Questions for Christian College Student?

kelis · 06-18-2009, 11:08 PM

Just wondering if anyone had questions about attending christian colleges in general, or Wheaton College specifically, since that's where I attend. I looked at and/or know people who attend many other christian colleges, as well (I'm especially familiar with Biola, Grove City, Cedarville, Messiah, and Gordon).

I looked at and applied to a lot of different schools, both christian and secular, and I learned a lot in the process of applying and eventually choosing a college, and I'd be happy to share anything that might be helpful. I know I had a lot of questions/concerns, and it was always helpful when I could ask someone who had already been there.

WarriorWoman · 10-20-2009, 02:08 AM

Hey I am a senior now and am going through much of the same process. I'm applying to Eastern University, Lee U., Grove City, Gordon, Asbury College, Wheaton, Messiah, and Washington and Lee University. Why did you decide against attending the above schools that were on your list. How do they compare academically? How there any big pros or cons that really stood out to you? How strict/lenient are they on their rules comparatively? Any advice on these would be very much appreciated.

SingDanceRunLife · 10-20-2009, 03:10 PM

I go to Le Moyne College, one of the 28 Jesuit colleges/universities in the US. I can help answer questions.

berryberry61 · 10-21-2009, 11:43 AM

Kelis - thanks for sharing your info. My D has a number schools on the visit list including Wheaton, Grove City, Cedarville, Calvin, Hope, Messiah, Gordon
Some things she is looking for:

Non-party school (she would actually prefer a dry campus or at least some place where there is a large non-drinking segment of the population)

Strong academics

A place she can grow in her faith

A very good communications department and where she can be involved in a TV station

A good sense of community, with others who enjoy learning

Single sex dorms (or at least floors)

A nice campus setting and surrounding community

An ability to do a semester oversease

Good internships in the TV field

Any help you can provide in answering any or all of these questions would really be helpful. Thanks

SingDanceRunLife · 10-21-2009, 02:18 PM

Le Moyne College fits that bill.

phear_me · 10-27-2009, 07:26 PM

berry - with a desire for TV internships, your best bet is Biola. The film program there is tops for Christian universities and Biola sends more students to Oxford for student exchange programs than any other Christian university. Overseas experience can also be had through the very active student mission union.

If film wasn't a specific desire, I would recommend Wheaton, but no Christian school can compete with Biola's RTF program. See for yourself here: MASSCOMM // BIOLA //

berryberry61 · 10-29-2009, 09:43 AM

phear me - thanks. Looks like an interesting program, alas CA is probably just too far from where my D wants to go. But will look inot it further. Thanks

rstuben · 10-31-2009, 11:25 AM

My senior D just applied to Wheaton, Calvin, and Hope. She'd like to apply to other christian school with good art depts. We don't know where to turn. She's thinking of possibly being an Art teacher. She plays lacrosse and unfortunately they don't have Varsity teams. Gordon appeared too small but we haven't looked at it and we wondered about Grove City and whether it had an art dept or how strict it is. Can't really tell. We've read some odd things about it in books. She wants to be able to grow spiritually but also have fun. We also don't know much about Pepperdine Biola, etc. any recommendations or additional info would help. Thanks!

zoggette · 10-31-2009, 12:30 PM

My oldest is a student at Grove City and, no, they do not offer art as a major, only a tiny art department that offers a few courses.

My middle son is interested in art education, but he is only a junior. He will be visiting Messiah College in Grantham, PA, and Roberts Wesleyan in Rochester, NY. You may find this website helpful:

Resources

musicnerd · 10-31-2009, 02:29 PM

Belhaven College in Jackson, MS is a nondenominational Christian Liberal Arts college nationally accredited in Visual Arts, Music, Dance and Theatre.

They offer majors in arts administration and film/TV studies.

Worth a look

Shrinkrap · 10-31-2009, 02:34 PM

Lot's of Kids from son's school aspire to Biola ,and while he's not looking for a Christian" school, he seems okay with it. Hs being "Oley with it" good enough at Biota? Any insights about means soccer there? He has in interest in television (no, not watching it...) so I'm going to check phear's link. Thanks!

kelis · 10-31-2009, 05:26 PM

wow, let's see...

warrior woman: of the schools on your list, at least of ones I'm familiar with, I'd say Wheaton is certainly the most challenging academically (in general), with Grove City not too far behind.
Most of the schools I know about are fairly comparable in their rules--no drinking, required chapels, specified times you can be in dorms of the opposite sex. I don't know about how they're enforced specifically. One of the reasons I chose Wheaton was that, though it does have the community covenant which everyone signs and abides by, it's not a "rule-focused" environment. The other big pros for me were Wheaton's location, so close to a major city, and it's academic standards.

berry-berry: Wheaton is definitely a non-party school. Everyone agrees not to drink so there's never alcohol in the dorms. There is a small (small, small, small) segment of the students who ignore this and will drink off campus, but you'll only find that company if you're looking for it. If she's really looking for a strong christian community that will help her grow spiritually, I would DEFINITELY recommend Wheaton. It's the real thing, as far as Christian community goes. I also have friends who have grown a lot at Grove City, Biola, and Cedarville. People I know who've gone to Messiah and Gordon haven't been as impressed with the spiritual atmosphere. Just so you know, Wheaton has all of the other things on your list as well--especially overseas programs, there are SO many options--so I think it would be an excellent option for your daughter. (Biola would, too, but you've already said that's too far away).

rstuben: as you probably know, lacrosse is a club sport at Wheaton. My roommate is on the team (she played very competitively in high school, and is an excellent lacrosse player), and I've heard that it's next in line to become a varsity sport. I can't think of any Christian schools with good lacrosse programs, so she might have to pick which is more important--christian environment and art department or varsity team.

I'm glad people finally found this thread! let me know if I can help any more--feel free to pm me with questions, as well.

Shrinkrap · 10-31-2009, 05:39 PM

Oops! (tablet pc)

"Hs being "Oley with it" good enough at Biota?"
Was supposed to be....
Is being "Okay with it" good enough at Biola?"

Any insights about means soccer there?
Was supposed to be....
Any insights about MENS soccer there?

He has in interest in television
was supposed to be...
He has AN interest in television

Back to the regularly scheduled programming....

Creekland · 11-01-2009, 07:19 AM

Kelis, does Wheaton offer medical research - as in undergrads participating in research while majoring in a pre-med major? I'm transitioning to looking for my middle son (sophomore)... who has said he would like Christian, small AND research and I'm thinking he's not going to find all the above in one school. It never hurts to check though.

I've found several that say they get kids into med school with good rates, but they don't appear to have research (except maybe in the summer) - just classes.

He's not totally sure what type of research he wants to do. His thoughts range from microbiological to biomedical engineering.

He will have the grades to be competitive getting in anywhere.

rstuben · 11-01-2009, 05:28 PM

Thanks Kelis, you've helped alot. Do you know anything about Wheatons Art Dept? another concern I had is that most art schools make you do life drawings from a nude model which is a big part of my daughters portfolio and I read somewhere Wheaton doesn't allow nude life drawings. Don't know whether it's true or not but would make me question the quality of the dept. as it's used in all art depts. and is not sleazy in any way.