# Excelsior College vs. Talmudic U? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 15, 2010, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-college-vs-talmudic-u/543367 "2010-06-15T23:22:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bpelta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Bpelta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bpelta)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-college-vs-talmudic-u/543367/1 "2010-06-15T23:22:01Z")
A friend of mine is currently studying at Talmudic University (aka Rabbi Zweig’s yeshiva) in pursuit of a Bachelor’s in Talmudic Law (B.T.L.). He is looking at possibly leaving the yeshiva and instead pursuing a Bachelor’s in Liberal Arts from Excelsior College. Those are basically his two options. He was asking me which degree has a better shot of getting him into grad school and I wasn’t sure. Insights? ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2010, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-college-vs-talmudic-u/543367/2 "2010-06-16T03:07:47Z")
I have a number of friends who have gotten into law school and become lawyers based on their BTL as a pre-law degree. But I do not know how well it serves for other types of post-bachelor fields of study ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2010, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-college-vs-talmudic-u/543367/3 "2010-06-16T03:34:12Z")
I checked the websites for both schools. It looks like Excelsior College is accredited but I couldn’t find any such information for Talmudic University. I think that accreditation would be important for an application to almost any grad school. ---
**Author:** ![Bpelta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Bpelta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bpelta)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2010, 7:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-college-vs-talmudic-u/543367/4 "2010-06-16T07:14:58Z")
\*But I do not know how well it serves for other types of post-bachelor fields of study \* My friend wants to get a master’s degree in special education or education. \*I checked the websites for both schools. It looks like Excelsior College is accredited but I couldn’t find any such information for Talmudic University. I think that accreditation would be important for an application to almost any grad school. \* Talmudic U is accredited by AARTS (Association of Advanced Rabbinical and Talmudic Schools). ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2010, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-college-vs-talmudic-u/543367/5 "2010-06-16T13:07:02Z")
Yes but if your friend is going to a secular grad school, are they going to accept that accreditation (rather than one from a mainstream group)? ---
**Author:** ![trapezoidal\_jellyfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6f9a4e/32.png) [@trapezoidal\_jellyfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trapezoidal_jellyfish)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-college-vs-talmudic-u/543367/6 "2010-06-17T04:09:19Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Yes but if your friend is going to a secular grad school, are they going to accept that accreditation (rather than one from a mainstream group)? exactly. He should start looking into grad schools now, to see if there are any that would accept his BTL. His best bet might be [Azrieli](http://www.yu.edu/azrieli/), but I’m not even sure about that. If he can’t find a grad school that will accept a degree from where he currently is, he should probably think about switching to the other place. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Excellent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f19dbf/32.png) [@Mr.Excellent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Excellent)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-college-vs-talmudic-u/543367/7 "2010-06-17T04:20:27Z")
If your friend insists on a religious institution, has he considered Yeshiva University in NYC? I believe it’s well-regarded by secular institutions - its law school is top-tier, if memory serves. Alternatively, what about Brandeis? Strong Jewish culture, though probably more secular than Yeshiva - and it’s a top-notch school by any standard. I’ve known several Brandeis grads - smart people, and a degree from there opens a lot of doors. ---
**Author:** ![Electric\_Monk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/2acd7d/32.png) [@Electric\_Monk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Electric_Monk)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2010, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-college-vs-talmudic-u/543367/8 "2010-06-18T01:01:42Z")
I graduated Excelsior College back when it was known as SUNY Regents External Degree Program. About 10 years later (1998), I had absolutely no problem in being accepted into RIT’s grad school Distance Learning program (MS in Environmental, Health and Safety Management(.