I would like to attend a Catholic college. Wondering which is the best and what kind of campus life/financial aid/academics/athletics each offers. Any admissions secrets as well? I am a sophomore who is discerning the priesthood.
Here is my list:
Catholic University of America
College of the Holy Cross
Providence College
University of Notre Dame
@ts1234- do I take your post to mean that you are considering becoming a priest? If so, this is a discussion that I highly recommend you have with your parish priest. He will be able to provide the best direction as to which college to attend and where to go from there. Can’t you enter a seminary first, and go to college from there? The priest will know.
In addition, your diocese probably has a director of vocations who would have extensive knowledge on these issues.
Boston College
I think Villanova’s catholic?
Christendom will forgive debt for priests and religious vocations. http://www.christendom.edu/aid/index.php
If you want to be a diocesan priest, then you pretty much have to get your bachelors first before being admitted to seminary.
If you want to be a religious order priest (vow of poverty and all that is associated with being a religious), then you should consider which order interests you and look into their universities.
You do not have to go to a Catholic undergrad to become a priest. However, many do.
Does your diocese have any Discernment Weekends for young men like you? If you don’t know, ask your pastor.
Fordham and Georgetown are both great Catholic schools - Jesuit also, if that matters to you.
How Catholic do you want your college to be? Some are really Catholic. Others are much more secular in spite of the Catholic affiliation. For example, Georgetown is a lot less worried about upholding Catholic beliefs than Catholic University is.
I agree with the idea of speaking to your parish priest.
You can look at some of the many excellent Jesuit colleges out there. Take a look at the link below and you can determine which schools are a good match for your academics, location needs etc.
http://www.ajcunet.edu/institutions
In addition, a complete list of Catholic Colleges is on Wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Roman_Catholic_universities_and_colleges_in_the_United_States#Sinsinawa_Dominican_Sisters
Yes I could enter Seminary straight out of high school, but I’m not sure if I want to go to college first. It is also a matter of finances. Thank you!
Thank you all for your help!
Georgetown
Often your diocese will pay for seminary… in general, however, Catholic schools seem less generous with financial aid than most equivalent secular schools.
Add to your list:
Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio (which is both a liberal arts college and a seminary)
http://www.pcj.edu/formation-programs/college-liberal-arts-formation-program/
Thomas Aquinas College in California
http://www.thomasaquinas.edu/
University of Dallas
http://www.udallas.edu/
Thomas More College of Liberal Arts, in New Hampshire has only 100 students but is highly regarded and has been awarding two full tuition scholarships each year, on a competitive basis.
http://www.thomasmorecollege.edu/blog/2015/01/14/2015-faith-and-reason-essay-scholarship/
Have you also considered Franciscan University? In addition, there are some very good Marianist colleges - University of Dayton comes to mind. These schools are more than simply Catholic in name only. I echo one of the previous posters - your diocese should have a vocations director that would be more than happy to speak to you. Best wishes in your journey.
Also consider University of St. Thomas in Minnesota. It is another college which has both undergraduate and seminary. Plus, it is quite military friendly. In particular, it offers great deals for students with the Air Force ROTC scholarship (including free room and board). UST students can also do Naval ROTC at U.Minnesota which is only three miles away. Air Force ROTC is on campus at St. Thomas.