Statement of Accreditation
There is much to be said about academic accreditation, even in religious programs. While it is not required, it is generally still a good thing to have for a religious institution. However, it is also an expensive thing. Many seminaries and universities pay thousands of dollars per year to obtain and retain accreditation.
Many unaccredited institutions claim that accreditation is not only unnecessary, but also at times possibly harmful to an institution's ability to perform at its own pace and in its own direction. For Kehillat Yeshua Messianic Yeshiva, however, we believe accreditation is a good thing. We aspire to be able to serve as many students and as cost-effectively as we can. At this time, KYMY is not accredited, and we want to be up front and honest with that. However, we do believe that if it is Adonai's will for us to become accredited - as we ourselves hope to one day be - He will make a way for that to happen.
What does that mean for our students? That depends on what the student desires to do. For students who want to learn and grow and be Messianic ministers, accreditation has little extra to offer. Students whose primary concerns are their own growth, maturity, and understanding do not need an outside organization to validate and accredit their degree.
However, we would be remiss if we did not inform the prospective student that without a fully accredited program, their degree is unlikely to land them a job teaching at an accredited institution. In some cases, certain Christian denominations require an accredited degree in order to be an ordained pastor in one of their Churches. While this is unlikely to ever be a barrier in the Messianic Jewish community at large, it is something that we want to make sure students are aware of before beginning their academic careers with the Yeshiva.
Many unaccredited institutions claim that accreditation is not only unnecessary, but also at times possibly harmful to an institution's ability to perform at its own pace and in its own direction. For Kehillat Yeshua Messianic Yeshiva, however, we believe accreditation is a good thing. We aspire to be able to serve as many students and as cost-effectively as we can. At this time, KYMY is not accredited, and we want to be up front and honest with that. However, we do believe that if it is Adonai's will for us to become accredited - as we ourselves hope to one day be - He will make a way for that to happen.
What does that mean for our students? That depends on what the student desires to do. For students who want to learn and grow and be Messianic ministers, accreditation has little extra to offer. Students whose primary concerns are their own growth, maturity, and understanding do not need an outside organization to validate and accredit their degree.
However, we would be remiss if we did not inform the prospective student that without a fully accredited program, their degree is unlikely to land them a job teaching at an accredited institution. In some cases, certain Christian denominations require an accredited degree in order to be an ordained pastor in one of their Churches. While this is unlikely to ever be a barrier in the Messianic Jewish community at large, it is something that we want to make sure students are aware of before beginning their academic careers with the Yeshiva.