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FAQ
CONTENTS:
1. General Questions
2. Exam Questions
3. Student Operational Questions
4. Payment
Questions
5. Course
Utilization and Availability Questions
6. Ames
Christian University Questions
1.
GENERAL QUESTIONS ABOUT AMES INT'L SCHOOL OF MINISTRY:
What is Ames
International School of Ministry (AISOM)?
Ames International School of
Ministry is the free bible
college affiliate of Ames Christian University (ACU). It exists to
make free bible study courses available via the Internet. A
small processing fee is charged for each course only if credit
is desired.
What is the Ames
International School of Ministry (AISOM) curriculum?
AISOM uses the
curriculum published by the Harvestime Institute. The
curriculum is divided into four modules designed around a
theme with each module generally increasing in the level of
challenge it presents. Based on a foundation of biblical
studies, the Harvestime curriculum brings learners closer to
God through knowledge of the Word and experience of God’s
love. Beginning with a comprehensive
overview of the scriptures, the Ames International School of
Ministry curriculum
integrates personal, community, and special applications of
God’s Word. By completing the program, learners encounter
God’s presence in their lives, work, church, and community.
WHY are the courses free? This is
just too good to be true!! Thousands of students from around the world are deprived of a
Bible College education due to lack of funds and availability. Ames
International School of Ministry (AISOM) formerly Ames Bible
College (ABC), was specifically designed to be a blessing to
the Body of Christ and by placing sponsor ads on our site
which generate a small percentage of funding and by keeping
our expenses low, we have been able to provide free or low
cost education.
Since we can not provide a free accredited program, we put
together payment plans low enough that almost anyone can
afford to work towards a (BBS / BA) Bachelor of Biblical
Studies degree through Ames.
What is the
difference between the free and the low-cost accredited
program?
In the free program, you will
receive a .pdf Certificate of Completion that you print yourself and this
does not include a transcript or transferable credits.
In the accredited program, you pay a
$20.00 per course administrative fee and all accredited students are required to post a brief weekly report of their
study progress. Upon completion, we will mail you a printed
Certificate of Biblical Studies and transcript. The transcript will also be
forwarded to Ames Christian University (ACU) if you wish and you
will have 87 credits towards the 120 credits needed for a
Bachelors degree in Biblical Studies.
How do I switch to the Accredited Program if I began in the
Free Program?
All that is needed is for you to make a payment.
Either pay online through Paypal or Google Checkout or you
can forward a check or money order to the address below in
the payment question section. Once we receive the
payment, you are automatically in the Accredited Program.
Does Ames International School of
Ministry accept
transfer credits from other colleges?
AISOM does accept transfer credits from other bible colleges.
All transcripts sent to us for evaluation must come from the
academic institution you studied with and
upon our acceptance, there is a $15.00 fee per transfer credit.
Depending upon the amount of credits we accept, you then would
need to complete whatever AISOM courses you wish to make up the required 87
credits to graduate to transfer to Ames Christian University. Contact us for more information.
Are there other
schools that accept Ames International School of Ministry (AISOM) credits besides Ames
Christian University? Each educational institution
evaluates transferable credits on a case by case basis. You
will need to contact the other colleges you are considering to
see if they will accept credits from Ames Christian
University.
Does Ames
International School of Ministry grant degrees?
While AISOM is not in
itself a degree-granting institution, by virtue of its
affiliation with Ames Christian University, AISOM
learners may convert their completed certificates into Ames
Christian University for credit. Fully completing the AISOM program
and paying the $20.00 administrative fee per course will result in 87 college credits,
approximately 75% of the number required for a degree, toward
the Bachelor of Biblical Studies at Ames Christian
University. Accredited students are issued a printed Certificate of
Completion and printed transcript, both of which
are forwarded to ACU when all the courses are finished. The
students in the free program receive a .PDF
Certificate of
Completion only rather than a printed
Certificate of Biblical Studies
Diploma.
How long does it
take to complete the AISOM program?
