PCC's
strongest quality is in the people who are there.
There are outstanding Christians everywhere, but I believe there are
more at PCC than anywhere else I've been. The
trouble is, most of these people are the students.
There are some great folks on the faculty, too.
For the most part, however, the administration and some faculty
are not people with whom I would want to be
personally acquainted in the future. Academics at PCC are good
(though not as good as they claim to be).
The problem is that the school is not accredited.
As a prospective student, I was told that there would
be no issue with the unaccredited status. When I
applied for graduate school 4 years later, however, I had
to fight battles that were completely unnecessary.
The price is
good, except for the unaccredited thing, which means that my
scholarship opportunities were only $800 a year, the academic scholarship
given by PCC itself. Perhaps 1 student out of
300 has more luck with the money.
Life at
PCC is hard, especially for dating couples. The administration
gives little respect to the student body and even less
trust. While they tell you they are proud of
you, they will treat you as if you are a
convicted felon. Men and women students cannot touch each
other. I am being completely serious. You are
being watched all the time, even if you are doing
nothing wrong. You cannot play the music you like
unless it is classical or you bought it in the
campus bookstore. You cannot watch TV or movies, except
for the nightly news and some sporting events. You
are told when to get up, how to dress, when
to eat, and when to go to bed. You
have to scan your ID card in and out for
permission to be off campus. You cannot date or
even go off campus in mixed groups (men and women
together). You cannot be on campus in mixed groups
unchaperoned or outside of “social hours”. This is not
exaggeration.
Chapel services, nighttime prayer groups, Christian service opportunities, intramural
sports (fun, but not co-ed), and collegians—an alternative to fraternities
and sororities, are more redeeming parts of the social life
at PCC. Also, the beach is 20 minutes away.
Because of so many required activities, and because I
was an engineering major, I had little time for anything
but studies during my last 2 years—no beach.
On the
whole, PCC has some good things, and I believe God
led me there. But it is a frustratingly difficult
place to be. I learned a lot; much of
it was how not to be. I've seen enough
hypocrisy and quirkiness in 8 semesters to last me a
lifetime.
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