Samford University
Sanford University (visited 2/20-21/2024)
Samford is often overlooked – but there’s a lot to be said about this place! They’re known for quality and excellence, ranking #10 nationally (WSJ) for career prep. However, students choosing Samford need to be highly invested in their Christian faith (in whatever form that comes in for them) AND be looking for a community-focused and academic environment. “You don’t have to be Christian to come here, but it’s hard not to see the hand of the lord everything going on here,” said a faculty member we spoke to. “The way we operate is that Samford sets the table, but it’s up to the students to pull up the chair.”
Here are a few key points that people shared with us immediately during our counselor visit:
- “It’s big enough! If anything, students tend to be overinvolved.” From an academic standpoint, there’s breadth and depth with enough to choose from and plenty of ways to get plugged in for professional development. From a social standpoint, they’re DI, have an active Greek life, and campus is on the outskirts of a city – “and really the whole world is open to them with amazing study abroad. We even have our own house in London.”
- The next person said, “It’s also small enough! How can it be both big and small? It’s the beauty of Samford: students won’t fall through the cracks. The average class size is 19. There’s intentionality, relationships, and hands-on experiences. They can say that they want to do a detailed, specific thing – and professors probably know how to hook them up with that.”
- They’re absolutely committed to their calling as a faith-based institution, grounded in the hope found in faith, looking at how to integrate this with learning. “Christian faith is core to everything we do. We want students to grow in faith through worship and by integrating Christ into all we do.” They purposefully build time into the week for group study and worship when classes don’t meet: on Tuesdays, there’s large-group worship; on Thursdays, there’s time for small groups, cadres, and bible study.
- Students have to earn 60 “Jesus Credits” (convocations). The Tuesday chapel service is optional; students attend because they want to. They COULD get all the credits done in a semester if they really wanted to, but if they do 8 per semester, they’re in good shape (but they encourage students to try to do it in the first 2 years so they don’t run into problems with internships, clinical hours, study abroad, etc.)
- They’re historically Southern Baptist. The relationship is strong, but technically they’re now independent. They don’t get funds, but every Board member is Baptist. They have become increasingly Ecumenical and do draw from broad array of orthodox Christianity. There are some scholarships for dependents of ordained ministers. All faculty members go through a vetting process including 2 essays about their own faith journey (how do they practice it, etc) and how their Christian faith informs their role as a faculty member.
They enroll just under 4000 undergraduates (and want to grow by about 3% a year for a while). “Don’t come here if you want to be invisible. Professors will know you and love you,” said one student. They have grad programs, but the emphasis is on the undergrads.
They’ve had to scramble to add buildings. Currently, 62% of students live on campus, but a new dorm is going up which will get the number closer to 75% – “That feels more like a community to me. We’re doubling down on this being a residential community because that’s so much at the core of who we are,” said the President. Students say that food has gotten a lot better lately. Freshmen get 19 meal swipes a week; they have the option of reducing this as they get older.
They’re also building an expanded rec/wellness center and adding 2 new sororities: they’ve grown and need to catch up with themselves. Samford has some of the best Greek housing I’ve seen for a school this size (and even bigger places). “Some of the best memories have come from living in my sorority house. There’s a lot of convenience in being in the house. I can just walk downstairs and have things to do.” They have 3 of the Divine 9 chapters and want to double this. They’re also looking to expand beyond their current 6 fraternities and 6 sororities. Almost 60% of students get involved in Greek Life: “It’s more of a cultural southern thing. It’s also a sense of belonging and community. We preach and teach leadership.”
We had 40 minutes to talk to students on a panel during our counselor event. Some of the questions we asked were:
Why Sanford?
- I was originally looking at the large SCCs, but this is a better environment. Do you really want to base your decision on maybe 5 or 6 game games at 5 or 6 hours a shot? You’re looking at maybe 30 hours a year. That’s a tiny bit of your experience at college and shouldn’t define the rest of it.
- Teachers here recognize aptitude and won’t hesitate to reach out. They approach classes as a way to serve others. I knew I’d be known here; other schools seemed to lack that. There are plenty of ways to get involved.
