Benefits of a Christian College

Written by Carroll W. Griffin

When I think about the most difficult (and yet potentially the most rewarding) times in raising a teenager, many memories come to my mind. I can speak personally because Kay and I have three children: one in graduate school, one in college, and one in high school. And, I can speak professionally because I served 11 years as a youth/church recreation minister and almost 21 years as a director of admissions at Union University. One of the most stressful moments of decision making is that of choosing a college.

 Add to this monumental choice all of its ramifications: Can we afford it? Will our family ever be the same again?  Will my child eat properly? What if she gets sick? Is it possible for this child of mine to make a mature decision and be places on time when he can’t even clean his room or set an alarm clock? I guess it all boils down to one thing: will my son or daughter still need me? See, it’s these parental concerns that suddenly seem so overwhelming.

When you hear someone say things like “College is so expensive!” or “We have no idea how to begin the college search,” it just seems to make the dilemma even worse.  However, I’m not writing this article to add to your fears. Rather, I want to help you see that there is a life after this time has past. If I’ve caught your attention, maybe the following suggestions will ease your concerns. That’s my hope.

Make Prayer an Important Part of the Selection Process
Let me just talk to you for a few minutes as if we were sitting face to face. The most important piece of advice I can give you and your teen is to pray. I’m serious. Pray a lot! When you contemplate the importance of all the major decisions that are made during the ages of 17 and 22, you begin to see how very important it is to seek the face of our Lord.

Research Christian Colleges First
Once you and your teen have prayed together, I think it is important that you consider a Christian college. Here’s why:

• Spiritual Growth. Even though there are some Christian faculty and students at non-Christian colleges, and even though Christian colleges are not sin-free, it is important to realize that most Christian young people will have a greater likelihood of growing closer to Christ at a Christian college. Students and parents have told me many times they feel the Holy Spirit when they walk on our campus to visit.

• Students enjoy Christian leadership. The openness and freedom of professors to pray with students in their classes and advising sessions; dorm directors who are concerned about students’ lives; and staff who seem to really care are of major importance to teens. Search for colleges that employ only Christian faculty/staff and administrators.

• There is a greater percentage of Christian students on a Christian campus. Roommates with similar plans and goals help the spiritual growth process, not hinder it. I have spoken with many transfer students who said they had to leave their previous college because their roommate had a girlfriend or boyfriend over every night. That lifestyle isn’t what we want for our students; and it isn’t what we are paying for. Unless you have chosen a strong Christian college, it is the norm in today’s world. We need to do everything we can to put our children in the best places to grow as close to Christ as possible.

• College is a four-year training program. This training program should be a spiritual and educational boot camp. It must prepare your teens to think for themselves, to read and analyze, to think critically, to realize that God made the entire world and everything in it, and that they have a purpose for living. What better place for this boot camp than a Christian college? This boot camp experience needs to challenge them academically, but it needs to be done by Christian professors who believe and teach according to God’s Word.

• Most students find their future mate during their college years. Remember me saying there is a greater percentage of Christian students on a Christian campus. My wife and I have done everything we know to do as Christian parents.  We have prayed for our children’s future mates for many years. We had no intention of sending them to non-Christian dorms and non-Christ honoring institutions for non-Christian students to challenge every belief they have or to limit their opportunities of finding God’s choice for their lives.

Seek Wise Christian Counsel and a Christian Environment
As I stated in the introduction of this article, the college years are packed with major times of decisions. What am I going to major in? What type of work will I be prepared to do?  Do I need to go to graduate school? What type of life do I want? Do I have specific gifts? Why do I think differently about some issues than others? Will I find my life’s mate at this school? My new friends are discussing some things about which I don’t feel comfortable; what do I do? Parents, I meet with teenagers just like yours everyday. They are making important decisions and want and deserve wise counsel from mature Christian adults. We need to surround our teens with strong Christian leaders who support, not question, the values that have been taught in our homes.

The major reason to choose a Christian college, as any other decision, is that you feel that our Lord led you to that decision. Those of us who work at Christian colleges truthfully only want you at our institutions if God led you here! We’ve all had students in our institutions who should have been elsewhere.

If you agree with my thoughts, some great places to look for a Christian college would be at the following Web sites:

• Coalition of Christian Colleges (www.cccu.org). All of these colleges and universities employ only Christians at all faculty, staff, and administrative positions.

• National Association of Christian College Admissions Personnel (www.naccap.org). 
This is a great group of Christian people. They sponsor most of the Christian College Fairs throughout the U.S.

• Association of Southern Baptist Colleges and Schools (www.asbcs.org). Look at this list for many colleges you may recognize from our Baptist heritage.

Financial Assistance Is Available  
OK, I know what you are thinking! Christian colleges cost more than state schools. Initially, yes. Apply for admission and financial aid. All of us need financial help for college. Look at these sites for ideas and suggestions. Apply for whatever you can if you qualify. If they want an essay, give them one. Don’t try to use the same essay for everything! It is worth the time to do it right. Five hundred dollars ($500.00) in scholarship money may not sound like a lot, but it is about one hundred (100) hours of student work. Either work on the scholarships or prepare to work on a part-time job.

Well, time to stop! If you are still uneasy, contact the admissions/enrollment services folks at the colleges you are considering. We all have 800 numbers and e-mail addresses. Let us help you. You are not in this alone!

Carroll W. Griffin is the director of admissions for Union University, Jackson, Tennessee.

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