ACCREDITATION

Forge Theological Seminary is not accredited by any accreditation agency recognized by the United States Department of Education or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.

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Religious Exemption From State Oversight

As an institution whose sole purpose is religious and theological training, Forge Theological Seminary is exempt from state oversight as per the South Carolina Code of Laws, Nonpublic Postsecondary Institution License Act, Section 59-58-30(4). Click here for more information on South Carolina's Religious Exemption policy.

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FTS Statement on Accreditation

Since its inception in 2015, FTS has intentionally rejected any involvement, whether directly or indirectly, with the federal government. Our reasons are two-fold: First, theological education belongs to the church and not the state. Second, our mission is to provide robust theological education that does not require students to take on debt. Indeed, "the borrower is the slave of the lender" (Prov. 22:7). Institutions endure the expense and toil of achieving recognized accreditation primarily in order to gain access to federal money via student grants and loans. FTS has no interest in Title IV compliance or federal student loan dollars. Further, we do not equate recognized accreditation with either legitimacy or faithfulness to Christ. Therefore, there remains little reason to pursue recognized accreditation. Moreover, while recognized accreditation may provide some benefit to students (i.e., credit transferability), we have found that despite our rejection of recognized accreditation, our students have gained admission and have had their course credits transferred to traditionally accredited institutions. 

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For further information on accreditation, see the following resources:

Rick Walson, Walston's Guide to Christian Distance Learning, 5th Ed. (Maitland, FL: Xulon Press, 2007).

Lisa Parro, "Free from State Oversight," Christianity Today, 10/19/2007.

Ted Olson, "Accreditor Says Creationism Mandate Violates Academic Freedom," Christianity Today, 05/01/2002. 

Michael R. Burgos, "On the Logic of the Biblical Counseling Movement & the Question of Accreditation" in Light Through the Spectrum: Essays on Biblical Counseling (Torrington, CT: Church Militant Pub., 2020), 46-57.

John Frame, "Seminaries and Academic Accreditation." 

John M. Wiley, "Is an Unaccredited College or Seminary a Viable Option for Theological Education?."