A:  While students who study online do not need to have a degree in Computer Science, they do need to have some “tech savviness”.  Being able to communicate via email is essential since the students as well as the faculty are from all around the world, on very different timezones.  Our courses are taught through what is called a Learning Management System; we use Populi. When you begin your studies with us, we provide a 2-week free Populi Orientation course.  This helps you navigate the Populi system. However, it doesn’t help you with basic computer skills. It is assumed that you have those. What are some of those skills besides being able to use email?   Knowing how to upload and download documents to or from the computer is essential since the professors will need you to download files (pull files “down” to your personal computer) as well as need you to upload your papers (push your personal  files “up” to a location where the professor can see them). A number of professors will require the use of Microsoft Office Suite products such as Power Point, Excel and Word. You will need to purchase this software or use some free comparable software that allows you to view Microsoft files through them.  Can you view videos or listen to CDs? Do you know what a Browser is and can you navigate around one? Can you use an online database, such as one that our library provides, for publications? If you don’t feel comfortable with some of these, then you would likely benefit from taking a small computer course through places like your Public Library or a Geek Squad group.  It’s also helpful to have someone near your home (like a teenager or a tech support person) that you can call when you get stuck. The Technical people at Holy Apostles are here to help with Populi issues, but we simply cannot teach beginning computer skills at this point in time.

A: Holy Apostles College and Seminary, including our online learning program, is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE) and by the State of Connecticut Board of Higher Education.

Accredited Membership in the Association of Theological Schools

Holy Apostles College & Seminary is accredited by The Commission on Accrediting of the Association of Theological School (10 Summit Park Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15275
Phone: 412.788.6505),

The following degree programs are approved by the Commission on Accrediting:

Master of Divinity
Master of Arts (Theology) (Academic MA)
Master of Arts (Philosophy) (Academic MA)
Master of Arts (Pastoral Studies) (Ministerial MA)

What is the ATS?

From the ATS website: The Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada (ATS) is a membership organization of more than 270 graduate schools that conduct post-baccalaureate professional and academic degree programs to educate persons for the practice of ministry and for teaching and research in the theological disciplines. The Commission on Accrediting of ATS accredits the schools and approves the degree programs they offer. ATS membership is open to schools in the Christian and Jewish faiths. The current membership represents the full range of Christian denominations, including schools in mainline and evangelical Protestant and Roman Catholic and Orthodox traditions, as well as multidenominational and nondenominational schools. Schools representing other faiths and other organizations interested in theological education may become Affiliates of ATS.

ATS Accreditation Letter

You may see more about our Accreditation standings HERE.

A: There is no residency requirement for the Holy Apostles online program. The Associate of Arts program can be completed entirely online within three years of matriculating into the program. The Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts programs can be completed entirely online within six years of matriculating into the program.

Please follow this link to view our Online Learning and Technology Requirements

Our Online Learning programs include both undergraduate and graduate studies.

Undergraduate Students can earn the following degrees entirely online: Associates of Arts degree, Bachelor of Arts Degree, majoring in a number of subjects.

Graduate Students enrolled in our program can earn the following degrees entirely online:  a Master’s degree in Philosophy, a Master’s degree in Theology, or a Master’s degree in Pastoral Studies.

Holy Apostles also offer Graduate Certificates as well as Post Master’s Certificates.

High School and Homeschooled students have the opportunity to earn college credits through our Take Credit! Program and our Angelicum Academy Partnership.  

We currently do not offer an M.Div online at this time.

You may explore more details about our Academic Programs HERE.

A:  For all current undergraduate students, please contact your Academic Advisor.  For all current graduate students, please contact [email protected] .  

A:  Please visit the Transcript Request Page.

A: Please visit our Tuition and Financial Aid page for more information on our financial aid policy, FAFSA and contact information.  

A:  Degree-seeking students are pursuing one of the following: AA (Associates of Arts) degree, BA (Bachelor of Arts) degree, MA (Master of Arts) degree, PMC (Post Masters Certificate), or a GC (Graduate Certificate).   

Personal Interest students merely want to take a few courses in order to learn about a particular subject or to have those courses transferred to another institution. They are not pursuing a Degree with Holy Apostles.  

A: The online program has a rolling admissions policy. We offer three full semesters of course work per year divided up over sixteen-week sessions. Our sessions run in the Fall, Spring and Summer. A student interested in the DL program can enroll in one class as an in-process student while a completed application is on file.

A: Yes. We regularly enroll students from Asia, Australia, and Europe in our programs. Please note that all tuition and fees must be paid in United States Dollars.

A: Yes. The college has a process in place to accommodate for students with disabilities. Students in need of this kind of accommodation may submit, along with their application, a Disabilities Accommodation Form with documentation of the disability.

• Disability Disclosure and Accommodations Request Form

A: Current tuition for a three-credit course at Holy Apostles is 72% lower than the average private colleges/universities. Please see our Tuition & Financial Aid for details.  Some courses require DVD lectures, others CD lectures, while others utilize text and Internet-based resources. This information is available with our registration materials that can be purchased before each semester.

A: A course syllabus is made available before the start of each semester’s registration period. All required books and materials will be listed on the course syllabus. You may find a listing of the current semester’s syllabi by visiting Online Courses & Registration Information.

A: The Faculty Response Policy, effective October 15, 2013, reads as follows: All faculty will respond to emails from students within 48 hours of receipt. If faculty plan to be away from their email for longer than that period, they should notify their students of their absence and post an out-of-office message on their email providing a reasonable time frame in which a response may be expected.

