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In 1971 he graduated from East Peoria High School in East Peoria, Illinois. From 1972 until 1974, Hovind attended the unaccredited Midwestern Baptist College and received a Bachelor of Religious Education (B.R.E.).<ref name="affidavit1998" /> In 1988 and 1991 respectively, Hovind was awarded a master's degree and doctorate in Christian Education through correspondence from the unaccredited Patriot University (now Patriot Bible University) in Colorado.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://web.archive.org/web/20010816220051/http:/www.drdino.com/FAQs/FAQmisc13.jsp | title=Where did you get your degree? |publisher=DrDino.com (archived) | date=Aug 16, 2001 | first=Kent | last=Hovind | accessdate = 2007-02-24}}</ref>  Dr. Barbara Forrest, a critic of intelligent design, wrote that Hovind's lack of academic training makes it impossible to engage him on a professional level.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.ncseweb.org/resources/articles/2148_unmasking_the_false_prophet_of_9_1_1999.asp | title=Unmasking the False Prophet of Creationism| publisher=[[National Center for Science Education]] | date= September 1, 1999 | first=Forrest| last=Barbara | accessdate = 2007-02-19}}</ref> Specifically, critics of Hovind have charged that Patriot Bible University is a diploma mill, as it has unreasonably low graduation requirements, lack of sufficient faculty or educational standards, and a suspicious tuition scheme, among other issues.<ref name="HovindFAQ" /> The school's current policies allow students to attain bachelor's degrees, master's degrees and even "Doctor of Ministry" degrees in months, rather than years, for as little as $25 per month. Currently Patriot offers a monthly fee, unlike most universities, which only charge per-credit fees.<ref>[http://patriotuniversity.com/financial.htm "Financial Information"], Patriot Bible University</ref> Patriot will not send copies of Hovind's doctoral dissertation except with his permission.<ref name="Bartelt">[http://home.austarnet.com.au/stear/bartelt_dissertation_on_hovind_thesis.htm "A Review of Kent Hovind's Thesis by Karen Bartelt, Ph.D."]</ref> Doctoral dissertations are normally published by the associated university and made available to the public, so that other students conducting research in similar areas may use the information in the dissertation as a reference. Although one copy of the dissertation is on file at the National Center for Science Education (NCSE) the organization is not able to provide it on request because of copyright and distribution restrictions.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} Various criticisms have been made of his dissertation, including charges of incompleteness, low academic quality, poor writing, poor spelling, and ungrammatical style.<ref name="Bartelt"/><ref>[http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/12/31/8219/5938 "Know Your Creationists: Kent Hovind"], ''Daily Kos'', December 31, 2005</ref> When questioned about his education and qualification, Hovind has claimed that the arguments are ad hominem attacks.<ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20010816220051/http:/www.drdino.com/FAQs/FAQmisc13.jsp "Where did you get your degree?"], Q&A by Kent Hovind, via archive.org</ref> Patriot University has issued similar comments.<ref>[http://www.patriotuniversity.com/PriceOfTruth.htm "The Price of Truth"], Patriot Bible University</ref>