Auburn Theological Seminary s study of entering seminarians shows a change in who is entering ministry. The survey of 2,512 students found that seminarians are no longer males who have just graduated from college. Most seminarians come from congregations rather than undergraduate campuses.
Women make up half the enrollment of mainline Protestant institutions.
Half of the seminarians changed faith traditions or denominations before entering seminary. Most students had not majored in the humanities with men holding business, communications or technical study majors and women social, natural or behavioral science majors. Hispanics and African Americans are significantly under represented. Most seminarians come from middle-class backgrounds. The majority report that both of their parents have white-collar jobs and education beyond high school.