<p>I know this may sound like an oxymoron, but what top colleges are known to have a active and committed christian (protestant) community? I'm guessing schools in the South like Vanderbilt, Wake Forest and Davidson would fit the bill?</p>
<p>Any Suggestions??</p>
<p>In this section of the discussion forums, called College Search & Selection, if you look up at the top, there are three sub-forums. The first-listed one is “Christian Colleges.” You might spend some time looking through the archives there.</p>
<p>Also, have you played with the College Board college search engine? It allows you to narrow down schools by religious preference–right down to the denomination. Be patient as you enter you specs and work through the screens, as the one on faith is the last screen called “Specialized Options.”</p>
<p>There are several species of “Christian” schools, or schools with thriving Christian communities, including: </p>
<p>(a) self-described “Christian Colleges”, which have an explicit religious mission that informs the academic program, including required Church attendance, strict parietal rules, and required religion classes taught from a specific doctrinal perspective, which may prohibit teaching some subjects such as the theory of evolution or feminism. Examples: Christian fundamentalist schools such as Bob Jones University or Liberty University. These are not usually considered “top colleges” (not in the sense of being both highly selective academically and coveted for purely sectarian reasons by students outside the faith community). Drinking and hard partying are officially not tolerated at these schools. Political values here are almost universally very conservative.</p>
<p>(b) Church-affiliated schools with a more or less secular approach to instruction in the liberal arts and sciences, but a strong commitment to religious inquiry, social or religious mission service, or peace and justice issues, approached in a more or less ecumenical spirit but also more or less informed by a particular denomination’s perspective. Church attendance at these schools may be very high (but usually not required). Outward expressions of religious commitment may be apparent in campus architecture, marketing literature, student organizations, etc. Usually there is a direct institutional affiliation with a Church community, expressed in school administration or financing. A significant percentage of students may have been raised in the affiliated religious community (enough to give pause to some non-affiliated applicants). Examples include **Goshen College<a href=“Mennonite”>/b</a>, **Notre Dame<a href=“Roman%20Catholic”>/b</a>, **Brigham Young<a href=“Mormon”>/b</a>, and to a lesser extent **Earlham College<a href=“Quaker”>/b</a>. A few of these (certainly ND) would be considered “top colleges” (based on selectivity). Political values at these schools range from conservative to liberal. For a “Mainline Protestant” school in this category, the best example I can think of is **St. Olaf College<a href=“evangelical%20Lutheran”>/b</a>. </p>
<p>(c) private schools that remain more or less loosely affiliated with a founding Church, that now have an almost completely secular approach to instruction in the liberal arts and sciences, but continue to promote religious/moral values for example in strict honor codes or in one or two required non-doctrinal religion classes. A religious perspective may be strongly represented among faculty, administration or governing boards, which nevertheless are independent of church authority. In the student body, the one faith community may be over-represented, but not by so much that it should seriously concern an applicant from outside that faith. Examples: **Davidson College<a href=“traditionally%20Presbyterian”>/b</a>, **Haverford<a href=“traditionally%20Quaker”>/b</a>. Jesuit schools (such as Georgetown) have a stronger institutionalized religious affiliation (and more visible signs of religious expression) but in other respects seem to fall into this category. A number of these would be considered “top colleges” (based on selectivity or graduate outcomes.) Political values at these schools range from fairly conservative to quite liberal.</p>
<p>Then there are college communities that might be described as relatively “conservative”, but which have virtually no ongoing affiliation with any Church (though they may have been church-founded). They have a completely secular approach to instruction … but nevertheless seem to attract relatively conservative students. Many students may attend church regularly and proudly describe themselves as “Christian”, but their religious orientation has little if any programmatic institutional backing from the school or express representation in school governance. Many southern universities seem to fall into this category, simply due to the regional culture more than anything. Drinking and partying may be at least as robust here as anywhere else. Examples: Vanderbilt, Wake Forest. These schools cover a broad range in terms of selectivity and prestige.</p>
<p>Of course, there are shades of gray in and between these categories. Arguably a couple of my examples belong at the boundaries if not up/down one position or even off the chart. Davidson arguably belongs with Vanderbilt and WF; Georgetown with ND; Haverford in a separate secular + liberal box. That’s why you need to go visit, breathe the atmosphere, and see what moves you.</p>
<p>I think the OP’s desires could be more simply summarized as wanting top colleges where more students go to church on Sundays than sleep in and play video games, although the above post should be recommended reading for students looking for “Christian schools.”</p>
