Hello,
I have looked in to a ton of Christian colleges.
But my two favorites are Wheaton College and Liberty University.
I live in California so it will be a change to live on the other side of the country.
But I’d love to hear some student experiences at these schools. Mostly the religious aspects but daily life is an interest for me.
I already have a current list of colleges I can list it later if you want.
Wheaton is more serious academically so the students are all smart, serious Christians who want to grow in their faith.
Liberty doesn’t have a good academic reputation and in some aspects it can be limiting if you want to grow in your faith because it can be pretty insular.
Politically, the Liberty administration’s aligned itself with President Trump, although the students are very divided about this. Wheaton is conservative and represents various types of conservatism (compassionate conservatism, fiscal conservative, Libertarians…)
If you are a conservative Christian on important topics then you must know that Wheaton has grown increasingly lliberal throughout the years. Do a search and you will see what I mean. I have learned that the more liberal (and less “Bible being inerrant”) a college gets, the more respect it gets academically from society in general.
I know all of the main Christian colleges well as I along with my family have attended many of them (Wheaton, Biola, Azusa Pacific, Calvin, Westmont,Point Loma, etc). The irony is that Liberty has many more major options (huge school with 15,000 residential students) as well as superior facilities to all of these yet you won’t hear positives because of its political leanings. Liberty also gives out tons of financial aid which makes it very affordable compared to the rest. I have a relative who attends Liberty now (honors college) and is having the time of her life. Do your own research and visit each.
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We live in Virginia and are looking at Christian (as well as non-religious) colleges. I know a lot of good people who went/are going to Liberty. Not one of them has a job outside of Christian ministry, which is fine, if that’s what you want to do. You just need to realize that a Liberty degree has less value outside the Christian subculture than within it.
Some of the other Christian colleges that are on our list are Wheaton (of course), Calvin College, Hope College and Grove City College. Those seem to be at the top of the heap academically.
We also have Baylor on our list, which is about the size of Liberty but better academically. I don’t think our child wants to go to a school that large, however.
OP, why do you want to go to a Christian college? What level of “Christian” are you looking for? What kind of dorm lifestyle do you expect? Many schools are Christian in origin but are pretty secular now as far as having a student population who identifies with the faith. If you look at sites that rank Christian universities many on that list are as secular as other non-religious schools. The definition of what constitutes “Christian” varies widely from people in the faith versus nonbelievers.
Both are very religious, conservative, non-party schools. Wheaton is a lot better, though.
hopedaisy, I am happy to answer your questions.
I grew up in a household where we didn’t attend church regularly. I have went with friends to youth group during middle/high school. During those visits I had a connection with God that I hadn’t realized I needed in my life. As a first year community college students I have been discovering more about myself. This is NOT a phase! I have been experiencing knew things and broadening my horizons, learning an instrument, attending church twice a week, and auditioning for theatre productions. Church is now a constant in my life and I want to delve furthur into this world. I feel that Christian colleges match my values and being around likeminded people (those that consider the Lord their Saviour). Is where I want to be.
I know this isn’t really the answer to the dorm question but… As a transfer student I would be entering an environment that many students are already adjusted to. I’m not looking for the typical Dormlife, I just want to make some good friends.
I have looked at the rankings, this list actually helped form the list of colleges I have. I have learned how to decipher the secular schools from the most religious.
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I have three lads the youngest of whom is graduating from college next month. My oldest went to a Christian college (Covenant) and my younger two chose secular schools, but opted to remain very involved in Christian clubs. I’ve also worked at a public high school for 19 years now and seen thousands of students head off to college, some of whom return to share their thoughts.
From my experience and those I hear about, you will find “committed to their faith” Christians at any Christian school - and you’ll find some who are there because their mom/dad insisted upon a Christian school or forget financial help. The latter tend to be more against the faith than for it, I suspect, due to that experience. Many students leave home not expecting to find the latter (who often come with desires for various relationships, experiences, or indulgences, etc). If you select a Christian school, be prepared for it rather than surprised. (Admissions students/guides aren’t ever from that group…)
Then too, you’ll find “committed to their faith” Christians at probably every secular school too. My youngest goes to one of the Top 10 in Princeton Review’s Reefer Madness category - and there is a nice committed Christian group he belongs to, so if one is there…they’re probably everywhere. There’s just a segment of the population who loves God and isn’t into partying, etc. They don’t all sift into Christian colleges.
