Accreditation

The Graduate Theological Foundation is a Member Affiliate of the Association of American Colleges and Universities and an institutional member of the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education. The Foundation has been recognized by the Department of Veterans Affairs as offering a Doctor of Ministry degree which meets the education requirements for employment as a chaplain in the Dept. for Veterans Affairs.

All professional and academic work taken for any graduate degree offered by the Foundation must be from an institution holding full accreditation from one of the following United States Department of Education approved and validated agencies*:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
New England Association of Schools and Colleges
North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
Western Association of Schools and Colleges

In special cases, an exemption may be granted by the Provost upon petition from the student. Foreign institutions must hold similar validation from their respective governments.

The Graduate Theological Foundation is listed on page xliii in the Higher Education Directory 2008 under “Consortia of Institutions of Higher Education.”

The Graduate Theological Foundation is also listed in the Seminary Section of the 2007 Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches published by the National Council of Churches.

The Foundation bases its academic integrity on its affiliations with Rome and Oxford and has chosen from its inception in 1962 not to formally associate with any government agency for the validation of its educational agenda or programs.

All work transferred into the Foundation from other institutions, however, must have been completed at institutions which hold regional accreditation recognized by the United States Department of Education and all foreign credits must comply with similar guidelines. The Foundation enjoys formal consultative and programmatic relationships with the Pontifical Council on Interreligious Dialogue in the Vatican; the Church of England and the Archbishop of Canterbury commencing with Lord Robert Runcie in 1983; Oxford University’s International Programmes and Department For Continuing Education (with Dr. Angus Hawkins since 1994); and has the endorsement from the Centro Pro Unione in Rome (with Father James Puglisi, SA, since 1992).

Owing to a ruling by the State of Indiana and in compliance with the Foundation's State Charter, the Foundation is at liberty to offer its degree programs to professionals in the cognate fields of ministry such as pastoral care and counseling, mediation, church administration, spiritual direction, as well as in other areas of study. The Foundation maintains an internet library rather than a physical library and its teaching staff are contract faculty rather than residential. Because the Foundation does not fall under the jurisdiction of the Association of Theological Schools or the North Central Association of Colleges and Universities, the Foundation neither holds nor will it seek these accreditations.

* source: Higher Education Directory 2008