<p>I agree with the OP’s assumption that Wake Forest would fit the bill. Davidson is less active but would still lean more heavily Christian than Wesleyan or Swat. Furman and Sewanee are another couple of good bets in the South; both are great schools with gorgeous campuses.</p>
<p>You might want to see if colleges you’re interested in have a chapter of Campus Crusade for Christ. Cru wasn’t really my thing, but many people get a lot of out it. Duke is by no means a particularly religious place, but I knew some very religious people who were quite happy there because they found a niche in various religious organizations on campus…so I suspect your range of options is much broader than you might think.</p>
<p>[Find</a> a Local Ministry Near You :: Campus Crusade for Christ International](<a href=“http://www.ccci.org/ministries-and-locations/find-local-ministries-us/index.htm]Find”>http://www.ccci.org/ministries-and-locations/find-local-ministries-us/index.htm)</p>
<p>Nice post tk-very informative. </p>
<p>My son is leaning toward a school with “Christian values”-Berry College. Not being particularly religious (though kids participated in a local church when younger), I am concerned that he may feel a bit out of place. In talking with students, they describe the Christian presence as “there but no one forces it on you”. </p>
<p>He likes this school because the no drinking rules mean that parties are private and tend not to spin put of control (students do drink, but more like adults). He also likes how the college frowns on students having lovers living in their rooms and thus making the original roommate a “sexile” (their term). The wording is that sexuality should not be infringing on the right/peace of others in the dorm. The school does have an interfaith council, jewish student group and international presence. GLBQT students are accepted and report no problems. However, to date, the school has not provided funds for a student club.</p>
<p>Here are my questions:
<p>Additional info-the school has a huge endowment- 586 Mil last year and is classified tier 1 in US news (rank 112 for what it is worth).</p>
<p>Thoughts on the christian emphasis would be appreciated.</p>
<p>Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship is another on campus Christian organization. You can check their website to see if they have chapters at the schools you’re interested in. They also have chapters for faculty. I don’t know if having a faculty chapter on campus is an indication of a stronger student chapter. I would think it probably is, but they only have these on the larger campuses, so that criteria alone might also be misleading.</p>
<p>[Find</a> a Chapter - About Us - InterVarsity.org](<a href=“http://www.intervarsity.org/chapters/]Find”>http://www.intervarsity.org/chapters/)</p>
<p>thanks everyone, esp. tk</p>
<p>Pepperdine Universtity in Malibu, CA</p>
<p><a href=“http://faculty.pepperdine.edu/sstonew/Pepperdine_University.jpg[/url]”>http://faculty.pepperdine.edu/sstonew/Pepperdine_University.jpg</a></p>
<p>I don’t think the OP was looking for a “Christian” college necessarily. Therefore I think posting in this forum is entirely appropriate.</p>
<p>My eldest went to Colgate and was plugged into the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship chapter there. In that she found an active Christian community.</p>
<p>Pepperdine University’s undergraduate school, Seaver College:</p>
<p>A Spirit of Purpose
Seaver College is a Christian College because of its Christian faculty, students, and commitment to the integration of faith and learning. As a liberal arts college, it nourishes and transmits the noblest ideas of western culture while continually framing the learning process within modern global contexts. Seaver College is committed to preparing its graduates for lives of purpose and leadership, recognizing, moreover that knowledge calls ultimately for lives of service</p>
<p>Other ones you might want to look at are Villanova University and St. Joseph’s University. Bryn Mawr is another one although it’s not really as Christian as the other two I mentioned.</p>
<p>While solid schools, Villanova University and St. Joseph’s University are Catholic, not Christian. I am looking for a school with a active Christian community.</p>
<p>Princeton has several evangelical/Protestant organizations – Princeton Evangelical Fellowship, Princeton Faith and Action, Manna Fellowship, etc. Their members number in the hundreds and the groups are very, very active. This might be reinforced by our enormous Gothic chapel, the third largest collegiate chapel in the world.</p>
<p>If by “top colleges” you mean tippy-top, I think most would agree that Princeton has a strongly religious scene than any other.</p>
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<p>Ironic, much?</p>
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<p>I’m not sure irony is the correct term, just flat-out falsehood.</p>
<p>Catholicism is a Christian denomination. In fact, Christianity WAS Catholicism (and vice-versa) until the Filioque-prompted schism.</p>
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<p>Words change their meaning over time. It’s not false at all. In fact, I attended a church that had “Christian” in the name but was protestant. Please don’t be so pedantic.</p>
<p>OP said in his initial post that he was specifically looking for Protestant Christianity.</p>
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<p>Protestantism IS a subset of Christianity. Catholicism follows ALL tenets of Christianity throughout history.</p>
<p>Notre Dame, Holy Cross, Georgetown, Davidson.</p>
<p>^The problem is that the OP doesn’t want any Catholic schools, only Protestant.</p>
![http://faculty.pepperdine.edu/sstonew/Pepperdine_University.jpg[/url]](http://faculty.pepperdine.edu/sstonew/Pepperdine_University.jpg%5B/url%5D){kind=link}
