rprensner

I have a friend who wants to attend Grove City but is worried she won't be accepted. Do you know of any Christian schools similar to it that are also a good value (she won't qualify for any need based aid)? Her family lives in Harrisburg, PA, so the closer the better. Thanks!

Creekland

Maybe Geneva?

Whistle Pig

Messiah in Dillsburg. Eastern in St. David's. Wouldn't much matter about FA @ GC. They give little w/ idea being "our WalMart prices give everyone a break."

Creekland

Both Messiah and Eastern would be far more liberal in their Christian 'flow' than Grove City. Not sure if that matters, but just figured I'd mention it since you said you were looking for 'similar' and didn't point out where you wanted those similarities to be.

rprensner

Thanks. I think those are both possibilities. Any more ideas?

Creekland

If Ohio's not too far... a man I know has a son who goes to Cedarville U and is quite happy with it. Personally, I've no experience with the college - just passing on hearsay.

Whistle Pig

Agreed. But most places, deemed Christian college or otherwise would be likewise. Bob Jones and Pensacola are definite exceptions.

Conversely ...neither Messiah nor Eastern would be considered "liberal" beyond Attilla's Huns. Everything's relative.

Creekland

"neither Messiah nor Eastern would be considered "liberal" beyond Attilla's Huns. Everything's relative."

Maybe... they are changing to become more liberal over the recent years - according to several graduates of each that I know and trust... some of whom have said they will not send their children there even though they liked their own education... and none of whom I consider to be 'Christian Taliban' (a phrase I prefer to Attilla...)

I definitely agree that they aren't among the likes of BJU or Pensacola.

Creekland

We got a postcard in the mail telling us of Christian College Fairs to be held nearby. We might attend one. Grove City and Wheaton aren't there (neither probably have any need to go to fairs), but several other colleges are. Here's the link if you're interested. There's one coming up in Hershey...

NCCF.US

I know I'm new to Christian Colleges, but I'll freely admit there are several I hadn't even heard of...

Can anyone tell of a quick way to know if a school is super conservative (Pensacola, BJU style), super liberal (as per other thread) or in the middle? We're looking for middle - leaning conservative, but not legalistic with dress codes, etc. Pensacola and BJU are definite mismatches for us - but so are the ultra liberals.

phear_me

Biola and Wheaton. It's always the same answer for the best blend of academics, Christian community, and common sense (i.e. No dress codes).

Creekland

+"Biola and Wheaton. It's always the same answer for the best blend of academics, Christian community, and common sense (i.e. No dress codes). "+

Biola is in CA, which for many of us on the east coast, is a bit of a stretch for 'reasonably close.' Wheaton may already be on the list, but for someone (like the OP's friend) who is unsure of getting into GCC, it's not terribly likely to be a sure thing either.

Zetesis

Gordon College in MA.

phear_me

Creekland, let the research begin:

Council for Christian Colleges & Universities - Members & Affiliates

That should give you a great base to start from. If you need access to US News to get more data, pm me, and I will look up the stats on any school you need.

Whistle Pig

Interesting that Grove City is notably absent from this association of Christian institutions. Wondering why?

Creekland

Phear_me, thanks for the list. Ideally I'd love to see a list of Christian colleges listed by the means of their average SAT (or ACT). My oldest son is on the high side (but not super high) and I'd prefer to see him in with his peers. At most Christian colleges he'd be near the very top. Then I'd like one that isn't legalistic nor liberal. The final clincher is they need his major (Community/Economic/Global Development). He has no desire to get rich. Rather he wants to go to third world (majority world) countries and help set up working economies via business or microfinance.

Covenant College meets most of the requirements, but it's terribly small (1000 students) and is really not well known (you graduated from where? effect). Eastern is too liberal for us and has a much lower mean SAT. Wheaton admittedly looks nice, but only has a 'certificate' in his actual major (he'd major in Economics - would double major if he went to Covenant) and Wheaton is expensive for someone who plans to graduate and is not planning on a high salary - ever. GCC we're still unsure of. Stats show that their graduates tend to have more debt than Covenant plus they don't have his major directly, though Entrepreneurship could be decent. It definitely has a decent name recognition.

We looked at Harding... maybe, but they are a bit more legalistic than us (no dancing, no instruments in worship). The latest we've been told to look at is Union U (TN). I haven't had a chance to look at it yet.

If you have any thoughts, they are more than welcome (from anyone). For our preferences, we prefer to stay in the Eastern half of the US - and south rather than north. Our son was born in FL and has a big dislike of cold weather...

At Covenant, Harding or Union he'd definitely be in their top 25% but not so high as at other schools. At Wheaton or GCC he'd still be top 25% for math, but in the top 50% for CR.

It is important to me that he study with academically similar peers, but I also want to see him be able to get a good education in the specific major he desires. Everyone that knows him feels his choice is a perfect fit, so he's not the type that I see changing his mind. He'll just need to figure out the specifics of what and where.