Chicago theological seminary Reviews

Great institution with caring faculty and great resources. Innovative, rigorous, diverse and progressive.

I had a similar experience at Kenneth Gordon. I was told that I could not complete my MDiv, after a series of appeals, they told me I could not complete my degree. I had a high gpa, and desperately wanted to be a chaplain. I wasn't given any reason, except that it was confidential and the decision was made. It crushed my spirit, and to this day I have no explanation for it. I have a ridiculous amount of debt, no Mdiv and even though my church conference was accepting of me, CTS was not. I am also on the autism spectrum, which I had stated on my application, which I suspect had something to do with it. They ruined my career and my life.

They are also a private institution so they can get away with discrimination and end a person's career with no explanation. However, I would like to remind them that they still have to follow ADA because they receive federal funding through student loans. What they did to me and have done to others is unconscionable and beyond anything I would expect from an institution of faith.

They ruined my life, my future and left me with gargantuan debt.

I have been an on line student with a 3.5 gpa and projected graduation with an MDiv in Spring 2021. Generally I have loved the academic material and thrived with the on line setting. I have never received any sort of caution or advice concerning my progress. In Dec 2019, I was informed that the results of my "Middler Review" were that I would not be allowed to graduate with an MDiv from CTS. I appealed with the support of very strong letters of support from the supervisors of my CPE and Pastoral Internship. I was again refused. I have specifically asked what evidence their is of my unsuitability, none has been offered. There is no option to appeal further. Hoping that there would be some redress, I have sent the text of this post to the president's office and asked if there should be some correction, Sadly, there is no correction. Faculty can throw you out without giving a reason at any point in your course of studies

Has historical roots with the United Church of Christ, but today is ecumenical and interfaith, with faculty from diverse Christian, Jewish, and Muslim backgrounds. Sound theological, biblical, and psychological formation. Takes matters of faith and racial justice, and LGBTQ justice seriously. Black, womanist, feminist, postcolonial, queer hermeneutics applied here. For someone who doesn't know CTS, check out the course catalogue - you'll discover pretty quickly if it's a place for your theological growth.

I want to thank Kenneth Gordon, et al for saving me from wasting my time, money, and emotional energy on CTS. The lack of transparency during the admissions process was enough to put me off going to CTS, and others should know what happened.

CTS says that they have a rolling admissions policy, which means that they are supposed to be looking at applications as they come in. I applied to their MDiv program in September of 2020 for the fall semester of 2021. I was told by the Dean of Students, Jason Frey, that since my application was complete in October of 2020 and I had applied for the fall semester, the admissions committee would review it in November of 2020. Doing so would have been consistent with a rolling admissions process, but that's not what happened.

Nearly three months later, having heard nothing, I inquired about the process and was told that there must have been a "misunderstanding" and that they don't look at any applications until after their February 15th, 2021 priority deadline. But there was no misunderstanding. I have an email showing two things: 1) Jason acknowledges that I'd applied for the fall semester, and 2) Jason states they'd look at my application in November. Of course, if they're waiting until February 15, 2021 to look at applications, then they don't have a rolling admissions policy at all. They have a conventional admissions policy.

Now, from the reviews here, I see that they are refusing to allow people with high GPAs to progress in the MDiv program for any reason and no reason, and that there is no transparency to their process. I would never want to go to such a place.

I graduated from CTS in 2014 with my MDiv. I have been inspired, transformed, and found my voice thanks to the helpful professors, diverse student body, and the challenge of the culminating constructive theology paper.