Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — Enrollment in seminary programs for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has increased some 4 percent in the past year to reach its highest enrollment yet.
The church's four-year religious educational program for high school-age students now includes more than 390,000 teenagers in 150 countries.
Mormon Newsroom notes that seminary enrollment has usually grown over the past several years, but this increase is more than double that of the previous year.
"One of our main goals is to reach out to more students," said Shawn Hunt, manager of communications for the Seminaries and Institutes of Religion for the church. "So we've been working closely with local Church leaders to find young people and invite them to join us in seminary."
Seminary Enrollment (2011-2012)
| Enrollment | |
|---|---|
| Countries/locations outside US | 186,996 |
| U.S. | 204,684 |
| Total | 391,680 |
The Seminaries and Institutes of Religion Annual Report for 2013 shows Utah has more seminary students than other states, with enrollment of nearly 88,000. It's followed by California, Idaho, and Arizona.
Depending on the area, students attend seminary at different times. In parts of Utah, Idaho and Arizona, students can attend seminary during release time, when they are allowed to leave campus for a class. However, the majority of seminary students (more than 240,000) attend before school hours, often in a church building, and teachers are often volunteers from the congregation. Home study is also available.
Nearly half of seminary students live outside the U.S. Other countries with highest enrollment include:
- Mexico - 28,299
- Brazil - 22,655
- Peru - 17,969
- Philippines - 16,791
The Deseret News reports seminary is taking hold in nations like Nigeria, Ghana, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where LDS influence is somewhat new.
The seminary program, which is open to teenagers of all faiths, was created over 100 years ago. The curriculum focuses on a different volume of scripture each year, rotating between the Old Testament, New Testament, Book of Mormon, and Doctrine and Covenants and Church History.
Mormon Newsroom notes that seminary is one way church members gain knowledge that can stay with them into adulthood. It cites a 2010 study from the Pew Research Center that shows Mormons score among the highest of all religion groups in their knowledge of Christianity, the Bible and other religious information.
