Step 1: Apply
Well, the first thing students will do is to apply. We want to make sure this is straightforward and simple. That is why we will be providing all students with an easy, browser-based portal as our standard college interface. For $10 per month per family, students will have a positive experience of accessing all of their information from one reliable technology Internet portal!
It all starts with the on-line application. This four-page questionnaire will be easy to access, and easy to submit. You might want to first print out a copy of the application worksheet so you can fill it out manually beforehand, or cut-and-paste it into a Word document, so that you can easily re-enter the information on your browser once you have everything answered.
Then fill in the questions and hit the "Submit" button. It will take you to a page to pay the Application Fee. We'll then get your payment and the application to evaluate.
Step 2: Pay Application Fee
As we said, once you have completed the application and used the on-line payment option to pay the application fee, your application will be processed. We will evaluate your application as quickly as we can, and notify you of your enrollment status. You should be accepted into the Associates in Biblical Worldview Studies degree or Certification in Biblical Worldview Studies program within just a few short days. We will contact you with a confirmation. Then you will be ready for your continued home-based learning opportunity through The Christian Institute.
Step 3: Degree/Courses Selection
Upon your acceptance into the college, you will be instructed how to set up your degree information (or you may just indicate you are “undecided” on your degree path if you wish. That will be fine until you reach the third-year college level.) You will also be asked to choose a few electives in your Associates in Biblical Worldview Studies program as you define your course selections.
After this, you will need to submit your degree request form, including your course selections, along with the required Enrollment, Administrative, and first-month Technology fees. Then you are ready to receive your first course description, including syllabus objectives and other particulars.
From this point forward, the time schedule and study plan is up to you (and your parents, if you’re still being taught in their home under their direction). TCI allows you to study at your own pace, either alone or with others that you may be most comfortable learning with regularly.
Parents, we want to emphasize that the materials that you select for your student(s) to finish each course requirement will be up to you to decide. We will provide you with a syllabus, potential sources for the course study materials, and in some cases, even a course program that you can enroll in. But TCI is not going to decide for you how these courses should be completed. We believe that is your job. You are the educators, the teachers, the instructors, the professors, the first-level administrators, and guidance counselors—all of these.
Remember, when you get to the college level, no one is going to be looking over your student’s shoulder, reminding them of time schedules, deadlines, assignments, and so on. This is college! Students are more responsible for their decisions at this level. But you know that already.
What we are doing is providing a means for children who are ready academically for college-level work, but not ready for the emotional, spiritual, and moral pressures of college campus life, to be able to continue learning as they grow in these areas of life. As parents, you can be there to work with your children as they continue to grow, until you are comfortable in letting them loose on their own. This is completely different from any other college program that we know of in this regard. Many parents will appreciate this unique college option that The Christian Institute provides.
Step 4: Completing the Secular Portion of Each Course
Next, once the study of the first part of the syllabus for each course is completed, students will need to set up their standardized test requirements. This may seem confusing at first, but its really quite simple. Depending on the test being taken, you will go to the appropriate website to find out where to take the exam, and how often the test is offered. There are several test options you can consider:
CLEP™: This is the most basic and straightforward way to go. It is the test option we recommend you use in most cases. The Christian Institute accepts all of the CLEP exams, as part of specific courses in the Associates in Biblical Worldview Studies degree program. You can learn more about CLEP requirements at http://www.collegeboard.com/clep. Each CLEP is required (as outlined in the specific course description) to obtain the “C” grade in the corresponding subject, along with minimal additional worldview course material. The required CLEP passing grade is based upon the instructor’s criteria. Even though specific colleges may accept a pass grade of 50 for CLEP credit, this may not be true in the course you are taking from TCI. So make sure you check the syllabus. This is very important.
Advanced Placement™ (AP): Some parents may wish for their students to take an AP course instead of the CLEP exam in a specific subject. If so, just follow the information outlined on the AP website at http://apcentral.collegeboard.com. Any subject with a CLEP may substitute the corresponding AP course and exam in its place.
DANTES™: There are other ways to get college credit at home. If you’re close to a military base, you can take advantage of the “Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support” (DANTES) exams to show competency in courses that are needed for the basic TCI requirements. Go to the DANTES website, http://www.dantes.doded.mil to find out more information.
Local Community College, other private or public College or University courses: If you have a local college course that meets the prerequisites of a TCI course, this too can be used to meet the secular component requirements of a course you are planning to take with us. Just have a transcript sent to us; we’ll evaluate it and tell you if you will need to do any further work to get corresponding credit or not. Please make sure to include a thorough course description and syllabus, so that our job of evaluation will be easier.
Step 5: The Biblical Worldview Portion
Please check over the TCI course syllabus that you receive when your information arrives for each course, to determine whether or not a specific grade attainment on an exam or transfer course is required in order for credit to be accepted. Also determine what additional requirements are needed to obtain a “C,” “B,” or “A” in the specific course.
Step 6: Complete Each Course in your TCI Degree Program
One more thing: The Christian Institute is about letting students continue to learn in the home, being taught by their parents, learning the way they were designed to learn. (Yes, there will be some students who don’t have a perfect situation at home, but that’s why Jesus died and rose again—to redeem.) We believe that homeschooling works because it’s based on parent-directed education. The key is that homeschooling is God’s idea. It’s grounded in the concepts found in God’s Word, the Bible—recognizing that true learning starts with the family. It’s about fathers and mothers being there for children, and being able to teach them until they are equipped to be on their own. If there are others who also learn along the way, we attribute that to the redeeming power of God to give His grace to those to want to do things His way.
Now that you understand a bit better how we operate, we’re sure you will become comfortable forging your home-based, parent-directed biblical worldview college experience in the way that best meets your individual needs. In the final analysis, The Christian Institute is about the freedom to learn in the way that works best for you! We wish you God’s best as you study to show yourself approved by Him in your postsecondary education. Our job is to assist you in any way that we can to achieve your college goals.
So please go to the top of this section and click on the application link to start your enrollment process. We look forward to getting to know each and every student along the way. Please let us know anything we can do to assist you along the journey!
Good learning!
David and Laurie Callihan
Directors
The Christian Institute