Cornerstone College of Virginia

What Cornerstone College of Virginia does

Cornerstone College of Virginia is a private, nonprofit religious higher education institution founded in 1969 and headquartered in Spotsylvania, Virginia. It delivers Christ-centered theological education across a full credential ladder — undergraduate certificates, associate and bachelor degrees, master's programs, and doctoral degrees — through both on-campus and online modalities. The institution serves adult learners pursuing ministry credentials, including pastors, missionaries, lay leaders, and ministry-minded students from high school through doctoral levels.

The college's core academic product spans theology, biblical studies, ministry, apologetics, and discipleship, with recent additions including undergraduate certificates in Apologetics and Discipleship. It is accredited by the Association for International Christian Credentialing Support (AICCS) and holds communication status with the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools (TRACS), with active pursuit of full TRACS recognition. The technology surface is a dual online and on-campus delivery stack; no proprietary AI, ML, or platform-engineering initiatives are publicly evidenced. Operational infrastructure is lean, with a digital marketing hire indicating investment in online student acquisition.

The business model is tuition-driven with no federal Title IV financial aid participation. Pricing consists of per-credit tuition at $175 (undergraduate) and $195 (graduate), supplemented by a $333/month OnDemand subscription that functions as an alternative recurring-revenue channel. Revenue derives entirely from individual student payments; there are no disclosed enterprise contracts, employer-sponsored cohorts, or large anchor customers. Customer segments span adult ministry students, high-school dual-enrollment learners, military veterans, and online distance learners, all served through a distributed, individual-pay model.

Name

Cornerstone College of Virginia

Legal name

Cornerstone College & Seminary

Website

https://cornerstonecollegeva.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1969

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cornerstone College of Virginia is a private nonprofit theological institution in Spotsylvania, Virginia, founded in 1969, offering Christ-centered certificates through doctoral degrees online and on-campus, serving adult ministry candidates, dual-enrollment high school students, and military veterans via low per-credit tuition and an OnDemand subscription.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Spotsylvania

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Credit-Hour Tuition: CCS generates revenue primarily from tuition charged per credit hour for undergraduate ($175/credit) and graduate ($195/credit) programs. Additionally, the Cornerstone OnDemand subscription model charges $333 per month for self-paced online course enrollment. These represent recurring revenue streams from enrolled students each term.
2. OnDemand Subscription Tuition: The OnDemand subscription model at $333/month provides an alternative tuition payment structure where students can take multiple self-paced courses under a single monthly subscription, generating recurring monthly revenue.
3. Application and Student Services Fees: One-time fees include a $25 non-refundable application fee charged to each applicant and a $75 per semester Student Services Fee, providing ancillary revenue at enrollment and each term.
4. Life Experience Credit Evaluation: Life Experience Credit evaluation fees are charged to undergraduate students seeking academic credit for prior learning such as military training or ministry experience, providing a fee-based service revenue stream.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Cornerstone College of Virginia delivers Christ-centered higher education through certificate, associate, bachelor, master, and doctoral programs in biblical studies, theology, and ministry. Programs are offered on-campus in Spotsylvania, VA and fully online, supported by the Populi learning management system and a self-paced Cornerstone OnDemand subscription platform. The institution also enables dual degrees via a Simultaneous Enrollment partnership with Lancaster Bible College.

