I came across this example of an ASIC institution. Appears to be theologically oriented. The site is a little hard to navigate but they have some sample video lectures and a list of professors and their qualifications. A quick sample of their bios seemed to indicate the professors had accredited doctorates. https://lucent.university/james-wagstaff.html Obviously, I can't say this is or isn't representative of ASIC accredited schools.
I am going to go off track, but the faculty member has a BA in Communication and Media Studies, MA in Education, Leadership and Policy Studies and a Doctor of Ministry (completed at a Gateway, a Southern Baptist seminary). I guess it was the pastoral experience that allowed him to enter the professional doctoral program. The fact that his DMin was focused on leadership development may have helped too! But it just goes to show that the idea that you always need an extensive theological education background to enter the DMin isn't necessarily true. In many instances, you don't even need the MDiv. And in certain cases, you don't need any theological education at all. The person is teaching an Old Testament survey course at Lucent. As for ASIC, I am comfortable with the UK ASIC-accredited schools, because they don't grant degrees on their own. The international ASIC schools grant degrees on the basis of ASIC accreditation, frequently the sole basis. That's a noticeable difference. There are cases of American theological schools that have not achieved institutional accreditation/government recognition in their own country but obtained some form of quality assurance for specific programs (programmatic accreditation). I am thinking of schools like Houston Bible Seminary, which is accredited by the Asia Theological Association (ATA); https://www.ataasia.com/membership/accredited-membership-list/. Wikiepdia entry: "Asia Theological Association accredits theological seminaries in the Asian region. However, not all seminaries accredited by ATA are recognised by the respective government. Christian seminaries and theological colleges in India are not recognized by the University Grants Commission therefore, ATA degrees and doctorates are not recognized under Section 22 of the UGC Act. Since there are no government or UGC approved Seminaries or Divinity Schools in India that provide degrees in biblical languages and Christian theology, the degrees accredited by ATA institutions are recognised by Universities and Seminaries outside of Indian peninsular, especially in Europe, Australia and North America." The question is: Can ASIC serve as a substitute for programmatic accreditation? Personally, I don't think that they have a track record that would serve as a good basis for this idea. Also, it is institutional accreditation that matters most in the context of global degree recognition. Programmatic accreditation won't solve this particular issue.
@tadj The general rule of thumb is that in order to enter a doctor of ministry program you need a 90 credit hour master of divinity. The Doctor of Ministry like a PhD can be focused in different areas so you can have a DMin focused in homiletics, leadership, preaching, counseling, and I would assume even feels like biomedical ethics. And added to the MDiv was a three to five year experience requirement. But I believe what has happened is that in response to certain changes in the ministry field, such as earning various other masters degrees, they have adjusted some of the requirements for the doctorate and now you can enter with another type of Masters degree and do some top off work such as extended doctor of ministry program.
