In the United States, member seminaries and schools represent a broad range of denominations; for example: The Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary of Andrews University prepares ministers to serve the Seventh-day Adventist Church. They offer doctoral programs, master's programs and graduate certificates in religious education. Programs range from advanced study through those who wish to promote spiritual growth on college campuses. The Mount Saint Mary Seminary is the second-oldest Catholic Seminary in the United States. Its mission is to prepare men to serve as Roman Catholic priests. The seminary enrolls over 150 residential seminarians who represent over 30 U.S. dioceses.
Prospective students can find accredited seminaries throughout the United States. Located in Atlanta, Georgia, the Candler School of Theology of Emory University prepares leaders to serve the United Methodist Church and other Christian denominations and service agencies. The seminary offers a variety of programs and certificates in Methodist studies. The American Baptist Seminary of the West (located in Berkeley, California) prepares men and women for leadership roles in American Baptist churches. The seminary provides an interdisciplinary curriculum that melds historical, biblical, theological and social-psychological disciplines. It offers an accredited Master of Divinity and Master of Arts in community leadership.
While some ATS member institutions provide opportunities for distance education, a prospective student cannot earn a degree at an accredited seminary solely through distance learning courses. Luther Seminary --- part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America --- provides online courses that run concurrently with residential courses. The seminary also offers a Master of Divinity; a Master of Arts in children, youth and family; and graduate certificates in aging and parish nursing via distributed learning: a combination of online and intensive, two-week courses. The Phoenix Seminary is an evangelical, inter-multidenominational graduate theological seminary that is open to men and women. While the seminary believes it is best to provide most coursework face-to-face, in September 2010, it began to offer one biblical literature elective course online. The seminary plans to eventually offer 10 online Master of Divinity required courses.
ATS member institutions undergo accreditation by The Commission on Accrediting, which provides established standards of educational and institutional quality. Accreditation is voluntary and includes self study and peer review. It also permits member institutions to participate in the federal student loan program. The Commission on Accrediting does not accredit undergraduate programs or Bible colleges.