Enrollment swells at Liberty seminary

In the first year that Liberty University has ever closed enrollment early, its seminary school is projected to increase its student body by more than 50 percent.

Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary and Graduate School is expecting 510 resident students this fall, and 4,580 distance-learning students. Last fall, the seminary had 352 resident students and 2,917 distance-learning students.

“We are increasing on every level,” said Dave Eppling, the seminary’s chief of staff. “For us, it’s a great day. It’s an exciting thing that keeps us on our toes.”

He said students in the program include a blend of both graduates of Liberty’s bachelor’s degree programs, as well as others from around the country.

Earlier this month, Liberty closed off its fall enrollment at 3,500 new students, including those in the seminary. That would bring the school’s population to about 11,300 resident students, up 800 from last fall.

As of Monday, the school’s waiting list of students still hoping for admission stood at about 480, said Chancellor Jerry Falwell Jr.

The Christian university has seen continued growth over the past several years. It was recently granted city approval to expand to 15,000 students over the next five years.

Falwell said the seminary’s growth stems from a plan implemented by President Ergun Caner that promotes its offerings around the nation.

“He’s gone out and presented the seminary as a separate school, and I think he’s done a fantastic job of showcasing what it has to offer,” Falwell said.

That can be a challenge, he said, since Liberty competes with Southern Baptist seminaries that have tuition rates subsidized by the Southern Baptist Convention.

To counter that, Caner’s plan highlights Liberty’s published professors, Falwell said.

“You could either go somewhere else and study these scholars’ textbooks, or you could come here and learn directly from people like (Liberty University co-founder) Elmer Towns, (Religion Professor) Ed Hindson and (Philosophy and Apologetics Professor) Gary Habermas,” he said.

The seminary school offers more than a dozen residential master’s and doctorate level degrees in areas such as ministry, theology, leadership, pastoral counseling and worship studies.

This year, it will introduce a doctor of philosophy degree in theology and apologetics, Eppling said.

That rounds out a program that tries to balance the “why” and the “how-to,” he said.

“It’s two sides of the same coin, and typically schools will oscillate to one side or the other,” he said. “We’re trying to stay balanced. … We’re trying to find out questions that the world is asking, and answer those with a solid, biblical foundation.”