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The mission of Mars Hill Graduate School is to train people to be competent in the study of text, soul and culture in order to experience God through transforming relationships.

MHGS prepares people, who in obedience to Christ serve in pastoral ministries, counseling, the arts, spiritual direction and other various professions.  Graduates will be able to:

• demonstrate a growing ability to form and maintain maturing relationships with God and others,

• articulate a responsible process for approaching and interpreting the biblical text,

• exhibit self-awareness and an ability to care for others in a helping relationship

• express a passionate love for Christ's church and a sound understanding of the church's realities

• demonstrate competency in self-expression through writing, conversation and other means

MHGS is an evangelical and progressive institution. The faculty consciously submits to the authority of Scripture and the model of a hermeneutical framework that interprets the Bible in light of its grammatical, historical, literary, and theological contexts. Relational hermeneutics is a full-bodied, soul-engaged, heart-transforming encounter that involves the subjective worldview of the interpreter as much as the process of interpretation.

We confess that the scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, are the word of God.  We give thanks for them as a gift from God, inspired by the Holy Spirit, written down by God’s servants.  We receive them, in the tradition of the Christian church as entirely true and the supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct and as the authoritative guide to our identity and vocation, bringing us to the fullness of life in Jesus Christ.

MHGS was established in 1997 under the auspices of Western Seminary in Portland, Oregon. In 2000, a Board of Directors of Mars Hill Graduate School was established and independence from Western Seminary was granted. Over the last 10 years, MHGS has worked to evolve in its mission, faculty and administration. In December, 2006, the campus was moved to the Belltown district in downtown Seattle.

MHGS is in the middle of Belltown, one of Seattle's neighborhoods. We reside between a high-end hotel and a charity aimed at providing jobs, meals and assistance to people in need. As we grow into this neighborhood, we long for ears to hear and eyes to see all that has gone on before us. We are actively looking for ways to allow the growth that Belltown is undergoing to impact our own growth as individuals, as a school, and as neighbors.

MHGS is nationally accredited with Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools (TRACS) as approved by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).  MHGS has degree authorization by the State of Washington and Title IV authorization by the Federal Department of Education for federal student financial assistance.  In 2006, MHGS was granted associate membership in the Association of Theological Schools (ATS).  Please see the Academic Catalog for more details.