure it's something you can afford.

I've heard nothing but good though. No matter what you choose, there are going to be people who will consider it liberal. Half these people have kids in public grade schools, so that kinda makes me laugh that they get so picky over the college. Public high schools generally are not exactly places where Christian values are expounded. If anything, it's quite the opposite!

Not quite the case for Baylor (at least not in their religious studies dep.). They pay the tuition and a stipend for their PhD students. I would imagine it is nearly the same thing. But that makes it extremely competitive as well.