A: Holy Apostles College & Seminary is currently completing a two-year effort to ensure that the college is authorized to operate in every state in which its students reside. Should you exhaust the grievance procedures at the college itself in your pursuit of a redress against the institution, you are invited to submit your complaints directly to the Office of Higher Education within the state in which you reside. Please visit WCET’s page at http://wcet.wiche.edu/advance/state-approval-complaint to find the information for the state in which you reside.

Example: Holy Apostles College & Seminary is currently filing paperwork to be authorized to operate in the State of Maryland. Residents of the State of Maryland who wish to submit a complaint may use the following contact information: Office of the Attorney General, Consumer Protection Division, 200 St. Paul Place, Baltimore, MD 21202. Please see the Student Complain Process for the State of Maryland located at: http://www.mhec.state.md.us/higherEd/acadAff/MHECStudentComplaintProcess.

A: Please visit our Tuition & Financial Aid page for details regarding the refund policy.

**Maryland students please this specific policy located HERE.**

The short answer is about 7.5 hours a week over 15 weeks based on the Carnegie Unit defined in November, 2010, by the United States Department of Education for coursework in programs of higher education. The way it breaks down is this:

Federal regulation defines a credit hour as an amount of work represented in intended learning outcomes and verified by evidence of student achievement that is an institutional established equivalence that reasonably approximates not less than: (1) One hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of two hours of out of class student work each week for approximately fifteen weeks for one semester or trimester hour of credit, or ten to twelve weeks for one quarter hour of credit, or the equivalent amount of work over a different amount of time; or (2) At least an equivalent amount of work as required in paragraph (1) of this definition for other academic activities as established by the institution including laboratory work, internships, practica, studio work, and other academic work leading to the award of credit hours. (NECHE Policy 111. See also Standards for Accreditation 4.34.)

A: Students must complete our Transfer Student application and submit all the needed documentation. The link for the Transfer Student application is here: (application link) Please see the Undergraduate Admissions Page here for more information on the documentation needed.

Holy Apostles may accept up to 30 undergraduate credit hours with a grade of C or higher from accredited colleges towards a student’s Associate of Arts Degree and may accept up to 60 credit hours with a grade of C or higher from accredited colleges towards a student’s Bachelor of Arts Degree. All transfer credits are accepted at the discretion of the Academic Dean.

A: Students pursuing an Associate of Arts degree may not double-major.  Students pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree may double-major in any of the majors that are offered at Holy Apostles on the undergraduate level.  

A: Students pursuing an Associate of Arts Degree must earn a minimum of 60 credit hours to earn their degree, and a minimum of 120 credit hours to earn a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Holy Apostles.

A: Yes. As a part of the application process, students with 0-12 college credits must submit official scores from one of the standardized tests listed.  Students must submit either their SAT, ACT or CLT scores as part of their application. The essay component is highly recommended, but not required.

A: The Take Credit! Program is available to any current high school and home-schooled student who has completed their 10Th-grade year to begin earning college credit before their graduation. For more information visit the Take Credit! Program page here.

A: Yes, it is the policy of Holy Apostles College & Seminary to accept credits that have been recommended by ACE that meet the normative criteria for transfer of credit.

A: Please visit our Tuition and Financial Aid page for more information on our financial aid policy, FAFSA and contact information.  

A: We can accept up to 6 credits of transfer credits from another regionally accredited institution. An official transcript plus a catalog listing must be sent to us so the Dean can be sure that the courses taken meet our criteria of being Thomistic based courses with grades of “B” or better. In addition, the courses taken cannot have been used towards a previous degree.

A: All MA programs require a Summative Evaluation at the end of one’s studies. The MA’s in Theology and Philosophy allow for a choice between either taking a Comprehensive Exam or writing a thesis. The MA in Pastoral Studies requires the Comprehensive exam only. Please see the Summative Evaluation Page to understand the process of each choice.

A: Yes, students can take the courses offered at the NCBC and earn 9 Graduate credits. These credits can be either transferred to a different institution or used towards our MA in Theology degree, concentrating in Bioethics. The courses become 3 out of the 4 Bioethics concentration core courses, leaving the student with the final 9 courses to be taken on our Learning Management System. Please see the MA Theology Bioethics w/ NCBC Certification Concentration page.

A: For the Master of Arts, students need a total of 36 credit hours (Twelve 3-credit courses). M.A. coursework includes 2 co-requisite courses, 4 program core courses, 4 concentration core courses and 2 electives.

A. In general, incoming students are required to take the co-requisite courses, PHH 605 Ancient & Medieval Philosophy and PHH 620 Modern & Contemporary Philosophy.


A student entering our M.A. in Philosophy program with a B.A. in Philosophy from a Catholic institution is exempt from both co-requisite courses, PHH 605 Ancient & Medieval Philosophy and PHH 620 Modern & Contemporary Philosophy, if the following criteria is met: (1) the student has a scholastic background indicated in the student’s previous transcripts or syllabi where the degree was earned, and (2) the student has taken undergraduate courses in the following courses: Ancient Philosophy, Medieval Philosophy, Modern Philosophy, and Contemporary Philosophy”.  

A student who is exempt from one or both of the co-requisites in either of these programs simply takes an additional elective course, or two, for a total of 36 hours.