College Prep 101

Preparing for college is more than just sending essays and taking tests. As Rebecca Brauer found out, it also includes getting ready spiritually.

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by MEREDITH DAY /  PHOTO by OWEN RISS

Ask any guidance counselor, and you’re sure to receive the same speech: College is about experiencing new things, meeting new people and broadening your horizons. That was definitely true for Rebecca Brauer, now a sophomore at the University of Missouri in Columbia. In the fall of 2001, Rebecca moved from her home in Shelbina, Missouri (pop. 2,000), to a university with nearly 25,000 students.

When Rebecca began looking at colleges during her senior year of high school, she didn’t think she wanted to go to a big school. But when her dad, a University of Missouri alumnus, encouraged her to look at the school, Rebecca visited the campus and decided MU was where she needed to be.

So how did she prepare to move from her small high school (her graduating class had 67 people) to a large state university? And how should Christian high school students prepare to be Christian college students? Wherever you decide to go to school—big or small, public or private—you can be ready for your college experience. Rebecca did several things to help her prepare to be the person God wants her to be at the school He had for her. Here are a few of them.

pray for guidance
First, Rebecca took her concerns about school to the only Person who could handle them. It’s important to pray about where to go to school, but you don’t have to stop asking God for help once you get there.

Living in the same small town her whole life meant Rebecca always had the same friends. She says her hardest college adjustment was finding a core group of friends in a place where she only had a few previous acquaintances. But instead of worrying on her own, Rebecca prepared by giving her concerns to God.

“I prayed a lot, especially for close Chris-tian friends and that I would get connected to and draw closer to God however He would lead me,” Rebecca says.

Meeting Christian friends during her first semester was difficult, but God has brought her a group of friends who encourage and lift her up.

“You have to look a little bit, but once you find them, the Christians here are really strong in their faith because they’re challenged a lot more. It’s really neat to find people like that,” she says.

Know Where You Stand
Rebecca also prepared for college by growing her faith in God and His Word. Before starting school at Missouri, she prayed that she would grow closer to God and stay true to what she believes.

Whether you go to a Christian or secular school, you’ll most likely be faced with ideas and beliefs that contradict your own. For Rebecca, a lot of that comes in her classes—human development, family studies, and social work—that teach ideas she doesn’t believe in. Some Christian students struggle through these classes, either questioning their own belief in God or getting angry at their teachers.

But Rebecca says the classes are challenging her to better understand what she believes and why. That’s the best attitude. You can learn good things in classes like this if you can sort out the truth from the error. Of course, that takes work.

Rebecca’s advice to incoming freshmen is to do their best to know what the Bible says and be strong in their faith before starting college. “You have to be able to stand firm in your beliefs because you’re not necessarily being taught the absolute truth,” Rebecca says.

The other “danger zone” you can face at any college is the party lifestyle. While you’re looking for friends and fun, it’s not hard to get sucked into a scene that takes advantage of your new independence and freedom. It often includes alcohol, drugs, and sex. Facing these temptations requires Christian students to make sure they continue spending time in God’s Word and with other growing Christians.

“There are so many temptations,” says Rebecca, “and it’s easy to get off track once you get here if you’re not already drawing close to Him.”

reach out
For her final college preparations, Rebecca combined prayer and drawing close to God through His Word with reaching out to tell others about Him. The summer before she started her freshman year, she attended a “Youth on Mission” trip to Toronto with her church youth group. It was Rebecca’s first mission trip, and she helped a church run a Bible school. She also did everything from handing out soft drinks to skaters to cleaning a shelter for abuse victims.

Rebecca says her experience made her more excited about missions and she’s taken that excitement with her to college. She’s now involved with a student group on campus, planning spring break and summer mission trips for students.

Rebecca said her Toronto mission experience helped to prepare her for the big school environment she was about to enter and showed her that no matter where people are, their needs are the same.

“I think it really opened my eyes to people’s needs. Being in a bigger community was really different for me. It helped me make the adjustment of coming here to a bigger community and desiring to meet people’s needs,” she says.

start now
When you’re preparing for college, it’s easy to concentrate on choosing dorm room colors or registering for classes. But as Rebecca found out, the real preparation comes through prayer, building a strong faith and reaching out to others with Christ’s love. Don’t wait. Give your anxieties to God, work to understand His truth, and get ready to share what He has done for you with others.

One great way to stay plugged in to God when you reach campus is through a Christian group or club. There are many of these on campuses throughout North America, including National Collegiate Ministry. NCM is the Baptist ministry to the collegiate community. * There are groups at many Christian and secular colleges and universities across the United States and Canada. NCM exists "to connect the collegiate community to Jesus Christ on a real and personal level. Baptist ministries on the campus and in the church provide opportunities for spiritual growth, connect students to the local church and share the love of Jesus Christ in fulfilling the Great Commission." Find out more at www.student.org.