<p>Newbie here. I assume someone has sung the praises of the great Grove City College already? I certainly hope so.</p>
<p>As a christian myself, Iâm deeply against putting kids in the âChristian bubbleâ all their lives - in time, theyâll have to eventually grow up and face the real world, and itâll be like getting hit in the face with a stone wall. The world is not rosy and being sheltered for 22 years isnât going to help them in the long run. They have to face it someday.</p>
<p>Youâll find that there is a major christian population on almost every campus. State schools are so large, that there is no doubt in my mind that there are tens or hundreds of bible studies or fellowships scattered around the campus. Iâm a firm believer in getting a strong liberal arts education, and in a lot of Christian colleges, you arenât going to get that. </p>
<p>With that said, I have a friend who goes to Wheaton and he absolutely loves it - the education there really is stellar and is, in itself, a wonderful liberal arts school. Its been called the âharvard of christian schoolsâ in discussion and has several distinguished alumni. It also has the most churches per square mile in the entire US of A :)</p>
<p>I would like to know more about Indiana Wesleyan University. Anyone have any thoughts???</p>
<p>Iâm new to this thread but after reading in am surprised no one has mentioned Hope College in Holland, MI. Itâs a great Christian college (Calvinâs main rival). There are many opportunities to grow and nurture your faith there but not as many restrictive rules. I believe it offers a great LA education and gets many of itâs pre-meds into med school. It doesnât seem to need some of the stifling rules other schools have to still be markedly Christian.</p>
<p>Baylor is nowhere near the flagship of the Southern Baptist Convention!</p>
<p>Wake Forest</p>
<p>Mercer</p>
<p>Chicago</p>
<p>and lots more prime Baylorâs Baptist Bears!</p>
<p>BTW, if your child is a committed Christian strong in faith with outstanding academic qualifications, maybe totally secular schools should be given serious consideration. If a kid gets in with other Christian kids at an otherwise fully pagan institution, you may find the academically excellent, but otherwise fully pagan institution, the better choice.</p>
<p>Pepperdine!</p>
<p>Tie: Biola University and Wheaton College</p>
<p>Interesting resurrected thread. Iâll repeat what I have found.</p>
<p>For stats of incoming freshmen, Grove City College (GCC) and Wheaton are pretty much tied at the top. Pepperdine would probably be a close third.</p>
<p>Based on this article from the 2nd page, GCC might be top of the top:</p>
<p>[Grove</a> City students shine in history knowledge - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review](<a href=âhttp://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_528201.html]Groveâ>http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_528201.html)</p>
<p>Of course, it depends on what one is looking for.</p>
<p>For us, Covenant College (GA) is probably tops mainly due to the major my son wants (Community/Economic/Global Development - name changes based on where it is offered). His scores qualify him to get into any of the above - heâd be in the top 25% for math and the top 30 - 35% for critical reading - but one should pick the best school for the student - not just the best school via scores.</p>
<p>For those looking for the arts, Belhaven seems to rank highly.</p>
<p>Aside from being a largest Baptist University in the world, Baylor University (Waco, TX) has a very accelerated Honors Program and graduate school acceptance rate. </p>
<p>I visited the campus during their Fall Premiere '09 less than 10 days ago and I definitely vouch for Baylor. The campus is gorgeous, the students are friendly, and the faculty invest in you as you invest in your future at the school. </p>
<p>It is a community that promotes spiritual growth as well as academia. And yet, college is a very defining time for oneâs faith. If someone has a passion for Christ, it will be strengthened, and yet if someone wishes to stray away, theyâll stray. </p>
<p>Itâs personal choice. If you wish to be plugged-in, I can vouch for Baylor being a great place for great fellowship and academic opportunities. The vast program opportunities amid the emphasis on God is what draws me most to the university.
Good luck!</p>
<p>[Baylor</a> University | A Nationally Ranked Christian University, Undergraduate & Graduate Research Colleges Universities Schools in Texas](<a href=âhttp://www.baylor.edu%5DBaylorâ>http://www.baylor.edu)</p>
<p>My son attends a private Christian high school in San Diego. He has a good gpa, leadership etc. Two of his friends have decided to go to USC. As a parent, I recognize going to a college that is respected by the world is important, but I also do not want my son to be unhappy. If all the students around him are busy partying and he is an outcastâboringâ. What fun would that be to him. I realize college rankings are important, but the social aspect is also importantâŠHe is considering Biola, Chapman, Wheaton, Baylor, and Cal Poly. (He wants engineering/medical) PHEARNOT, are you a Christian attending USC? I have to agree with you on your take on the best Christian collegesâŠ
I would love to hear from Christian students, WALKING WITH GODâŠat these colleges or secular,what is your college and did it work fine for you?</p>
<p>kandljenkins, parent here. D3 is a student at our state flagship school (40,000 students) Last year she visited/applied to 7 schools, 6 of which were small Christian schools. The spiritual environment at some of the schools was wonderful. In the end, though, due to parental unemployed status of more than 12 months, she enrolled at the state university. This was a decision she and I agonized over. It did have the strongest academics in her chosen major but is considered the most liberal campus in the state. Now, with almost a semester under her belt, I can tell you she is very happy. Her faith is very important to her and she has found a church (after trying at least 6), friends she attends church with, a Bible study she enjoys, a social life with includes active participation in Campus Crusade, roommates for next year (met them in her Bible Study). Truly, our worries were unfounded. It takes effort on the part of the student to seek out like-minded friends, but it an be done. My prayers and hers were answered.</p>
<p>kandljenkins; Are you still there?I have posted a few times on this thread; you can search the thread to learn more about me and my kids (Christian students, WALKING WITH GODâŠbut mostly they walk independent of me and dad). </p>
