Covenant Theological Seminary

What Covenant Theological Seminary does

Covenant Theological Seminary is a private, accredited theological institution founded in 1956 and headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Operating since 1982 as the denominational seminary of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), it is structured as a Missouri-incorporated non-equity entity whose board is approved by the PCA General Assembly, and it functions as the largest supplier of pastors into the PCA. The Seminary offers seven ATS-approved graduate degrees — Master of Divinity (MDiv), Master of Arts in Counseling (MAC), MA in Biblical & Theological Studies (MABTS), MA in Theological Studies (MATS), MA in Ministry (MAM), Master of Theology (ThM), and Doctor of Ministry (DMin) — alongside specialized programs in church planting, chaplaincy, and preaching. It has conferred 5,194 master's and doctoral degrees on 4,782 alumni since founding, with over 12,018 total alumni across all 50 U.S. states and 100+ countries.

Delivery is built on a dual residential/online architecture. The 12330 Conway Road campus serves as the primary residential hub, supplemented by the Missional Training Center-Phoenix — a regional, cohort-based extension targeting ministry practitioners already in the field. The Comprehensive Distance Education Program, approved by ATS and supported by NC-SARA reciprocity, enables cross-state online delivery, with the MABTS available fully online. The technology stack is best characterized as a content-and-services delivery platform rather than a software product; the proprietary centerpiece is a content corpus taught by practitioner-scholar faculty who were the largest contributors to the ESV Study Bible.

Revenue is generated primarily through tuition paid per credit hour or by program across the seven degree offerings (the source material classifies this as subscription/recurring tuition). This is supplemented by a documented advancement and fundraising operation — a dedicated "Giving" section of the site with planned giving, a giving team, and online giving infrastructure — indicating meaningful philanthropic revenue alongside tuition. The Seminary holds four material accreditations (ATS, HLC, CACREP, NC-SARA) plus Title IX compliance, and it publishes Covenant Magazine and the Presbyterion academic journal while running the Francis Schaeffer Institute and the Compelling Preaching Initiative as aligned sub-brands. Customer segments are individual prospective pastors, counselors, and ministry leaders, drawn primarily from PCA churches but also from broader evangelical networks.

Name

Covenant Theological Seminary

Legal name

Covenant Theological Seminary

Website

https://covenantseminary.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1956

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Private, PCA-affiliated theological seminary in St. Louis, Missouri, offering accredited graduate degrees in divinity, counseling, and theological studies via residential, online, and regional cohort models, serving aspiring pastors, counselors, and ministry leaders.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Theological Higher Education

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Religious Organizations (8131)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Seminaries (Graduate Theology & Ministry) (EDAHAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Denominational Theological Colleges (e.g., Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelical) (EDAHAKAM)

Keywords

• Theological education
• Seminary degree programs
• Pastoral training
• Biblical studies
• Ministry preparation

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint-louis-de-montferrand

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Degree program tuition: Tuition revenue from master-level and doctoral degree programs including MDiv, MAC, MABTS, MATS, MAM, and ThM degrees. Students pay tuition per credit hour or program.

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Covenant Theological Seminary delivers graduate theological education through accredited degree programs including the Master of Divinity (MDiv), Master of Arts in Counseling (MAC), Master of Arts in Biblical and Theological Studies (MABTS), MA in Theological Studies (MATS), MA in Ministry (MAM), Master of Theology (ThM), and Doctor of Ministry (DMin). Programs are offered on-campus in St. Louis, at the Phoenix Missional Training Center, and via an ATS-approved Comprehensive Distance Education Program, complemented by specialized programs in church planting, chaplaincy, preaching, and a counseling center.

Product overview

Covenant Theological Seminary is a theological institution offering multiple graduate degree programs including Master of Divinity (MDiv), Master of Arts in Counseling (MAC), Master of Arts in Biblical & Theological Studies (MABTS), MA in Theological Studies (MATS), MA in Ministry (MAM), Master of Theology (ThM), and Doctor of Ministry (DMin). The seminary provides education through on-campus and online formats, including a Comprehensive Distance Education Program. Beyond degree programs, the institution offers free courses, counseling services, specialized institutes (Francis Schaeffer Institute), church planting and chaplaincy programs, and publishes Covenant Magazine and Presbyterion Journal.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Francis Schaeffer Institute: Conference and resource center for theological education and cultural engagement.
• Compelling Preaching Initiative

Products and services

• Master of Divinity (MDiv) A 99-credit-hour graduate degree designed to equip students for pastoral ministry, including learning Greek and Hebrew to read the Bible in its original languages, rigorous Bible courses, systematic theology courses, ministry leadership courses, and electives, with supervised internships.
• Master of Arts in Counseling (MAC) A 75-credit-hour graduate degree fully accredited by CACREP that prepares students to become clinically focused and biblically grounded counselors, including a supervised internship, weekly group discussion, and 1-on-1 support from supervisors, with degree portability for licensure in states other than Missouri.
• Master of Arts in Biblical & Theological Studies (MABTS)

Quantifiable outcome

• 94.49%+ placement rate within 12 months for MDiv graduates seeking ministry positions (10-year cumulative)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Trinity Evangelical Divinity School: Evangelical graduate divinity school offering MDiv, ThM, and DMin degrees with significant online enrollment. Overlapping product offerings, target audience (Reformed/evangelical pastors), and distance education strategy.
• Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary: Multi-denominational evangelical seminary with multiple campuses, ATS-accredited graduate degree programs, and growing online presence. Comparable size and program mix.
• Westminster Theological Seminary: Philadelphia-based Reformed and Presbyterian theological seminary offering MDiv, ThM, and PhD programs. Directly comparable denomination-adjacent (PCA-friendly) Reformed seminary with similar whole-person training philosophy and ATS accreditation.
• Dallas Theological Seminary: Major evangelical graduate theological seminary offering ThM, MABC, MAC, and DMin programs via residential, online, and hybrid formats. Comparable in program breadth, scale (~2,000+ students), and ATS/HLC accreditation profile.
• Reformed Theological Seminary: Multi-campus Reformed/evangelical seminary that is the most direct competitor in training PCA and Reformed Presbyterian pastors. Offers MDiv and similar graduate theology degrees through residential and online formats that directly overlap Covenant's product set.
• Knox Theological Seminary: Fort Lauderdale-based PCA-affiliated theological seminary training PCA and evangelical pastors. Closest denominational peer as another seminary directly connected to the Presbyterian Church in America.
• The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary: Largest U.S. Southern Baptist graduate seminary offering MDiv, ThM, and DMin programs across residential and online formats. Comparable scale and ATS-accredited program portfolio serving a parallel denominational seminary function for a different tradition.
• Asbury Theological Seminary: Wesleyan-Holiness evangelical seminary offering MDiv, ThM, DMin, and PhD programs with substantial online enrollment (Asbury's Kentucky and Florida campuses plus online). Directly comparable in program set and ATS-accredited distance delivery.

Broad incumbents

• Fuller Theological Seminary: Largest U.S. non-denominational seminary offering MDiv, ThM, DMin, and a wide PhD portfolio including a PsyD in Clinical Psychology. Comparable in scale and program breadth but with broader ecumenical positioning than Covenant's PCA base.
• Wheaton College Graduate School: Evangelical Christian graduate school offering MA in Biblical Exegesis, MA in Counseling, and other theological programs. Comparable in evangelical orientation and CACREP-relevant counseling program, but housed within a larger liberal arts university.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/covseminary
• Facebookfacebook.com/75248942438

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Covenant Theological Seminary