<p>I don’t think I’m adding anything groundbreaking to this discussion, but as an admissions rep at a Catholic college I want to chip in.</p>
<p>You’re certainly not going to experience discrimination at a Catholic college for your religious views, nor will you experience it after college as a graduate of a Catholic school. As others have pointed out, each Catholic college has different requirements in terms of campus ministry participation/service/etc., and these are things you should investigate as you search for the right college.</p>
<p>My experience as a student at (and now employee of) Wheeling Jesuit University is that students, faculty, and administrators welcome students of all backgrounds and faith lives. Prayer groups and retreats are open to ALL students - not just practicing Catholics. Yes, there will be clergy, a chapel, and other visible aspects of Catholic identity, but I don’t think you will feel pressured to participate in faith life.</p>
<p>As far as your concerns regarding employment, I don’t think you need to worry. Many of our alumni consider our Jesuit identity to be an asset when they apply for jobs or to graduate schools. I’m sure graduates from other networks of Catholic schools (Dominican, Franciscan, etc.) have similar experiences.</p>
<p>Keep an open mind, explore colleges that seem to be a good fit for you, and ask pertinent questions about the role of faith at each college, and you should be able to figure out whether or not you would feel comfortable on campus.</p>
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<p>why?</p>
<p>but thank you for the advice!</p>
<p>First of all, Jesuit schools at large are pretty well-known for their academic rigor - we count schools like Boston College, Georgetown, Holy Cross, etc. among our ranks.* Secondly, many report that they are able to make connections when they apply for jobs (interviewing with people who went to other Jesuit universities, for example). I don’t have any hard data to back that up, but it’s certainly been reported by a lot of the alumni I work with.</p>
<p>Since there are 28 Jesuit colleges, you’re very likely to bump into someone who went to one of them no matter where you go.</p>
<p>*This isn’t to dismiss Wheeling. I went there and had a great experience and obviously work here now, but the three I listed certainly are among the better-known Jesuit schools.</p>
<p>^^^ In many parts of the country, definitely in the northeast, Jesuit schools are well known and have a reputation for turning out students who are strong critical thinkers. Which is a skill many employers are seeking.</p>
<p>I’ve been trying to think of a situation where graduating from a Catholic college might be a negative. About the only one I can come up with is if you then want to go on to apply for a teaching or administration position at a Christian school or university that is one that views Catholics as cultists and not true Christians. Catholic schools do not discriminate based on religion, but some other Christian schools do - you have to sign a statement that you will actively live their specific version of Christianity to be employed. Schools like that would have problems with lots of people, not just Catholics (or Catholic school grads). Honestly though in all the years since hubby and I graduated a Catholic school I’ve never heard this come up as a concern, not even on the alumni network.</p>
<p>Holy Cross is ranked 25th on the US News Rankings of National Liberal Arts Colleges.
Georgetown is ranked 20th on the US News Rankings of National Universities. BC is #31.</p>
<p>Clearly these are among the top colleges in the nation and highly regarded.</p>