Community Life
Watch a "home made" tour of the mansion campus with Admissions Department Representative, Keith Evans.
A tremendous sense of community exists among students, faculty, and staff at RPTS. Opportunities for interaction inside and outside the classroom abound. Several of the single men live on campus and enjoy especially close fellowship. They often eat together, pray together, and provide some of the care of the building and grounds.
Married students are encouraged to live near the Seminary in order to facilitate a spirit of community in which their spouses and children also can be a part. Seven apartments on campus are available for married students. For more information on the Pittsburgh area and housing, see also: Pittsburgh.net.
While there is no formal program of extracurricular activities, both students and faculty help to provide opportunities for all students to participate in various athletic, social, cultural, and spiritual activities. Individual and group leadership of these activities is encouraged, according to interest.
In addition, the Seminary provides a number of opportunities for the entire student body to be together for fun and fellowship: an opening day school picnic, a Thanksgiving dinner, a Christmas party, and an end-of-the-year picnic.
Seminary Women meets monthly for fellowship, instruction, and encouragement. This is a tremendously important aspect of Seminary life for a significant part of the Seminary community. Faculty wives, student wives, and women in the M.T.S. or certificate programs taking classes are all encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity for fellowship and personal growth. Monthly speakers are often faculty or wives of faculty and alums who address practical issues with living for Christ and life in the ministry.
A significant aspect of Seminary life involves times of praying together. Faculty members meet weekly with their advisees for prayer. Informally, students often get together in groups of two or three to pray and prayer marks the one-to-one times between faculty and students.
About forty denominations and independent congregations are represented in the student body. This offers a valuable opportunity in the setting of a denominationally controlled seminary for students to learn to appreciate their distinctive denominational contributions and to develop an understanding of the basis for Scriptural ecumenicity.
An indispensable educational component for students preparing for future ministry is active participation in a local church while studying at the Seminary. Students are expected to become involved in the church life and ministry of the congregation of their choice.