And in hindsight with my own lads (+ some students)… those who are the most committed to their faith as adults are often those who chose secular schools - with some exceptions of those who opted to become employed in jobs using their faith (churches, church schools, etc). Even among the latter, I’ve heard sermons (and friends including missionaries talking) who suggest going to secular schools gives one more of a “true” background for society rather than a “Christian bubble.” They are better able to relate to more people than just conservative Christians. There may be some “anti-Christians” out there they come in contact with, but there are those folks in adulthood too. One learns to get along. Some of my peer teachers who came from Christian colleges have told me they have to learn that latter part on the job in our public high school… it can be done.
It’s true that some Christians “going in” to college change their minds about their faith, but I’ve seen that happen at Christian schools too - or the previous mention of just becoming far more blase about faith in their life. The teen and adult years are all about finding who you are (as you have so far) and becoming that person. It’s not always a replica of mom/dad. The school doesn’t make or break anything. It’s the person and what they want their relationship with God to be.
The education can be fine (or not) at any school (Christian/secular). Wheaton’s reputation far surpasses Liberty in the secular world. Whether Liberty will work for you or not really depends more upon what you want to be doing in your post graduation life. Wheaton is likely to be respected among anyone except those who put down all Christian schools. Liberty gets put down by many. It’ll be elevated among those who agree with their views, but that’s it.
For my own guys? The education has been good at all three schools mine have chosen. My two “far more committed to their faith” now are my secular choosing school lads. They thought through their preferences, decided for themselves, then joined clubs to associate with others who made the same decisions. No regrets from either of them. (No regrets from my Christian college lad either, but he’s the one who rarely attends church now… my guess is too much was “forced” before and now he’s “free.”)
^All of this is very, very true. Thank you.
Live in Lynchburg and that certainly is untrue. Many local public school teachers, nurses and business people have LU degrees. Many in the performing arts work in NYC or in touring shows. Airlines are snapping up the pilots and maintenance people. LU has changed a ton in the last 10 years. Much more focus on academics and job placement outside churches.
@barrons After doing a lot of research I think you are spot on. While people not familiar with Liberty make blanket judgments due to political issues the school meanwhile keeps growing and improving its facilities and programs. It has come a long way since the “Moral Majority” era.
Biola in So Cal, not sure Pepperdine is considered Christian school
The last 10 years have been a dream come true for LU. The campus us now an attraction instead of an excuse. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2mI0hGJlf4
go to baylor or pepperdine
Carter speaks at LU graduation to large crowd (despite showers). http://www.newsadvance.com/news/local/carter-tells-liberty-university-students-cling-to-principles-that-never/article_67e191ae-5b81-11e8-b1f8-7bd342446815.html
If you’re still looking… I LOVED Liberty - the only reason I decided against going there is its location. The school is amazing and so are the people who go there. LU’s campus is absolutely gorgeous! Probably one of the best campuses I’ve ever visited. Liberty also has some very nice merit scholarships available. If you have good stats, you can get up to full tuition scholarship. A few of my friends go to Liberty and absolutely love it. It’s a great school, and I’d highly recommend it. In my opinion, it’s quite underrated.
Regent University in Virginia Beach is great too. It’s perfect if you’d be interested in a smaller school. Patrick Henry is also great, but they mostly specialize in political science. Both offer some awesome merit-based scholarship.
I also hear great things about Hillsdale College in Michigan.
I work at Liberty and can help… As for jobs outside of Christian Ministry, the above statement is not true. Most of the kids graduating from our school work in TV news and media all over the country. We even have several at Marvel studios. Actaually I have come across one graduate working in Ministry, well unless you consider Fox news. LOL . Hendrick Motor Sports hires tons of our graduates. we have airline pilots, nurses, lawyers and just graduated our fist class of physicians.
Liberty - daily aspects. I witness kids with the freedom to sing hymns and prayer together. They are required to do 20 hours of community service a semester. My favorite part of the college experience there is Convocation every M-W-F they bring in amazing guest speakers who speak about how God has touched their lives. some negatives you might hear that are not really true, Curfew? yes, but very reasonable midnight most nights. Dress Code, yes… but not really enforced. Kids wear basically the same clothes you will see at any other campus in this country, minus pajamas and sweat pants. Their programming is amazing from midnight Hockey and Volley Ball games to current movies in the football stadium. there is a ton to do every day of the week.