- They’ll work with people who need accommodations.
What’s been the most fun you’ve had at Sanford?
- After freshman year, we jumped in the fountain after an evening of studying. We were splashing and having the best time. [Another student said that it’s not uncommon to see someone floating in the fountain on nice days.]
- I love being Connections [freshman weekend] Leader.
- Getting popsicles at the president’s house. He’s always having events there. Also, faculty bring snacks to the library during finals week!
- Participating in some of the traditions like Beeson Ball [a dance], Pancakes with the President, or Lighting of the Way when the President reads a story and then lights the Christmas tree.
- Participating in Step Sing which is a large singing/dancing competition. This is its 75th year and is largely student run. It’s a philanthropic event, and scholarships are given out.
Can you describe the spiritual life on campus?
- Churches come to campus every fall to connect with the students – you encounter them and have direct access. [As a separate note, one of the counselors asked a chaplain about the LGBTQ community; we were told that they will NOT allow churches that are more welcoming to the LGBTQ community to “table” on campus, but don’t stop students from attending them if they choose to go – they just don’t encourage it.]
- I got to make my faith my own. We can see how you’re supposed to live out the gospel. It can come with challenges, but it’s been a blessing to not do that alone.
- My roommate first year was an atheist and we had a lot of profound discussions. I feel like I learned a lot. [Note: there are very few atheists here; most people agree that this is not a comfortable environment for those students, but they are around].
What was your favorite – or hardest – class?
- Philosophy class where we had to dress up as different philosophers and act out different speeches or other things about them.
- Broadcast storytelling. It’s making me more competitive in my comm degree; I’m learning what it takes to write a script.
- Advanced Spanish linguistics and Syntax was the hardest; we had to listen to tapes or videos and be able to tell what country the speakers were from.
- Economics was tough. It was a very different way of thinking than I’m used to, but now I’m interested in my MBA.
Academically, there are a lot of options.
- They have a phenomenal Fine and Performing Arts center and lots of majors to choose from, including BFA programs (in Graphic Design, Interior Design, Musical Theater, Studio Art, and Theater for Youth: Performance & Teaching Artistry) and Music, Game Design, Worship Leadership, and more.
- Birmingham is a hot spot for design and architecture. They have an 88% placement rate for interior design. Right now, there’s no portfolio requirement for these, but that may change if it gets way more popular. They’re looking to bring in about 25 people in each, but they don’t have a cop on numbers which is great.
- The 5-year BS/MArch Program is an amazing opportunity that gets students a BS in Architecture along with the Masters in the same time as getting the BArch at most other schools, saving a lot of time and money.
- They do offer an arts scholarship which does require that students submit a portfolio.
- Health Sciences – these are housed in one of the most beautiful buildings I’ve ever seen with lots of stone and a stream that runs through the lobby! It had been owned by Southern Living.
- Fast Tracks: students can “Double dip” in senior year and pay for the first year of grad school with senior year scholarships.
- The most popular program is the 3+2 Social Work.
- Other options include 3+3 law, 3+2 Public Health, 3+3 Divinity, a 5th year MBA, and programs in Physical Therapy, Speech-Language Pathology, and more.
- Other majors/concentrations worth noting are: Language & World Trade (combining language and business), Interdisciplinary Neuroscience, and Culinary & Wellness Nutrition Management.
Ideal applicants to the University Fellows (Honors) program show curiosity and willing to discuss ideas, even with those they don’t agree with. Students who qualify (with a required 3.5 GPA and 28 ACT/1310 SAT) would be invited to come to campus for interviews and a mock class where they discuss a reading. The program seeks to educate students holistically, focusing on their spiritual, intellectual, and moral formation. They engage with some of the greatest minds in the Western, Christian intellectual tradition and grapple with perennial questions: the essence of the self/soul, the universe and humanity’s place in it, how best to live harmoniously with others, and the nature of the relationship between humans and the Divine. Within the program, they take 4 semesters of the Western Intellectual Tradition, get paired in Learning Communities of 10-15 students, and must take 2 semesters of Moral Philosophy and a semester of Calc. They also got an academic enrichment experience in Italy.
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