It also calls for seminaries to recruit recent college graduates while at the same time offering increased support to well-qualified older students. The internal weakness of many religious organizations and their lack of influence in the wider society limit the amount of impact their leaders can expect to have. The mean age of seminarians is now about 35 years old More than half of all students are over age 30. Women now make up about half of entering students of mainline Protestant institutions and about 30 percent of students of Roman Catholic and evangelical institutions. Both African-Americans and Hispanics are significantly underrepresented.
Seminarians come from predominantly middle-class backgrounds.
Half of all students have switched denominations or faith traditions before entering seminary. Most had not majored in the humanities. Entering theological students have been out of college for an average of 10 years. Almost 90 percent of seminarians attend their first choice of institution. Rev. Jan Nunley is deputy director of the Office of News and Information for the Episcopal Church Browse month . . .