I am a freshman at Saint Mary’s College, a women’s Catholic college, and I applied for transfer to Wheaton in the fall. In my faith statement, I talked about how my brother wanting to become a priest affected my religion, and during my interview my Catholic faith was discussed as well. After my interview I felt confident it went well, but now I’m worried being Catholic will hurt my chances as Wheaton is so Protestant, but it is my first choice. So even though I have a strong faith, will being Catholic hurt my chances?
I was recently accepted to Grove City College, my college gpa is a 3.5, my SATS are 610 reading, 560 math, and 640 writing.
@colleen8463 Wheaton is indeed an unapologetically evangelical institution, and it does require faculty members to subscribe to the basic tenets of evangelical theology. (Hence Mary is not a mediatrix of redemption, etc.) On the other hand, I’ve read that there are a fair number of Catholic students on campus. Moreover, I’ve also read that Wheaton’s rigor and respect for history tends to move many students in a more historically aware, liturgically focused, “high-church” direction. Thus it is not unheard of for Wheaton grads who began as mega-church evangelicals to end up as Anglican . . . or even Catholic.
I’d rely on Wheaton Admissions to make this call for you. If they interviewed you, they should have a good sense of how you would fit into the Wheaton community. If they don’t offer you admission, that probably means they think that, given your current faith commitments, you’d be better served in an academic environment that was more openly supportive of your Catholic heritage.
Why not apply instead to Hillsdale College where extremely strong academics are mixed with strong Christian values which won’t undermine your Catholic faith? Seems to me you are asking for trouble at Wheaton. If nothing else, it may amount to putting yourself in a near occasion, if you recall your catechism.
While Wheaton faculty must sign a “Statement of Faith,” students need only agree to the 'Community Covenant," (http://www.wheaton.edu/About-Wheaton/Community-Covenant) which to my reading doesn’t conflict with any Catholic teachings. In fact, the Wheaton counselor S spoke to made much the same point as MrSamford2014 with regard to students being encouraged to experience a spiritual journey while they are there. And I also agree with his advice to just be honest in your application and let them make the call.