The courses are entirely self-paced,
so each person’s time to completion will vary. The curriculum
has been assessed for college credit, so a college-equivalent
experience is expected. Depending on your availability to
study you may be able to complete 1-3 courses per month as
each course differs in length. Learners should expect to
spend approximately as much time on each course as they would
on an equivalent college course. It has been completed in as
little as six months of full time study (8 hours per day) to
complete all 22 courses.
How are the
courses administered? Courses are delivered online in the
popular Adobe Acrobat pdf file format or in .html format.
Each course is a self-contained module of lessons,
assignments, and tests. Exams are completed in the Student
Exam Center and grades are submitted to AISOM online.
How can I teach these courses at my
church? Ames International School of Ministry has an extension campus program.
We currently have 39 extension centers in churches using our program.
Click Here
Why does the Ames International School of
Ministry (AISOM) e-mail
and correspondence come from Ames Learning Systems?
Ames Christian University began in March, 2002. In
September, 2003 a partnership was created and Ames
International School of Ministry (AISOM) began and was affiliated through ACU. Both schools
were created separately with separate founders. In January,
2005 the president of ACU stepped down for health reasons and
the President of AISOM, formerly Ames Bible College (ABC), was elected into the office of
Ames Christian University (ACU). As a
result, both entities have become conglomerates of one another
but ACU is the parent group. Both operate separately but are
managed collectively. We created the Ames Learning Systems
name to cover both schools. AISOM is a scholarship school
providing free or low-cost biblical education.
2. EXAM QUESTIONS:
Why are the answers made available to
us and why are we grading our own courses? We
currently have over 28,000+ students worldwide taking the 22 AISOM
courses, many of which are in our free program, and at that
rate it is impossible for us to manage grading that many
exams. We therefore operate on an honor system. All
exams are "closed book", so to speak and we prefer for you
to have your courses graded by a person of notable authority if possible.
It can be a pastor, a teacher, a parent or guardian or adult
relative but preferably a person of integrity and spiritual
maturity.
All AISOM exams are specifically
designed and created to inform us if you do not complete them
honestly. We have developed processes within the
curriculum to
ensure that learners study and take our exams by the academic honor code.
Academic excellence is required to advance to Ames Christian
University (ACU) and to graduate from ACU. The Bible says: Be
sure your sins will find you out and the Bible proves men's
hearts.
If I enroll in the free program and
decide to pay at a later date, will I have to start all over or
do I get credit for the courses I have taken thus far? Once you pay the administrative fees, the courses you have
taken become accredited and you do not have to take them again.
We suggest that if you are not going to pay
upfront for all the courses that you decide after a few
courses to switch and to begin making the $20.00 payments as
you go. Otherwise, you will complete the courses and have to
start paying and will have to wait to get your certificate. If
you pay as you go, your payments will be completed at graduation time. Once
you make any payment, your account is credited and you are
automatically switched to the accredited program.
Do I have to memorize ALL the
scripture verses? Memorization of all scripture verses in courses is not
mandatory but they are recommended and helpful to everyday
life.
3. STUDENT
OPERATIONAL QUESTIONS:
How do I take my courses?
The instructions are on the Student Page where you will be
directed upon enrolling.
How do I download my courses?
From your student page or from
www.amesbible.org/download.html
I can't open my
course, what's wrong? You must have Adobe Acrobat to open
.pdf files and it must be a current version. You can also
download it free. If a link does not work, try downloading
direct from the server at
www.amesbible.org/courses/ Due to the fact that students
from other countries have problems downloading .pdf files, we
have added .html files. The format is not as appealing as .pdf
files, however they are functional.
I forgot my password, now what? Please click on the link that says "Forgot the password
Click Here" or click on the Student Page link at the top
of the homepage.
How do I submit
my grades? Click this link and fill out the
form that is found on your Student Page:
http://amesbible.org/enrollforms/gradesform.html We only
need the final exam grades, not the grades for the chapter
self-tests. The chapter self-tests are designed to prepare
you for the final exam at the end of each course. All we need
is the letter grade after completion of the course which we
then record in your student file. YOU MUST CONTACT US
to let us know that you have submitted all your grades and
that you are finished. We will then verify the grades and process your
graduation.