<p>My D is in her second year at Duke, and while it was a rough first semester, she has found her group, and seems to be thriving. Two Bible study groups with a capella group/choir (one all girls, and âChristianâ, one African American and âGospelâ). One regular church, other occasional ones. Religion classes that are part of multi-subject seminars/discussion groups.</p>
<p>She is not âCCâ kid, so you wonât find her here.</p>
<p>I just found this thread (again) because we are considering Bola for my HS class of 2011 son.</p>
<p>There is a significant difference between Christian colleges which are evangelical (mostly protestant but there a couple of very good Catholic schools in that group as well) and Christian denominational schools. Many of the later provide excellent educations, but are not particularly Christian in their world view or educational approach. If you are seeking an academically challenging liberal arts education where Christian world view and practice are integrated into the curriculum, then Wheaton should be high on your list.</p>
<p>Among evangelical Christian schools, Wheaton is considered to be the most prestigious academically. It is certainly among the hardest to get into. It is small, and quite selective, with applications vastly exceeding its class size. In that sense itâs much like the highly selective secular private universities - Wheaton ends up turning down many kids who qualify academically simply becuase of the numbers who apply.</p>
<p>My wife attended a small liberal arts college affiliated with the Lutheran Church and had a great experience there. But while there was an active group of Christian students on campus (my wife became a Christian during her senior year though the influence of a roommate), the school itself was not Christian in its world view or philosophy and the majority of faculty and students were cultural Christians only.</p>
<p>I attended a very large public university, both for undergrad and grad school, so my experience was completely different. However by chance, we ended up settling down in the Chicago suburbs very close to the Wheaton campus. As near neighbors, we have had had many contacts with Wheaton students and faculty members over the years, all positive. When our daughters were young we hired our babysitters though the Wheaton college jobs board. The girls job shared, with one covering mornings and another afternoons, working around class schedule. They were truly outstanding young women, every one, smart, accomplished, responsible and committed to living out their Christian faith. [And to answer an earlier poster who snidely commented that Wheaton College students are all rich, white kids, these girls were baby sitting because they NEEDED THE MONEY. Their families were making financial sacrifices to send them to Wheaton. Its true that Wheaton college students are mostly white (although we do see minority kids on campus), but they come from all over - weâve counted license plates from all 50 states (including Hawaii) and from Mexico and Canada in the Wheaton parking lot during drop-off weekend.] </p>
<p>I can also recommend Wheaton as a great place to spend four years. Itâs the quintessential mid-western suburb, with safe, tree lined streets, a pedestrian friendly downtown a short walk from campus, and friendly people. But Wheaton is also an easy 45 minute train ride from Chicago (there is a commuter train station two blocks from the dorms), with all that it has to offer, from world class architecture and museums to profession sports (not to mention great pizza).</p>
<p>My daughter just completed her college search and applications and will be attending Rice University next fall, a small private university with no religious affiliation but with an outstanding program in the field she wants to pursue, one not offered at liberal arts colleges. However, had she chosen a major offered at a small liberal arts school, Wheaton would have been our first choice for her.</p>
<p>I am still here. I think my son would like Wheaton, BUT the application deadline came and went. He was accepted into Baylor, Westmont, Biola and Pt. Loma Nazarene. We have not heard from the public colleges yet. Since my son does want to major in science (pre-med), the decision for a good school is important. This is the struggle. The cost of the private schools at $40k a year ouch! I really do not want our son in $100k debt before med school!</p>
<p>Kandl, </p>
<p>Baylor is the most prestigious university on that list, but is not what many would consider to be a Christian University (rather, it is Christian affiliated). Of the remaining 3, I would choose Biola first, Point Loma second, and Westmont last. Westmont is a great school, but in my personal experiences there the culture is extremely conservative to the point of what I would dare call legalism in some cases.</p>
<p>We live in a small midwest town and are Christians. My daughter will likely have the grades and scores to get into a highly competitve school like Wheaton, or even one of the more âeliteâ East Coast schools. Weâre interested in exploring secular school options on the East Coat if we can find something that might not be a âChristian schoolâ but is still at least reasonably âconservativeâ in outlook and student behaviors/attitudes. Anyone have any thoughts on that?</p>
<p>3 âŠCoast Guard, West Point, Annapolis. All are quite conservative, fully secular, extraordinary calling to serve one nation under God, and require a mission service commitment of 8 years.</p>
<p>But in addition to the 8 years of payback, they can be very expensive. Like Christian institutions, one might be called upon to give her life for her calling.</p>
<p>And nearer the midwestern coast of Lake Michigan âŠHillsdale. Not a Christian school, but not far off.</p>
<p>Boatlift, for an interesting analysis of which colleges respect conservative values, I recommend Choosing the Right College, edited by John Zmirak and published by ISI Books. I found the book at my public library, but it is also available through the internet.</p>
<p>After attending Christian schools most of her life, my daughter would like to go to a secular college that has good Christian organizations in which she can participate. (I support her choice, but we will probably look at Wheaton anyway, since weâll be in Chicago to see Northwestern.) One of her Christian school friends who is now in college commented that the great thing about Christian meetings on a secular campus is that everyone who is there, is there because he or she wants to be.</p>
<p>Thanks Schokolade. There is a tension between what is good about the insulation a Christian school provides, versus the benefit of a more diverse college experience. However, I am just not comfortable sending her too far to the left. Among the smaller East Coast liberal arts colleges, I have heard that Bowdoin, Hamilton and Wesleyan are reasonably conservative, and that Vassar is pretty liberal. Any disagreements there from anyone? What about Colgate?</p>