Choosing the right college is a significant decision, especially when faith is a central part of your life or your family’s values. Many parents and students seeking a Christian higher education experience often find it challenging to truly assess how deeply a college integrates its Christian identity into campus life and academics. As one parent articulated, “My daughter is in the process of selecting a Christian college and we recognize faith integration in the classroom and campus can vary widely. While many schools speak the language of integration, it seems difficult to assess from the ‘consumer’ side.” This concern highlights the need for reliable, High-quality College Picking Guides specifically tailored for Christian institutions.
This article addresses this need by introducing a robust approach to evaluating Christian colleges, moving beyond surface-level observations to examine the operationalization of Christian identity within these institutions. Drawing from empirical research and a comprehensive framework, the Operationalizing Christian Identity Guide (OCIG), we provide insights to help parents, students, and educators make informed decisions when navigating the landscape of Christian higher education.
Beyond “Church-Related”: Defining Truly Christian Colleges
One common, yet often misleading, term used to categorize faith-based institutions is “church-related.” While seemingly straightforward, this label can be ambiguous. Just as relationships can range from close family ties to distant connections, a college’s “relatedness” to a church can vary significantly. Some institutions might maintain strong denominational ties and deeply integrate faith into their operations, while others may have historical connections that are now largely nominal.
The term “church-related” also carries a degree of institutional self-interest. As education scholar Merrimon Cuninggim pointed out decades ago, colleges might emphasize their church affiliation when engaging with denominational bodies but downplay it when interacting with secular entities or the government. This fluidity in the use of “church-related” makes it an unreliable indicator of a college’s genuine commitment to its Christian mission.
Furthermore, relying solely on the term “church-related” fails to differentiate between institutions that are deeply Christian without formal church ties, and those with superficial church connections but minimal active faith integration. For instance, institutions like Biola University and Wheaton College, though non-denominational, are explicitly and demonstrably Christian in their mission and operations. Conversely, universities like Texas Christian University (TCU) or Southern Methodist University, despite historical church affiliations, may lack clear empirical evidence of a functioning Christian identity beyond their names.
This ambiguity leads many to rely on generic, often unhelpful college rankings found online. One such ranking system, for example, evaluated “best Christian colleges” based on metrics like cost, graduation rates, retention rates, and post-graduation earnings. While these factors are relevant for any college choice, they reveal nothing about the distinctiveness of a Christian education or the centrality of faith to the institution’s mission. Ranking Christian colleges using secular metrics misses the point entirely, failing to address the core values and faith-based environment that prospective students and their families are seeking.
The Operationalizing Christian Identity Guide (OCIG): A High-Quality Tool for Evaluation
To provide a more meaningful and rigorous approach to evaluating Christian colleges, the Operationalizing Christian Identity Guide (OCIG) was developed. This guide is rooted in the principle that any institution claiming a specific identity should demonstrate tangible markers reflecting that identity in its actions and policies. Just as someone claiming to be a musician must engage in musical activities, a Christian college should exhibit observable commitments to its Christian identity.
The OCIG employs twelve distinct empirical markers across key areas of an institution’s functioning: mission, rhetoric, membership requirements, curriculum, co-curriculum, and governance. These markers serve as concrete evidence of how Christian universities “operationalize” their Christian identity – how they put their faith into practice through observable actions and policies.
To quantify the degree of Christian identity operationalization, the OCIG assigns numerical values to 28 different institutional decisions related to these markers. This results in a scoring system where institutions can range from 1 to 28, providing a comparative measure of their commitment.
For example, one crucial marker is membership requirements. The OCIG examines whether Christian identity is a requirement for students, faculty, staff, the president, and members of the governing board. Institutions like Biola, Taylor, or Wheaton College, for example, require Christian affiliation for various roles. Others, like Baylor University or the University of Notre Dame, may have mixed requirements. Still others, such as Wake Forest University or TCU, may have no religious requirements outside of specific divinity programs.