Product overview

Cornerstone College of Virginia offers a portfolio of Christ-centered academic programs at multiple credential levels: undergraduate certificates (Certificate of Discipleship, Certificate of Apologetics), associate and bachelor degrees in Biblical Studies, a Master of Divinity at graduate level, and a Doctor of Ministry at doctoral level. Programs are delivered on-campus or fully online. The institution also provides Cornerstone OnDemand, a $333/month subscription-based self-paced learning platform, alongside transfer-friendly Degree Completion and Simultaneous Enrollment Options through a partnership with Lancaster Bible College for dual-degree pursuit. All programs are accredited by AICCS with communication status through TRACS.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Certificate of Discipleship An 18-credit-hour undergraduate certificate designed to equip students to intentionally make and multiply disciples in ministry contexts; typically completed in 1 year and targeted at adult learners and ministry leaders seeking foundational biblical training.
• Certificate of Apologetics An 18-credit-hour undergraduate certificate equipping students to defend and communicate the Christian faith; typically completed in 1 year and targeted at adult learners and ministry leaders wanting formal apologetics training.
• Associate of Biblical Studies (A.B.S.) A 61-credit-hour, two-year undergraduate degree taught from the foundation of Biblical truth and the perspective of the great commission, available on-campus and online for adult learners and working ministry professionals.
• Bachelor of Biblical Studies (B.B.S.) A 121-credit-hour undergraduate degree (typically completed in 3-5 years) preparing students for lifelong study, interpretation, and application of Scripture, with up to 90 transfer credits accepted toward the 120-credit-hour bachelor pathway.
• Master of Divinity (M.Div.) A 72-credit-hour graduate degree (typically completed in 3-4 years) available fully online, crafted for Christians continuing their calling and advancing in ministry.
• Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) A 40-credit-hour postgraduate professional doctorate (typically 3-6 years beyond the M.Div.) preparing experienced Christian ministers for advanced leadership and service, designed to allow working pastors to remain in ministry context while studying.
• Cornerstone OnDemand A $333/month subscription-based, asynchronous, fully online self-paced learning platform that allows students to enroll in as many designated online courses as they can complete within the subscription period, as an alternative to per-credit tuition pricing.
• Degree Completion Program A transfer-friendly program allowing students to bring substantial prior college credit toward a CCS degree, with at least 25% of degree credits required to be completed at CCS.
• Simultaneous Enrollment Option A dual-degree partnership with Lancaster Bible College (LBC) enabling students to simultaneously earn a Bachelor of Biblical Studies from CCS and an accredited bachelor's degree from LBC in fields such as Business Administration, Marketing, Criminal Justice, Accounting, Ministry Leadership, or General Studies, with mutual credit transfer between the two institutions.

Quantifiable outcome

• Graduate without student debt through affordable pay-as-you-go tuition, interest-free monthly payment plans, and scholarships (e.g., Merit Scholarship covers 100% of tuition for a 2-year associate degree)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Lancaster Bible College (LBC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCCS established a partnership with Lancaster Bible College (LBC) that allows CCS students to simultaneously earn a Bachelor of Biblical Studies (B.B.S.) from CCS and an accredited bachelor's degree from LBC in majors such as Business Administration, Marketing, Criminal Justice, Accounting, Ministry Leadership, or General Studies. Credits transfer mutually between the institutions. This partnership required significantly enhanced academics at CCS and led to new mission, new vision, and accreditation efforts.
• Churches and Ministry PartnerscoreOthers

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Lancaster Bible College: LBC is a Pennsylvania-based Christian college offering biblical studies and professional degrees, and is CCS's formal dual-degree partner via the Simultaneous Enrollment Option. It is the closest comparable institution in mission, scope, and delivery model.
• Columbia International University: CIU is an evangelical Bible college and seminary offering biblical, theological, and ministry degrees with online options. It is a strong like-for-like peer in mission, scale, and target student profile.
• Moody Bible Institute: Moody is a well-established evangelical Bible college and seminary offering certificates through doctoral degrees in biblical and theological studies. It directly competes for CCS's adult ministry student segment and is a clear like-for-like in mission and curriculum.
• Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary: SWBTS is a denominational seminary offering M.Div. and D.Min. degrees with significant online components. It directly competes for the same graduate-level working pastor cohort CCS targets.
• Dallas Theological Seminary: DTS is a leading accredited evangelical seminary offering M.Div. and D.Min. programs primarily online, competing head-to-head with CCS's graduate ministry degrees and overlapping significantly in adult learner and working pastor segments.

Broad incumbents

• Regent University: Regent is a Christian university offering online biblical, divinity, and professional degrees, with federal aid eligibility. It competes with CCS in the online ministry education market and represents a broader-portfolio incumbent.
• Liberty University: Liberty is the largest online Christian university in the U.S., offering a wide range of biblical, theological, and professional degrees with federal aid access. It is the primary scale competitor to CCS in affordable online Christian higher education and sets the cost-comparison benchmark CCS positions against.
• Biola University: Biola is a regionally accredited evangelical university with robust online biblical and theological programs (Talbot School of Theology). It is a benchmark for academic quality in the same market segment CCS serves.
• Bob Jones University: BJU is a long-established conservative Christian college offering biblical and professional degrees, including fully online programs. It overlaps with CCS in mission, target audience, and faith-based accreditation footprint.

Regional players

• Cedarville University: Cedarville is a Baptist-affiliated university offering biblical and ministry degrees, including online pathways. It is comparable in faith-based mission and program mix, though its primary footprint and brand are more regional.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cornerstonecollegeva

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cornerstone College of Virginia