Engaged Students

A Calvin education equips students to be agents of renewal in God's world.

In the words of the Calvin Mission Statement: "We pursue intellectual efforts to explore our world's beauty, speak to its pain, uncover our own faithlessness, and proclaim the healing that God offers in Jesus Christ. We strive to embrace the best insights of Christian life and reflection; engage issues in the intellectual and public spheres; and enrich faith by the heritage of the past and the discoveries of today."

From first-year orientation through graduation and beyond, Calvin provides the challenge and support to help students become both leaders and servants in every area of life.

• Leaders and Servants: Calvin programs provide students with meaningful, real world experiences.
  
  
  • Students in Calvin's community-based nursing program spend significant time not just in hospitals, but also in community organizations and neighborhoods. 
    
    
  • First-year engineering students design equipment for non-profit organizations, while teams of senior engineers work on a year-long design project, some of which lead to patents and real products. 
    
    
  • For over 25 years, accounting majors have volunteered to help low-income taxpayers file their tax forms through an IRS-sponsored program, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance.
    
    
• Across the Globe: Calvin's off-campus programs teach students that renewal is a worldwide effort. Students spend semesters in 13 locales and choose from over 30 different off-campus trips during the January interim term.
  
  
  • According to the annual Open Doors Report released by the International Educational Exchange, Calvin ranks second nationally among the nation's top 40 baccalaureate institutions for the number of students who study abroad.
    
    
  • Calvin also ranks fifth in that same category for the total number of international students studying on its campus.
    
    
  • In fact, Calvin was one of just four colleges and universities nationwide to be honored with a 2007 Senator Paul Simon Award for Campus Internationalization.
    
    
• Real-World Experience: U.S. News and World Report names Calvin as one of only 15 schools in the nation for "outstanding internships that enhance student success." It's no wonder since over 80% of Calvin students complete internships - taking advantage of the vast network the Calvin community has created and finding themselves working at companies like Airbus in Germany, the New York Stock Exchange, Wolverine Worldwide, Herman Miller, Zondervan, World Vision and hundreds more. Each year, over 120 students also work alongside Calvin faculty doing research in the sciences, arts and humanities.
  
  
• Thoughtful Participants: Calvin's biennial Festival of Faith & Writing brings together conference participants and renowned authors for a weekend of education and renewal. The festival is joined by other notable events such as the award-winning annual January Series, the Faith and International Development Conference and a remarkable concert line-up. Only at Calvin would a typical school year include appearances by such people as Maya Angelou, Matisyahu and The Civil Wars.

Great Teaching

Calvin College is the kind of place where your profs know your name, and where teaching is job number one. No one will ask you to leave your faith at the door when you enter a philosophy classroom or a biology lab. In fact, your professors will challenge you to deepen your faith by tackling big ideas and current issues.

• 100 + majors, minors and programs
• 326 full-time faculty and 11:1 student/faculty ratio
• Over 82% of Calvin faculty with the highest degree in their field

• Research: Calvin professors regularly engage students in grant-funded research; 85% of faculty have published in academic or professional journals. In 2010, a record 90 undergraduate students worked alongside 41 faculty members for 10 weeks of full-time summer research in the sciences. These collaborations give students valuable experience and expertise.  Such projects often lead to published reports and presentations in which students are cited as co-authors.

• Community Outreach: Community engagement and service are central to Calvin's mission, and faculty are involved both personally and professionally. In almost every department, academically based service-learning activities provide a relevant connection between theory and practice.

• Christian Commitment: 100% of Calvin's faculty are committed Christians who actively integrate their faith with learning, teaching and scholarship. Whether through classroom interaction or individual advising appointments, faculty mentor students as they navigate their way through

• Sustainability Initiatives: Calvin is developing new ways to be smart about using the environmental resources God provides. In 2010, the college was given the Green Award for "greatest green initiatives" in the Grand Rapids area.

Vibrant Community

At Calvin, students learn to connect the way they think with the way they live.

Calvin students fill their minds and their spirits with great films and political debates, challenging assignments and dorm Bible studies, pre-concert conversations with bands and service-learning in the Grand Rapids community. Learning to be a wise and faithful participant--and leader--in God's world doesn't happen overnight - it takes practice.

