Q & A For New Seminary and/or College Students

What to do w/ my unaccredited credits?

Rhet,

I have spoken to you in the past about my situation. I have 38 hours credit from Tyndale Bible Institute and Seminary in Ft. Worth (when Dr. Couch was still there).
As well I have a two years worth of business school credits for my computer training ( I am a Unix systems Administrator).
I have applied to Liberty to complete my B.A. and after evaluating my transcripts they have rejected all of my Tyndale work out of hand because it is unaccredited. This means well over a years worth of college/seminary level work (2 years Greek including exegesis classes) all for nothing academically. I would have to test out for a heavy $ price and cram for the tests to get out of OT, NT, and Theology 1 & 2. The Greek classes wouldn't even count, as there is no undergraduate equivalent.
They'll allow you to get credit through a portfolio process but that big $ and not even guaranteed (they'll let you portfolio a power point class if you can prove you've used it at work, but solid equivalent academic work from an unaccredited school is rejected out of hand)

The only options I see right now include Liberty never getting any of my money!
Now that I am 35 years old I have begun considering trying to get into a seminary
and get a B. Div. I know The Master's Seminary at Grace Community Church ( i.e. John MacArthur) allow this as an option for a small percentage of the enrollment. I believe Southern Evangelical in Charlotte has this option as well. But both would require moving.
Right now I'm a little bummed out that I gone down the wrong path and am outside of the system :-(

 

Wow! When did Mal Couch leave Tyndale? Why did he leave?Are they still having legal trouble?Where did he go?I thought they were working in the direction of getting TRACS accreditation.What Happened?

 

Rhet , What is your opinion of Columbia Evangelical Seminary?

 

Not sure when he left, but it seems just recently according to their website: tyndale.edu
It looks like he started a new church, Clifton Bible Church.

I can't offer a why or an update on there 'degree' scandal. I do know that the training I received was excellent and most usefull (I translate all my New Testament passages when I teach/preach and can work from the original languages because of their training!)

 

Don't be bummed out. God will make a way for you to get where He wants you to go. Recall His words to Joshua...

"Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the Law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go. This book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go." -Josh 1:7-9

Would Masters or Southern give you credit for the work done at Tyndale?

Have you looked at Moody Bible College? They have a BS in Biblical Studies degree that is offered via distance learning. I am not sure if they would accept any credits from Tyndale or not or work with you in some other way. Luther Rice University also has a BA in Religion degree program. Again while I don't know if LRU would accept your Tyndale credits or not, they might would at least work with you in some other way. I don't know if those are options you are open to, or that would work, but it can't hurt to check them out. I know neither MBI or LRU offer BDiv but those are two accredited schools that offer distance education undergraduate programs.

Have you checked out Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary's undergraduate school? They offer several BA degrees.

I hope that helps you in some small way.

Btw, Rhetorician gives very sound advice (Philadelphia Bible University).

 

Rhet, et al.,

Thanks in advance for offering your guidance and counsel.

I was saved in 1992 at the age of 21. I did my training through Tyndale by extension from '94 to June of '96. I have taught Sunday School and week-night Bible studies since then. I have provided pulpit supply in the area since the fall of '97 including a two year interim gig at a small (15 adults) church that just ended recently December of 2005). I was licensed to preach by my local congregation (North Ten Mile Baptist) in May of 2004 and am pursuing ordination now.

I feel called to a pastoral ministry, equipped (had my OT, NT, theology, Greek, and expository preaching classes through Tyndale), and have been serving as such formally and informally.

I am comfortable in serving in a church because of my training and experience however, recently there has been talk of forming a local Bible institute and I have realized that without academic credentials my ability to contribute to this ministry would be limited.

Ideally, I would like to have at least a Master's of some sort to 'be qualified' to teach. While any and all training, including an M. Div. at a GOOD seminary would be beneficial, I can and do continue to serve locally in the church but would like to be prepared and in a position to do more should the opportunity arise.

I am not really 'bummed out'. As I said I do continue to serve my Lord and Savior with great joy. My only fretting is over the fact that much valuable training is being rejected out of hand by Liberty because it was outside of the system. With my wife continuing her college education and my daughter entering her junior year of high school (with two brothers 5 and 8 years behind her) it is a daunting task to even begin to eat the 'degree' elephant even one bite at a time, let alone if over a years worth of education is being rejected for transfer credit!

I guess my most direct question is other than a tenacious pleading with Liberty to accept at least some of these credits, what are my options to pursue an accredited undergraduate degree. At this point it could be in anything. I just want to be in a position to enter seminary! Though I loath the thought of entering the local university to get a Liberal Studies B.A. I am even considering that!

Again, thanks in advance.

 

I went to an unaccredited Baptist Bible College in the early 80s, transfered 46 credits to BJU, then transfered 70 credits from BJU and the 46 from NBBC to Grace College Winona Lake, an accredited college. Then TEDS accepted BJU credits for advanced standing!

So . . . .

You need to find the school that is credible and will accept your work from Tyndale. LRS and Moody seem like the right place to look.

 

I did go to thier site earlier.I noticed with a few exceptions that I have already read most of the books they are using for text books and a lot more. By the way I'm just taking a breaK from calvins institutes this week.Hey it seems like two or three people are doeing the writing here.Sometimes I get the feeling Calvin is trying to write to the layman,cleric, and acedamian all in the same two or three paragraphs.Does he read that way to you?:wavey:

 

More like not - their web account was suspended

I went to: www.columbiaseminary.edu

And saw:

I pray their financial difficulties do not affect salaries. If they are let us know to be praying for you.

 

Well Rhet, if I did go to Columbia, I would choose you to be my mentor. I know you are qualified, diligent,and kind. I also know you would take a personal interest :thumbs: in seeing that I would recieve the best possible education.

 

I think before I assumed something was wrong with CES financially I would ask them. It could well be they no longer wish to use the service of this particular web site provider or it could just be an oversite or dispute about billing. There are several possibilities.

In the meantime because I have read most of thier textbooks, in my opinion that speaks well of them,just in my case it would be redundant.

Rhet I gue:wavey: ss you missed my remark about Calvin. It seems to me when reading the "Institutes" like there are two or three people doing the writing.Do you get that feeling?

 

Quite right!! And as differences in style and apparent audience show up in the Biblical materials, things like the documentary source theory of the Pentateuch and the Q theory related to the Gospels are developed to explain them. No one should take these theories as proven or definitive, but they do recognize, as you have said, that different minds, personalities, and circumstances will affect the way any given material is expressed.

 

Bill

I think a careful study of Calvin would show that most of what you see as disjoint, matters of style, language, and translation.

Calvin was stylistically a logician - and he was pretty darn good at that. Logical writing sometimes does not seem to be logical at first reading.

There was some major editing (five major editions) as he added to his tome. By the time he finished it was about 5 times larger than the original.

I hear that the more modern translations are better, but I have worked through most of Beveridge. In places, Beveridge's translation is difficult to read.

Have fun.

 

===

John:

Some schools , possibly, would allow you to enter a MDiv program as a mature student without further undergrad work. Certainly, some schools will accept some credit for completed UA coursework if that coursework were rigorous.

If you have trouble finding elsewhere such opportunuities, please feel free to contact Carl Peel,our admissions officer, at: [email protected]

It is our policy to accept Hebrew/Greek from some UA schools at FULL value(our MDiv requires six courses in each language) and other coursework at 2/3! Our accreditation is through TRACS and we are a teaching site of Faith/Tacoma.

Blessings,

Bill Grover
Director of Distance Education
Faith Seminary/Salem