Pastoral licensing affirms a faith based person has the ability and competence for pastoral ministry including counseling, teaching, and performing rituals of the church. These rituals include but are not limited to weddings, funerals, dedications, baptisms, hospital and prison visitation, and communion. 

Accreditation simply means institutional quality assessment by a non governmental organization. With this accreditation the government can grant access to student loans.

Accreditation  ensures institutions of higher education have an acceptable level of quality.  Accreditation in the United States includes  non-governmental accrediting organizations and  federal and state government agencies known as the Triad. Quality assurance is one of three elements governing the Higher Education Act’s (HEA’s) federal student aid programs. In order for students to receive federal student aid from the U.S. Department of Education the institution must be accredited by a “nationally recognized” accrediting body. 

Accrediting agencies are private associations which  develop assessment criteria with peer evaluations to create accountability and quality control.  Institutions and/or programs that request an accreditor’s evaluation and that meet an accreditor’s criteria are then “accredited”. https://www2.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/accreditation.htm

The constitution grants educational institutions and specifically faith based programs considerable independence and autonomy. The United States has no centralized federal authority exercising control over the quality of postsecondary educational institutions, and states vary control over education. As a consequence, American educational institutions differ in the character and quality of their programs. To ensure a basic level of quality, accreditation arose in the late 19th century as a means of conducting nongovernmental, peer review of institutions and programs. With the passage of the HEA in 1965, Congress expanded the role of accrediting agencies by entrusting them with assessing academic quality of educational institutions at which federal student aid funds may be used. Although accrediting agencies promote standards for institutional quality, agencies have no legal control over institutions or programs. https://www2.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/accreditation_pg2.html 

Certification means a person can competently complete a job or task, usually by the passing of an examination and/or the completion of a program of study. Some certifications require practical experience in a related field before the certification is awarded. Some professional certifications are valid for a lifetime, while others expire after a period of time and must be maintained with additional education and/or assessments. Certifications may or may not be accredited.

I have three earned degrees with accreditation by non governmental organizations. They are a Bachelor of Art, Masters of Theological Studies, and Doctor of Ministry.  I have a license to practice mental health counseling accredited by the State of Washington.

I have an earned PhD including dissertation, exam, and supervision both individual and group. I have four certifications in sex addiction treatment, multi addiction treatment, clinical sexology, and traumatic stress.  

I am an ordained minister with pastoral licensure.

Three degrees and one license are accredited by state and or federal organizations and the balance have been granted by non accredited agencies.

As I review the accredited degree programs and non accredited in my resume, the only difference in my experience is the ability to acquire funding granted by the 1965 HEA Act. The content of the non accredited in many ways was more rigorous, demanding, and practical than the accredited. Degree programs and licensing can be subject to bureaucracy, politics, and institutional irrelevance accredited or not.

Accreditation simply means institutional quality assessment by a non governmental organization. With this accreditation the government can grant access to student loans for the curricula. 

My licensure and certifications have included over 3000 professional clinical counseling hours serving thousands of clients.  I have had over 160 hours of individual and group supervision of case studies. I have written two doctoral projects totaling over 500 pages and thousands of hours of research with clinical practicums.

The purpose of non accredited degrees and certifications ensures quality with positive treatment outcomes for clients. Many accredited institutions do not support the theoretical foundations of specific client populations. For example, faith based clients reporting problematic sexuality seek spiritually based counselors able to use Scripture in treatment. Psychotherapeutic accredited treatments are at the foundation non faith based. If an accredited institution does not support faith or spirituality in the curricula then the treatment approach will fail to meet the client need, context, and culture. If institutions do not treat sex addiction with spiritual protocols, then a client suffering from problematic sexuality most likely will not identify with the treatment. Therefore, non accredited degrees, licenses, and certifications can be as essential and helpful as accredited.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse the relapse rate of drug and alcohol parallels other diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and asthma. Addiction recidivism ranges from 40-60%.  https://nida.nih.gov/publications/principles-drug-addiction-treatment-research-based-guide-third-edition/frequently-asked-questions/how-effective-drug-addiction-treatment

Alcoholics Anonymous reported over 90% success rate in the formative years of the program. Clients within my private practice report similar treatment results. Of a number of reasons for treatment success I believe spirituality and relevance for specific client needs are at the core. (Baldwin, 2004)

A program or therapist may have accreditation, but at the same time may practice irrelevant treatment resulting in low success rates with high recidivism. 

What I have attempted in my professional education is to achieve a balance of accredited degrees and licensing, and at the same time accumulate certifications which produce positive treatment results for clients. Some of these certifications are non accredited, but at the same time achieve positive treatment results within a therapeutic culture often reporting poor outcomes.

My Sex Therapy certification is granted by the Sex Therapy Training Institute. Its coursework has been approved by the Florida Board of Nursing, Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy and Mental Health Counseling, and the Florida Board of Psychology. The certification training has been approved by the National Board of Certified Counselors as an Approved Continuing Education Provider. The certification involves 20 supervision hours in clinical sex therapy with completion of 150 educational hours in Human Sexuality Education and Sex Therapy Training.