Truett McConnell College

Date: Aug 12 2012
Major: Religion/Religious (This Major's Salary over time)
As most will mention, Truett-McConnell College (herein referred to as "TMC") is a small Southern Baptist Liberal Arts college located in North Georgia. Emphasis to be a Southern Bapist, in belief and Church membership, comes from most of the Faculty and Staff. The student body is not so definite, although the Resident Assistants and those involved with the college typically exhibit opinions like the Faculty. I lived on campus and am finishing as an off campus student; as a result, I have found that the student body of TMC seems to be clicky. Finding a compatible "click" is strongly dependent upon living on campus and eating in the dining hall with everyone else. Everybody knows everyone, and very little goes unnoticed on campus. There are very few student body activities. Lots of students go home on the weekends, which makes the campus barren on Saturday and Sunday. The surrounding town is completely country and offers little. Students wil drive 45-minutes to the Mall of Georgia area to do things.

The tuition prices are good, especially when compared to other private 4-year colleges. However, with the price comes sacrifice as, 1., the computer labs on campus are lacking in the quantity of usable, advanced machines and the operational hours of the labs; 2., the maintainance of the buildings and the upkeep are almost always behind schedule (when trustees tour campus the buildings and grounds are temporarily maintained for the visit). 3., Adequate facilites for studying (quiet areas and computer labs) are almost non-existent.

With all of that being said, the campus is a beautiful contrast from most city colleges as the campus is located on acres upon acres of woodlands. The centerpiece academic building of the college overlooks a field of green, respectably called the "Front Lawn," and the campus is peppered with Japanese Cherry trees, large oaks, and some amount of horticultural planning. A cross monument rests on the top of the largest hill on campus. The hill itself provides a good spot for quietness and watching the sunset/sunrise.

Academics at the school have developed greatly since the culmination of the 4-yeard degree programs in the mid-2000s. To be a Christian Studies major does not seem to be as much of a focus as it used to be; a degree in "Missions" now is the hardest pushed program. Every degree offered must have a minor in the "Great Commission" program included, which means that all students in all degree programs must have the classes involved with that minor. The popularity of this newly introduced minor seems to be rather negative amoung the students whom I interact with. It seems that TMC is doing it so as to be more in line with the Southern Baptist Convention, an organization that is a big backer of the school.

I am a Christian Studies student with a focus in Theology, and I enjoy my professors a lot. Of my 3 years at TMC, I have developed a good relationship with several of them and they have challenged my views of academics, spirituality, and theology in completely positive ways. I wish that more of the student body had a passion for academics; most of the sports players make it pretty clear that they are only at TMC for the sport/scholarship. Since this is a small college, athletes are close to a majority. The athletic programs are a mystery to me as most of the people given scholarships by the college are morally complacent and do not study, which doesn't seem to align with the college's values. Lots of athletes must have to lie as well, since the admittance sheet for the college asks that a student give a testimony of faith. TMC needs to stop focusing so much on sports and more so on bringing in good students.

Overall, if you want to have a degree with a Christian Perspective, then TMC is a sound choice. Missions has become the main focus of the school, so if you don't like that then better find a different place. The smallness, dedicated teachers, and price of tuition make this a good Christian school.