In the last few years, higher education has suffered a severe loss of trust. Public confidence is at 42 percent, down from 57 percent in 2015. Rising costs, perceived politicization of the curriculum, charges of antisemitism, and top-heavy administrations at public and private institutions have driven increased public scrutiny.
Understandably, these trends have prompted many parents and college-age youth to look for alternatives to traditional college, or to seek private, Christian colleges rather than public secular universities.
Yet Christian higher education hasn’t been immune from the cultural trends that have eroded trust, and not all Christian colleges are equally prepared to counter these trends.
The pace of cultural change adds urgency to the perennial question of how to choose a college where students can not only gain an excellent education but also graduate with resilient, tested, well-equipped Christian faithfulness.
Wondering how to do that? Let me offer a few suggestions from where I sit, freshly retired from a 34-year career of teaching and administration in both public and Christian universities.
Look Beyond the Christian Label
Since your goal isn’t merely obtaining credentials but finding faithful mentors, the task of choosing a college extends beyond noting the adjective “Christian” on the school’s website. Many such institutions exist in America, some church-affiliated and others not, some with faculty fully committed to orthodox Christian faith and others more mixed.
You’ll need to probe past the attractive marketing materials and winsome admissions representatives to determine the realities in classrooms and residence halls.
Start with the Mission Statement
Universities invest effort into crafting mission statements that serve them in important ways, guiding major decisions such as the types of programs to offer, how to spend their funds, what roles to pursue in church and community life, and how to hire faculty and staff who will advance that mission.
Christian higher education hasn’t been immune from the cultural trends that have eroded trust in higher education.
Those whose leadership and faculty are most committed to their Christian purpose typically produce robust statements that include strong adherence to Scripture’s authority, to historic Christian doctrine, and to Christian ethics, conduct, and service. A well-crafted mission statement expresses a set of Christian beliefs and values you can readily compare with your own to determine whether this school may be a good fit.
The less the mission statement says about biblical authority and historic Christian doctrine, the more you need to press your investigation into the institution’s commitment to gospel centrality.
Questions for Faculty
More than any other factor, you’ll want to know how fully the faculty embrace the institution’s stated commitments. What does the college administration do to ensure they’re hiring and keeping believing faculty? Do they expect applicants to confess their own faith and affirm support for the school’s mission? Do their faculty evaluation procedures require regular evidence of ongoing Christian faithfulness and service?
You may need to probe deeper to answer these questions. Some schools will state their answers up front on their websites. Other institutions may have policies in place but may not post them as publicly for various reasons. Nevertheless, most will readily share that information.
The best people to ask would be the deans and department heads who oversee the major you’re exploring, because they directly manage faculty hiring for that academic program. I’d be hesitant to recommend study at a school that carries the label of “Christian” but is vague or negative in its answers to these questions.
You’ll also want to know how equipped faculty members are to evaluate and integrate their Christian faith with their area of study. Does the institution support such integration through an office of faculty development? Do deans and department heads encourage faculty to show evidence that they meaningfully integrate faith and learning in their classrooms, their research, and their professional work?
Questions for Student Life
How well does the institution support its students’ spiritual lives outside the classroom? Is there a chaplain’s office or spiritual life center? What does the university do to encourage students to practice their faith? Does it sponsor or encourage fellowship groups? Does it host regular gatherings for worship?
Does the institution help its students connect with local churches? It can be easy in college to neglect meeting together for encouragement in faith and Christian perseverance, but the author of Hebrews warns us about that (10:25).
Questions for a Local Church
Whatever choice you make, talk at home about how to plan and cultivate practices to pursue a growing life in Christ. A robust Christian environment can help in this effort, but regular fellowship with other believers in a local church will also be crucial.
Whatever choice you make, talk at home about how to plan and cultivate practices to pursue a growing life in Christ.
Make sure the church you choose is gospel-centered and has worship, teaching, and fellowship that will promote growth in devotion to Jesus Christ and effectiveness in serving others. Such a church should be committed to the authority of Scripture and the core doctrines of Christian belief as expressed in the Nicene Creed and the five solas of the Reformation.
Having a church within walking distance of campus may encourage faithful involvement. A church with a strong college ministry may draw a larger critical mass of students from the campus who carpool, which makes it easier to get to church and remain involved even if the church is farther away. The Gospel Coalition can help you with its easy-to-use church directory.
Rest in God’s Providence
Other important factors may influence your choice of Christian college: where it’s located, the quality of the campus and its facilities, the reputation of its programs. Yet your search shouldn’t end without solid answers to the questions above.
Wherever your search finally takes you, remember to trust in God’s sovereign guidance and providence. “I am sure of this,” the apostle Paul wrote to the Philippian church, “that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6).
God can sustain and deepen faith, working through the mentorship and effective teaching of committed believing faculty. He can sharpen intellect and resilience when challenges come. We can trust him, because he ordains all of our steps.
The Gospel Coalition