DO NOT SEND YOUR EXAMS BY MAIL TO US OR TO HARVESTIME.
USE THE FORM PROVIDED IN THE STUDENT EXAM CENTER TO POST
YOUR GRADES.
4. PAYMENT QUESTIONS:
I am an
accredited student. How do I pay for my courses?
Click on this link to find out the
online payment options:
http://amesbible.org/pay2.html
There are several, easy methods to pay. You can pay after you
download each course or after you submit your final exam grade
for each course. Or you can pay in advance for all the courses
or make monthly payments for 22 months at $20.00 per month.
Where do I send
my course payments?
Make your check payable to:
Ames Christian University
6900 Daniels Parkway
Suite 29-225
Fort Myers, FL 33912
I have paid for my
courses and now have decided to quit. How do I
discontinue my time at Ames?
The courses are offered totally free and you are under no
obligation to pay. There is no refund policy
on the administration fees due to the fact that you were under
no obligation to pay. If you stop
paying and have a credit, it will remain available to you indefinitely
in case you desire to resume at a later date. We will transfer your credits to
another school of your
choosing.
5. COURSE UTILIZATION AND
AVAILABILITY QUESTIONS:
Do you have courses on a USB? When you pay for all your courses in full at one time, we will
send you a USB containing all 22 courses, all the courses in
Spanish, The King's Table devotional and several Christian
e-books.
Do you have printed courses?
You can order them from
Harvestime
Click Here
* Printed books
are only in English and only mailed in the US.
Do you have the courses on a CD? Harvestime Int'l Network offers their CD of all 22 courses for a
charge of $50.00. To order online
from Harvestime
Click Here
Harvestime also has the courses in
Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog and Thai
Languages
Can I study the courses Online? The
courses and exams can be read and completed on your screen
while you are online. The courses and everything you need are
on your Student Page.
www.amesbible.org/virtualcampus.html
6. AMES CHRISTIAN
UNIVERSITY QUESTIONS:
Can I enroll in
Ames Christian University now?
If you have no transferable credits,
the AISOM program is the perfect, low cost way to
get college credits to transfer to a University. Because the
AISOM courses are transferable credits to ACU, only 11 courses
remain to be taken at ACU for completion of a BA degree.
If you have transferable credits,
you can enroll at the university now and a degree plan can be
created which is just right for you. ACU will accept your
credits at $15.00 per credit hour. however, it may still be
more economical to take the AISOM program then to transfer your
credits as ACU does not charge a transfer fee for the AISOM
courses which means you only pay $440.00. This is why we
say "Do The Math" - 87 transfer credits from other
schools will cost $1,305 so you will save $865.00 by taking the AISOM courses first.
Are all the Ames
Christian University Courses online as well?
Yes, all ACU courses are online
only. Courses are facilitated at the University level and are
therefore more difficult and are offered in a six-week
schedule or a 90-day independent study program.
In
the six-week study schedule, the academic learning environment
is created through an interactive virtual campus where student
and instructor communicate on a weekly basis where lectures
and assignments are posted. Students are expected to submit a
weekly progress report through the entire course.
In the 90 day independent study
courses, all the material is available for the entire program
and you have 90 days to complete the course. These courses
are available to you 24/7.
Frequently Asked Questions about Ames
Christian University
http://www.ameschristian.org/html2/faq.html
Do I have to enroll In Ames Christian
University upon completion of AISOM? No, AISOM is a total stand-alone program. You
do not have to go any further unless you desire a degree.
Ames Christian University is simply available to you as they
guarantee AISOM course acceptance.
Do I need to go on to earn a degree at Ames Christian University
(ACU)?
No,
you can simply take the program that we offer here at Ames
International School of Ministry (AISOM) and
be a bible college graduate. You are under no obligation to
study beyond these courses. When you graduate from Ames
International School of Ministry (AISOM) and you have paid all your
frees, you can transfer your credits to Ames Christian University
(ACU) or
another school of your choice.
How is Ames Christian University
Accredited?
http://www.ameschristian.org/html2/accreditation.html
STILL HAVE QUESTIONS?
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