It used to be that a person went to college to get a degree and perhaps launch a career. Recently I was reading The Irresistible Revolution (Zondervan, 2006) by Shane Claiborne, and had this thought: How much cooler is it that now people are going to college to get a life?
There is a huge difference between an occupation and a vocation. The two aren’t mutually exclusive necessarily, but they do reveal some profound priorities. One is related to your job. The other is related to what you perceive God has put you on this earth to do.
Claiborne tells of his time at Eastern University in St. Davids, Penn., where he studied with thinkers like Tony Campolo and Duffy Robbins. He found his values and lifestyle challenged to such an extreme that he actually put these new ideas in practice (go figure!) and began making an impact on his immediate surroundings. It was in college that Claiborne began to dream big about changing the world. (For more, see the Stir It Up column in the September/October 2006 issue of YouthWorker Journal.)
Having worked as a college professor for 22 years, I can attest to the increase in the number of students who are not satisfied with coming to college to collect a degree, pick up a briefcase, and head to the office. There’s a hunger among students to find schools that are intentionally providing opportunities to get started on those changes—to address their true vocation—while they are still in their degree programs.
The following is a selective list of schools that are making it possible for students to dream big about the rest of their lives and connect their studies with their passion to change the world.
School for Social Change
Eastern University
St. Davids, Pennsylvania
Students have an urban, multidisciplinary, crosscultural and faith-based experience here, where they can get degrees in urban studies, participate in the Urban Immersion Program, or develop other city-based educational skills. Eastern University also has graduate programs, such as its Master of Arts in Urban Studies. Its MBA in Economic Development has students working in poor areas in Nairobi, Mumbai (Bombay), Mexico City and rural communities around the world. Students also can work toward a Dual Degree Master’s Program with Palmer Theological Seminary. (www.eastern.edu)
Debate Team
Liberty University
Lynchburg, Virginia
All three national collegiate debate organizations have rated Liberty as the number one school in the nation for debate, and more than 75 percent of its debaters want to become lawyers and judges. Much of the mainstream news media covered the team last year because of its ability to succeed against schools like Harvard and Northwestern. Jerry Falwell, the school’s founder and president, told Newsweek magazine, “We are training debaters who can perform a salt ministry (originally reported as an ‘assault ministry,’ and later corrected!—ed.), meaning becoming the conscience of the culture.” (www.liberty.edu)
Au Sable Institute of Environmental Studies
Great Lakes, Puget Sound, South Florida, India, Africa
“Creation care” has lots of traction on campuses today, but it’s more than watching Al Gore’s movie and getting blue recycling containers. More than 50 colleges and universities partner with Au Sable for environmental education. The institute integrates areas such as chemistry, ethics, economics, marine biology and theology to help earth’s inhabitants be good stewards. (www.ausable.org)
Digital Media Arts
Huntington University
Huntington, Indiana
It’s no secret that college students know a lot about digital animation. They have the chance to learn even more from some of the Veggie Tales animators in a program that is closely linked to Huntington University’s department of Fine Arts. Students can choose tracks in animation or DV cinema. (www.huntington.edu)
The Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, Indiana
Students in this Notre Dame program focus on “the religious and ethnic dimensions of conflict and peace building; the ethics of the use of force; and the peacemaking role of international norms, policies and institutions,” according to its Web site. The institute’s mission is to promote conditions for creating sustainable peace, and train professional peacemakers. It attracts students from around the world, all with the premise that creating and sustaining peace is not only a good idea, it is also possible. Maybe even necessary! (www.notredame.edu)
See also The Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace Justice, University of San Diego, which has a new School of Peace Studies. (www.sandiego.edu)
Contemporary Christian Music
Greenville College
Greenville, Illinois
Music’s impact on the church and society has always been significant, but it is an epic force today. Students in this program develop skills in music making and in understanding the unique nature of contemporary music. Students become experienced in pop theory and songwriting, rock history, studio recording, multimedia, music and culture, performance and style. Greenville also offers majors in Digital Media, Media Promotions, and Music Business. (www.greenville.edu)
Film Studies
Biola University
La Mirada, California
Film is one of the most powerful and accessible media in the world. Biola’s proximity to Hollywood, and its connections to screenwriters, producers, directors, actors and technical professionals, make it one of the key players in developing Christians who want to work in that industry. (www.biola.edu)
Peace House
Indianapolis, Indiana
This is an urban peacemaking experience that combines academics and internships for students from any U.S. college or university. The program is called The Plowshares Peace Studies Program, and is funded by the Lilly Endowment. Students participate in mediation programs, government agencies, community development groups and religious organizations that emphasize peace and justice activities. (www.plowsharesproject.org)
Human Needs and Global Resources (HNGR) Program
Wheaton College
Wheaton, Illinois
Students are equipped to confront poverty and hunger in Africa, Asia and Latin America through classroom studies and field-based service learning. The program aims to “promote in students a commitment to reducing poverty and injustice through lifestyle and vocational decisions,” according to its Web site. (www.wheaton.edu)
Justice, Peace and Conflict Studies
Eastern Mennonite University
Harrisonburg, Virginia
Students in this program often find careers in social services, development, law, conflict resolution, criminal justice, advocacy groups and non-profit agencies, because it encourages students to develop disciplines and abilities to sustain a just and peaceful lifestyle. The program emphasizes the balance between action and reflection. (www.emu.edu)
Chicago Semester
Chicago, Illinois
This program works with 10 colleges in the Midwest to give students get real-world experience through internships in Chicago institutions such as the mayor’s office, corporate headquarters, hospitals, theaters and non profit agencies. (www.chicagosemester.org)
Dean Nelson is the director of the journalism program at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego. His work has appeared in The New York Times, Boston Globe, Sojourners, Utne Reader, Christianity Today, CCM Magazine and other national publications. His most recent book is The Power of Serving Others (Berrett-Koehler).
