I came across this new (to me, anyway) school while looking for something else. I don't know much about religious schools, but looking at their website, it seems to be a sincere effort to start a new online school, with a launch date of Fall 2016. They're right upfront about their lack of accreditation, but also state that they plan on applying for accreditation. Other good signs are that they are only offering undergraduate degrees and certificate programs, so no 27-day Ph.D.'s, and all of the faculty with one exception have their degrees from properly accredited schools, mostly RA with some NA and non-US sprinkled throughout. The one exception has a D.Min. from Jacksonville Theological Seminary, which is "accredited" by.....drum roll please.....Accrediting Commission International. However, this person has legitimate undergrad and graduate degrees from RA schools, including a Ph.D. from the University of Akron, so I'm just confused why he would list his Jacksonville degree to begin with. Missional University :: Home
Probably has to do with his religious faith and his experience at the school. Could be he has fond memories of the school, it was conducive to his faith and although it lacked conventional accreditation, he is proud of the work he did there. Just liked the place, is my guess. I'm not really interested in religious schools, but I do perceive that the vibe and thinking there often makes them a very different world from mine. I don't think it's same self-aggrandizement issue as someone with fewer, lesser or no recognized credentials embellishing his/her CV with a "vanity" degree. Of course, I could be completely wrong. I don't even know who this person is - not curious either. J.
I love the upfront and honest nature with how they addressed their non-accredited status. That's refreshing. The only reason I can think of why someone would use a Doctorate like one from JTS is because none of their other degrees are of the religious variety and it was a requirement for hire at the school(s) being applied to. But then that raises some ethical questions if one is willing to get such a credential to do that in the first place. As a sidenote, I attempted to access JTS's website and it was blocked by my virus program as having a Malware threat, lol. I know it's probably just a false positive, but still.
Good point, I didn't event think of that. I did find it odd that he has a D.Min. with no other religious credentials, his other degrees are in Sociology and Social Sciences. Again, I don't know much about religious schools, but I thought that a Master of Divinity is a prerequisite to a Doctor of Ministry.
Here is an excerpt from the MU website's accreditation page: In the future we plan to become accredited. Once we are accredited, accreditation will be retroactive to the start of the university. This statement is extremely problematic. Legitimate accreditation, IS NOT retroactive. It begins the day accreditation is obtained.
In general, to be accepted into a legitimately accredited DMin program, one must have an MDiv. However, most all schools will make an allowance for someone with MDiv equivalency. Some will even allow a small percentage of applicants who hold only an MA, MBS, etc. One seminary (RA/ATS) with which I am familiar allows 2% of each year's DMin cohort to be admitted with an MA. But in the main, an MDiv is indeed the prerequisite.