• Living-Learning: Within the residence halls and apartments, there are a number of optional living-learning communities that focus on topics such as environmental stewardship, understanding race and anti-racism, faith and athletics, foreign languages, and the honors program.

• Community-Building: Calvin is home to more than 60 student-led organizations where students get involved, create community, and develop leadership skills. Some leadership is more behind the scenes, such as the Barnabas Team, some is more upfront, like leading chapel services as a worship apprentice. If civic engagement, social justice, or environmental sustainability is on the heart of a student, they'll most likely be found on a service-learning spring break trip or serving as a Community Partnership Coordinator in their dorm.

• The Box Office: Calvin's Student Activities Office (SAO) strives to provide a season of concerts, films, lectures and other programs that allow Calvin students to interact with the best and the brightest artists of a wide array of genres - including Switchfoot, Sufjan Stevens, The Civil Wars, Lupe Fiasco, Death Cab for Cutie, Sigur Ros and many more.

• Location, Location: Calvin's beautiful 400-acre campus is located in the heart of Grand Rapids, Michigan. The Calvin community integrates into the larger Grand Rapids community in ways that are as varied and diverse as the student body of Calvin itself. Maybe it's the Calvin art student displaying his work at Calvin's downtown 106 Gallery or in the annual citywide ArtPrize competition.  It could be the senior at Calvin doing her internship at the Frederick Meijer Gardens. Or maybe still it's the group of Calvin students living in a Project Neighborhood home, strengthening ties with neighbors and each other.

Women's Sports: Basketball, Cross Country, Golf, Lacrosse, Soccer, Softball, Swim & Diving, Tennis, Track & Field, Volleyball

Men's Sports: Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Golf, ACHA Hockey, Lacrosse, Soccer, Swim & Diving, Tennis, Track & Field

Successful Outcomes

Students want a job after graduation, and Calvin can help with that. But more than a job, students want a life that goes beyond themselves, a life that is part of making change happen.

Calvin offers the kind of Christian education that fills you with a deep sense of purpose-and make you exactly the kind of person publishing companies and churches and schools and law offices want to hire.

Tangible Takeaways
Calvin's Career Development Office assists students in preparing for careers after graduation through workshops, job fairs, internships and on-campus interviews.

• Over 80% of Calvin's 2010 graduates had internships while in college, earning Calvin a ranking in U.S. News and World Report in its "Internships" category.
• 99% of the Class of 2010 survey responders reported they were employed or in graduate school within one year after graduation.

Career networking by Calvin's 50,000 alumni gives graduates a boost in domestic markets and around the world. These alumni share a worldview and values, nurtured by an active alumni association in 35 chapters from coast to coast, which keeps graduates connected to Calvin and to each other.

Recent Calvin Alum

Biochemistry major, Nick Be '05 completed his doctorate at Johns Hopkins and moved to California for a postdoctoral fellowship in biodefense research. "One comment I got consistently during my interviews was that it was rare for an undergrad to have such a thorough understanding of his research, which was entirely a credit to my Calvin professors," says Nick.

Ben and Cherie Katt '03 run a neighborhood meeting spot, the Aurora Commons, that connects highly educated young professionals and the urban poor. Their Calvin experiences in prayer groups and Project Neighborhood helped the Katts form their revolutionary vision of what the body of Christ should look like.

Lia Kaufman '05, after graduating from Calvin, completed medical school at Loyola and is now in her third year of residency at the prestigious Mayo Clinic. Her Calvin classes, research projects and volunteer work prepared her well for her medical career.

Kyle Berkompas '10, a media production grad, works for Sender Films, the premier rock climbing film production company in the United States. When he's not out on the field capturing video of world-famous rock climbers, he's editing footage for documentaries and ads for companies like The North Face and Clif Bar.

Brendan Snyder '10 snagged a great job before he even graduated, working as an AdWords account manager at Google in Ann Arbor, Mich.

Kirsten Kelly '95
Freelance director and producer in New York City.

Ryan Bierma '03
Installs permanent GPS stations on volcanoes in Alaska

Jonathan Hirte '08
Legislative assistant at the office of Congressman Timothy Walberg, U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, D.C.

Niala Boodhoo '96
Changing Gears?reporter at WBEZ Chicago Public Radio

Kelly LeCoy '11
Owner of Uptown Kitchen (G.R., Mich.), a licensed commercial kitchen that enables small food businesses to produce and sell their products