Spirit College offers something unique to the world that can change the quality of many lives by bringing new meaning, understanding and a deeper appreciation to learning. Nontraditional Degree Programs provide expanded opportunities for quality education in two newly developed 'Metaphysical' degree completion programs.
For the most part, the majority of students will not be enrolled in the Metaphysical degree program - they will primarily come to Spirit College out of curious interest and take a course or two. Some will want to earn CEUs while others may seek a degree or certification courses. META programs are self-paced and involve hands-on instructor guidance and individualized academic advising to support students’ meta-degree attainment.
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PROPOSED META-DEGREE PROGRAMS*
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Bachelor of Meta-Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies offers students a variety of options to complete graduation requirements, including prior learning assessment for credit. These offerings are non-traditional in design and therefore would not meet regionally accredited standards which should be made clear before enrolling.
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University Without Walls is a competency-based program that leads to a Masters of Metaphysical Arts or Science degree. Students in this program are highly motivated, self-directed, and have clear learning goals.
Competency-based Credit Policy
Spirit College will consider offering Nontraditional Degree Programs (NDPs) that award credit for private mentoring, apprentice programs and independent study along with prior experiential learning in order to acknowledge and validate college level learning that occurs outside the classroom. The Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) option for students who wish to major in the degree completion program Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies (BAIS) as it helps students determine, demonstrate and document such learning with integrity and rigor through a Prior Learning Portfolio submitted for assessment by faculty evaluation.
Course Unit /Spirit Credit CEU Based Approach
The program uses the credit equivalency model of PLA in which students identify an existing credit-bearing course (offered by an affiliated school or within Spirit College) that states learning outcomes consistent with those of the student’s prior experiential learning. The student demonstrates through a portfolio how and when the course-equivalent learning occurred and requests an award of credit. A credentialed faculty member with expertise in the relevant academic area evaluates the portfolio and makes a determination regarding the award of credit. The amount of credit awarded through PLA is limited to 36 credit hours for each student and may be applied to any BAIS degree requirement except those stated as conditional.
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University Without Walls
In addition, NDP offers University Without Walls (UWW) degree program. This program awards the bachelor’s degree based on demonstrated competencies as determined by Northeastern’s faculty. Each competency is assigned a proportional share of the 120 credit hours required of a traditional Northeastern bachelor’s degree.
Right niUWW Competency/ComponentEquivalent Credit HoursPercentage of 120 Cred