The OCIG uses a coding system to assess these requirements:
- Christian Identity Requirements for Students (+1)
- Christian Identity or Belief Requirements for Faculty (+1 for all faculty or 0.5 if for some faculty)
- Christian Identity or Belief for Staff (+1)
- Christian Identity or Membership Requirements for the President (+1)
- Christian/Church/Denominational/Order Requirements for Being on the Governance Board (+1 for all or 0.5 if for some board members)
- No Identity Requirements in each area (0)
Similar evaluations are conducted for other markers related to institutional rhetoric (how they publicly present their Christian identity), curriculum (integration of faith into academic programs), and co-curricula (faith-based activities and programs outside the classroom, such as student groups, residence life, and chapel). The OCIG, as a whole, offers a significantly clearer and more nuanced understanding of how Christian colleges embody their faith compared to relying on vague labels or secular rankings.
It is important to note that the OCIG is not intended to judge the quality of an institution or the depth of individual faith. Rather, it provides an empirical baseline for understanding the extent to which an institution’s structures and policies reflect a commitment to its stated Christian identity. Requiring a statement of faith from faculty, for example, does not guarantee teaching excellence or genuine faith integration in the classroom, but it does signal an institutional priority.
Key Findings: Diversity within Christian Higher Education
Applying the OCIG to 554 Christian colleges and universities in the United States (371 Protestant, 182 Catholic, and 1 Eastern Orthodox) and 16 in Canada (5 Catholic and 11 Protestant) revealed significant diversity within Christian higher education. The research uncovered clear patterns of variation across different categories of institutions.
One striking finding pertains to Protestant institutions. Mainline Protestant universities and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) generally scored lower on the OCIG, with almost all (94%) scoring 12 or below. In contrast, Evangelical Partnership institutions (CCCU/IACE) and low-church Protestant institutions consistently scored higher, with all CCCU/IACE institutions and most low-church Protestant colleges scoring 12.5 or above. This suggests that if you are seeking Protestant institutions with a more demonstrably operationalized Christian mission, CCCU/IACE and low-church Protestant colleges are statistically more likely to fit that criteria.
Contrary to some historical arguments suggesting that non-denominational institutions are more prone to secularization, the OCIG data found no evidence to support this claim. Non-denominational institutions are just as capable of strongly operationalizing their Christian identity as denominational ones.
In summary, the OCIG research reveals a spectrum of Christian identity operationalization across different types of institutions: Mainline Protestant and HBCU institutions tend to score lower, Catholic institutions fall in the middle range, and CCCU, IACE, and low-church Protestant institutions generally score higher. For example, St. Olaf College (ELCA Lutheran) scored 6.5, Wilberforce University (African Methodist Episcopal HBCU) scored 2, Marquette University (Catholic) scored 12, Biola University (CCCU/IACE) scored 26, and Mid-America Christian University (independent Protestant) scored 19.
This data underscores that the notion of a monolithic “Christian college experience” in America is inaccurate. Significant differences in institutional rhetoric, membership criteria, curriculum design, and co-curricular expectations lead to vastly different student experiences across Christian schools. Therefore, making informed distinctions between these types of institutions is crucial for prospective students and their families.
Conclusion: Choosing Wisely with High-Quality Guides
Selecting a college is a multifaceted process, and for those seeking a Christian education, understanding the depth and breadth of an institution’s faith commitment is paramount. High-quality college picking guides, such as those informed by the Operationalizing Christian Identity Guide (OCIG), are essential tools for navigating this complex landscape. By moving beyond superficial labels and generic rankings, and instead focusing on empirical markers of Christian identity operationalization, prospective students and their families can make more informed choices and find institutions that genuinely align with their values and educational goals. Knowing how faith practically manifests at various Christian colleges empowers students to choose a college experience where their faith can flourish within a supportive and intentionally Christian academic community.
