NationsU and MTS degree

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by rwest, Jun 1, 2017.

Loading...
  1. rwest

    rwest New Member

    I was wondering if anyone on here has taken courses with NationsU recently? I am considering enrolling in their MTS program in a couple of months. They say they are competency based and you can go directly to the exams and written assignments if you think you are ready. I was planning to spend the summer reading some of the books on their textbook list and begin to prepare myself. I'm not quite ready to begin the courses as I'm finishing up my undergrad degree at the moment. They said I can only finish 3 courses before the degree confers so I don't want to begin too soon.
    Some of the questions I have are:
    *How long does it take to get through one of their courses typically? (The website says its a two year program which means the pace should be one course every 2 months. Is it possible to do that in less time?)
    *How do you know if you are ready to take the exams? Is there a pre-test?
    *Are there things I can do now to prepare for those foundation courses beyond just reading the textbooks?
    *How are the exams? It seems odd that for the O.T. course you can pick one of four textbooks and the exam will somehow reflect the content of any of the four?
    *How are the comprehensive exams that are required outside of the actual courses? Is there a way to prepare for those?
    I would appreciate any help or direction anyone can give. Thank you!
     
  2. b4cz28

    b4cz28 Active Member


    I think a motivated student would have zero issues completing a degree in 18 months.
     
  3. Garp

    Garp Well-Known Member

    Seems to be the model used by Governors University (RA with teaching, nursing and management programs) as well. They allow students to move through degree programs at their own pace (faster on courses they have a background in and slower on others). Are there other institutions using this model?
     
  4. rwest

    rwest New Member

  5. RFValve

    RFValve Well-Known Member

    I was doing the MTS and completed 3 courses when it was tuition free. My reason was mainly personal development so it was enjoyable. I never purchased a book and managed to pass 3 courses with more than 80% in less than 3 months, but I must confess that I have taken many religion courses before so for me the material was mainly a review of what already knew.

    The main problem with the program in my opinion is that you need to complete a set of proctored comprehensive exams in order to complete the MTS. For me this was the main problem as it is extremely time consuming to prepare for these exams, the online exams are not so bad because you can do them multiple times but the proctored you can only do them once. You also need a GPA of at least 3 before you can do these exams, this can be challenging if you score less than 80% in any of the courses.

    The other issue is that the MTS has not much use if you want to become a reverend in traditional denominations. Most require at least an MDiv in order to be considered for a reverend position and many require it to be accredited. NationsU is only DEAC accredited but this is not enough for most of the traditional denominations that need at least an ATS accredited degree. There are many small non denominational churches that would take the MTS from NationsU for a revered position but the same churches would also take diplomas from bible colleges that do not need to be accredited, bear in mind that most of these positions are non paid.

    I personally left this program and joined a local interfaith seminary for a non degree program, it cost more money but the main issue for me was to be able to practice in Canada where ministry is a regulated profession, many need to be ordained within an recognized denomination in order to become wedding officiants or chaplains at hospitals and a MTS alone is not going to do this you. An MTS from NationsU might be accepted by a non denominational church but most still require at least two years of ministry experience that is not so easy to get unless you have a place that can give you a chance to do ministry without experience which is the case of a seminary if you are a student there.

    In few words, you need to ask yourself the question of why you want this degree and not so much if it is difficult or not. There is no point to get a degree that it might be not so difficult to get if it just ends to be a piece of paper in your basement If it is for personal development or if you are already a minister and want self improvement, the MTS is fine. However, bear in mind that you cannot use it to teach at the University level and also consider that you would need experience in order to become a minister in most credible denominations. The problem with online degrees is that you don't get to network with churches so you will have a very hard time convincing people that you are able to minister without any experience.

    In few words, I would recommend a local seminary rather than nationsUniversity if your goal is to minister. The main reason is credibility and networking, NationsUniversity is DEAC accredited but most will still consider it an online school with not the same prestige as any known local seminary.

    A local seminary is not going to be cheap but at least it will bring you where you want to go. Many local seminaries are also giving online courses or distance as very few have space or enough students to give structured classes on campus.
     
    Jim Huffman likes this.

Share This Page