Back to Wilmette Institute main page
Back to Wilmette Institute Catalogue Table of Contents
click here for the 2001 Distance-Learning Course catalogue or
click here for the 2001 Spiritual Foundations catalogue
University Credit for Your Work
Until the Wilmette Institute grows much larger, it will not be able to obtain national accreditation as an official, recognized institution of higher education. Until such time, it is not authorized to grant university credit for it courses.
Credit, however, is available through other institutions. Not all Wilmette Institute students want academic credit for their study, but making academic credit available is important because it sets standards of rigor, approach to the subject, and thoroughness of treatment that are distinctive aspects of the Spiritual Foundations curriculum. Academic credit requires preparation for class (homework), evaluation of student learning (exercises and testing), and registering the results (grading). It also means the majority of our instructors must have at least a Master's degree and preferably some university teaching experience.
Credit is available at both the graduate and undergraduate levels through the following ways:
1. The Graduate School of America.
The Graduate School of America (TGSA) is a distance learning institution based in Minneapolis, Minnesota accredited through the Northcentral Association. It offers Master's degrees and Ph.Ds in four areas: education, human resource management, business, and liberal studies. TGSA's courses are either distance-learning tutorials, whereby each student ("learner") establishes a learning contract with an instructor to complete a certain course of study or are internet-based seminars. TGSA also requires its students to attend several two-week courses, usually held at universities in Minnesota.
TGSA has agreed that Spiritual Foundations students can apply all the work they do toward one of the four TGSA degree programs and will give our students a 10 percent discount (or 15 percent if more than five students register). TGSA does not grant undergraduate credit.
2. Credit through Local Universities.
Universities are becoming increasingly flexible about granting "life experience" credit and credit for other learning experiences. To date, two Spiritual Foundations students have been able to get credit for their work through their undergraduate university; one received financial aid to attend the summer session. One student has obtained credit for the revelation of Bahá'u'lláh correspondence course. Students who are already studying for a bachelor’s degree and who wish to obtain university credit should talk to their advisors about how to request credit for Spiritual Foundations study before beginning the program. Many universities do not charge students extra for such credit. The Wilmette Institute has sample syllabi for the first, second, and third year courses that students can present to their advisors or university registrars as evidence that the Spiritual Foundations for a Global Civilization work meets academic standards.