Conyers Scholars

The Conyers Graduate Scholars Program is an intensive program for Baylor doctoral students sponsored by the Graduate School. It encourages and supports doctoral students who are interested in questions regarding faith, learning, vocation, and the university. 

The program convenes dinners and seminars in an effort to foster intellectually rich discussions about faith and scholarly inquiry as students are introduced to the writings of first-rate Christian scholars.

Named in honor of A.J. "Chip" Conyers (1944-2004), a founding faculty member at Baylor's George W. Truett Theological Seminary, the Conyers Scholars Program invites students to think of an academic career as a form of Christian service or a vocatio, a religious vocation. The Conyers Scholars Program seeks to fulfill Baylor's mission to provide its graduate students an opportunity to explore and prepare for service in the academy.

Students who are accepted into the program must meet high academic standards and demonstrate strong habits of study and research.

Program Activities

• Monthly Symposium: Students gather at the home of faculty or pastoral leaders two to three times during the semester for a dinner and discussion of assigned readings that focus on the relationship between scholarly disciplines and the Christian faith. Dinner begins at 6 p.m. and is followed by a discussion from 7:00 to 8:30.
• On-campus lectures: Selected lectures featuring both members of Baylor's faculty and other institutions are chosen for group attendance.
• Book provision: Conyers Scholars are provided books and articles at no cost to themselves for use in group discussions.

Qualifications for Entrance into the Program

Students must have completed one semester of doctoral study at the time of application and be in good standing within their academic programs at the time of application. Students also must demonstrate an interest in faith-informed scholarship.

Application Process

We are now accepting applications for the 2024-2025 Conyers Scholars program cohort. You can find the application form here.  The application requests 1) three essay responses, 2) a reference (the email address for a faculty member who knows your scholarly work and will be asked to fill out a recommendation form),  and 3) a list of activities or honors that relate to faith and learning.

The essay responses (500 words each) must answer the following questions. You may either copy and paste the questions into your own Word document,  or download this document containing the questions. You will be able to upload your responses in a single file on Step 4 of the online application form.

1. Some people believe that genuine Christian faith is incompatible with a rigorous life of the mind. Yet through the ages one can point to countless Christians who exemplified extraordinary intellectual accomplishment and who pursued a thoughtful life of the mind not despite-but rather because of-their faith. What relationship do you see between Christian faith and the life of the mind? How does your chosen course of study at Baylor reflect your understanding of this relationship?

2. The Conyers Graduate Scholars Program is an extraordinarily rewarding program that requires significant commitment from both its students and faculty leaders. You will be expected to faithfully attend and contribute to a variety of Graduate Scholars activities, including monthly dinner/discussion meetings, special conferences, and other gatherings. Please address whether you are willing and able to devote the considerable time and energy required to fully commit to the program- and why becoming a Conyers Scholar is important to you.

3. Please prepare a short biography (one paragraph, approx. 150 words); this will help the committee better know you and, if selected, we will feature your biography on the Conyers Scholars website. Please note that it should be written in the third-person. For examples, see the biographies of our current cohort of Conyers Scholars.

Program leaders will schedule brief interviews with select applicants in mid-April, and applicants will be notified of acceptance in early May.