Ordained Unity Minister * Licensed Unity Teacher
Have you felt a calling to be a minister or leader within the Unity movement? UWM offers you the unique path to becoming an Ordained Unity Minister or Licensed Unity Teacher.
Our Credentialing department will provide the navigation to walk you through your journey beginning with taking prerequisite courses, the application process, and the final road to becoming a Credentialed Leader in Unity.
We work in partnership with Unity Worldwide Spiritual Institute (UWSI), Unity Urban Ministerial Program (UUMS), and field courses (pre-requisites only).
Start your journey here.
One of Unity’s core teachings is that we are each an individualized expression of God. We honor this individuality through a diversity of credentialing paths. All paths are designed to call forth the same standards of excellence. Review the standards and learning rubrics here.
Navigating the Credentialing Process - A Roadmap to Success
Prerequisites are courses required to be successfully completed prior to starting a Credentialing Program.
The SEE prerequisite courses can be taken in the following ways:
1. Online courses are offered by Unity Worldwide Spiritual Institute in four terms each year: Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall. The current schedule can be found on the website https://www.unityuwm.org/academic_calendar . When you take courses from UWSI in an online term the tuition is $150 per course.
2. Online courses are offered by Unity Urban Ministerial School. You can find more information on their website www.UUMS.org
3. Courses taught by any Unity Minister or Licensed Unity Teacher through a local Unity Ministry. When taken in a local Unity Ministry there is a $45 administrative fee paid to UWSI, plus whatever the ministry asks in tuition or donation.
4. Courses taken though in the Field events. There are several Unity ministries which host weeklong SEE intensive weeks. Those events are not sponsored by UWM and therefore we do not have all of the information. You need to contact the individual ministries for more information. Ministries which have traditionally held these sessions include Unity of the Hills in Austin, TX; Christ Church Unity in Orlando, FL; Unity of Gaithersburg, MD; Unity of Mesa, Mesa, AZ; Unity of Dallas, Dallas TX
Use the buttons below to view lists of requirements based on the program of your choice.
Unity Worldwide Spiritual Institute (UWSI) and Unity Urban Ministerial School (UUMS) each offer a distinct and different experience for US based applicants. UWSI offers Ministerial and LUT leadership courses. UUMS offers Ministerial courses. The International Schools guide individuals in other countries through the process of becoming a Unity Minister. For more information about the education components and coursework, cost, and timeline to completion, please visit the school links below.
Admissions begins with completion of the Credentialed Leaders Application. Click below to find IMPORTANT INFORMATION including application and interview costs and APPLICATION TIMELINES. You will need to review all of this information to be prepared for the application document. Be sure you are ready and prepared before you begin the on-line application in Step 4.
The next step after you have completed the Prerequisites found in STEP 1 and have reviewed and have prepared the items in STEP 2 and 3, you are ready to complete the Credentialed Leaders Program Application.
Click below for an application TUTORIAL (will be updated soon) and LOG IN instructions. There is one admissions process for all US-BASED credentialing paths: Licensed Unity Teacher and Ministerial Path. There are two admissions cycles each year. Details of the cycle timelines can be found in STEP 3.
The Credentialing department will walk you through the process of application submission and review. They will schedule and conduct admissions interviews. See Step 3 for application and interview timelines. Interviews will result in a letter of acceptance or redirection.
After being accepted, candidates will proceed through coursework and progress interviews. LUTs will complete a Practicum and an online Skills Demonstration Seminar (SDS). For more information about the education components and coursework, cost, and timeline to completion, please visit the school links above (UWSI) (UUMS) found in Step 2.
The Credentialing Team's task is to determine which applicants are sufficiently prepared to begin their journey toward a Unity credential and which need further development to be successful on their chosen path. Be assured that a decision to redirect an applicant by the Credentialing Team is not intended to indicate that applicant is not capable of becoming a leader in Unity. In fact, many successful Unity leaders have been redirected to a time when they were better prepared. When applicants are redirected, the Credentialing Team will provide improvement-oriented recommendations for areas which should be strengthened prior to reapplication.
Contacting Unity Worldwide Ministries' Credentialing Department
For more information about becoming a Unity Credentialed Leader, please contact Rev. Lynn O'Dell, Credentialing Coordinator, at Unity Worldwide Ministries, 816.434.6843 (direct). Address is Unity Worldwide Ministries, 200 Unity Circle North, Suite A, Lee’s Summit, MO 64086.
Updating Your Contact Information
You are required to inform us when you have a change in any of the following: address, phone number, email address, name change, change of sponsoring minister or change in sponsoring ministry. Please send this information directly to UWM's Credentialing department administrative assistant, Denise Boehm.