Divine Word College

Divine Word College is an undergraduate Roman Catholic seminary that educates its students for missionary service in the Church as priests, brothers, sisters and laypersons. It is owned and operated by the Society of the Divine Word. The college offers three baccalaureate degrees as well as English as a second language (ESL) classes to other Catholic religious missionaries and those aspiring to Catholic lay ministries.

Located near the larger city of Dubuque, the college is set on a campus in the small rural town of Epworth.

Divine Word College offers an education which combines a liberal arts curriculum and a program of "spiritual formation".

During their final semester of undergraduate studies at Divine Word College, young men who choose to continue with the SVD may apply for the Society’s one-year novitiate program at the Chicago Province Headquarters in Techny, Illinois. These men may then apply to profess first vows as members of the Society near the end of the novitiate program and continue with seminary studies at the Chicago Theologate.

Other Divine Word College students include SVDs from foreign countries who are in the ESL program and Catholic religious missionaries from other orders and countries who are earning their degrees or learning English before going on to their missionary work.

The large combination gymnasium/auditorium accommodates a variety of sports and cultural events. In addition to an indoor swimming pool and weight room, the campus has new tennis courts and a soccer field. Off-campus activities include interaction with area host families. Art and culture play important roles at Divine Word College and are reflected in the art program, the two campus art galleries and unique displays of art and artifacts from around the world.

Founded in 1875 in Steyl, the Netherlands, the Roman Catholic order The Society of the Divine Word (SVD) sent the first Divine Word Missionary, Fr. Joseph Freinademetz, SVD, to China by 1879. In 1895, Brother Wendelin Meyer, SVD, went to America. By 1909, the Society had established the first seminary in the United States with the mission of training priest and brother candidates for service in foreign missions. The Society of the Divine Word originally established Divine Word Seminary, a four-year liberal arts college, in 1912 at Techny, Illinois. In 1931, the Society purchased property in Epworth, Iowa, where it established St. Paul’s Mission House, an SVD high school seminary. In 1964, Divine Word College replaced the high school seminary and has since served as the principal site of SVD undergraduate seminary education in the United States.