Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary
The first school we visited was Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston Illinois. While not actually part of Northwestern, Garrett is located on the Northwestern campus. My cousin Jeannette and her partner Diane graciously opened up their home to us in Evanston and allowed us to stay with them while we explored the school and the area. We had a blast visiting with them. We loved exploring Chicago. The public transportation was so convenient and the workers were actually friendly. Not like NYC by any means! Chicago has so many free art events during the summer and we could see ourselves taking the train to the city and getting some food and enjoying a concert or movie in the park.
It was love at first sight for us with Evanston and Chicago. As a result we were nervous about the visit to the school. I was afraid that the school would not live up to the love we had developed for the city. Expectations met and exceeded.
We were given a schedule a few days before our visit as well as parking information; everything seemed so welcoming. However, I was a little anxious because there a few things I hope to visit that were not on the list, but I figured we could ask about them when we got there.
Our first item on our itinerary was the chapel service. During the school year they have three chapel services, one traditional, one gospel and one praise service and during the summer they have short prayer and music services once a day. During this service we sang some hymms, read some scripture versus and had a prayer time.
After our time in the chapel time we met with the assistant director of admissions. Dan shared with her his path to ministry and why he thinks God is calling him in this direction. We felt very welcomed and at home. We did mention that we hoped to meet with housing and someone in the counseling program. No problem, she contacted them and we were able to work them into our day.
We then met with the head of the Master of Music Ministry. The reason that Dan chose the schools he did was because of their music programs and the ability to get a Masters of Music. He did learn though that since he does not have a Bachelors in Music he would not be able to enroll in the Masters of Music program, however he would be able to take several music classes for his elective classes. One of the benefits of being on the Northwestern campus is that he would be able to take voice lessons on the Northwester campus.
Next came lunch time. They arranged for us to have lunch with a student. I later asked Dan what his favorite part of the day was and he said the lunch with the student. The student we ate with just completed his first year, but graduated with his bachelors at 19, so he was barely 20. He and Dan shared similar sentiments regarding Garrett and the decision to attend there. One thing we thought was interesting was that he said he considered BU and Garrett, and after visiting Garrett decided that was the place for him and didn't even visit BU. I told Dan that was not an option since we already had our plane tickets for Boston. Of course, after visiting all of his choices, we are certain Garrett is the place for us too.
We then met with the girl in housing. For me, the housing is a huge plus for Garrett. The school has housing for the students that is reduced and they allow cats! They even have a parking (a parking lot, and covered parking)...parking is a huge plus for me. I told Dan that wherever we move I have to have a dedicated parking spot; I am not dealing with street parking. Since the housing is reduced, it would also be quite affordable, which is awesome. It would be quite smaller then we have now, but it would definitely be a lot easier to clean than our current house. We also had a good time talking with the girl in housing as she was from Orange County and went to UCR. We were able to ask about the reality of a southern Californian moving to the cold and not dying. She said that it was doable. We really enjoyed talking with her and learning about transitioning to Chicago.
We then met with a professor in the Pastoral Care and Counseling department. This is the current area that we feel that God is calling Dan. What exactly it will look like in practice is unclear, but that is the current path that he will be pursuing. In this meeting Dan learned not only about the possibility of pursuing a dual degree in Divinity and Pastoral Care and Counseling, but they also partner up with Loyal University for a dual degree in Divinity and Social Work. We really enjoyed meeting with this professor and learning about the new possibility of getting a degree that includes social work. One aspect that I really appreciated was that he mentioned that he and his wife do a counseling type meeting with all new students and their spouse. This was a cool thing since it will not just be Dan on this adventure, but both of us. I shared with him how this degree pursuit finally seemed right for our family and that this is the first degree pursuit that I thought would work out. He said that was a strong indicator that this is probably the right move then.
We then met with the director of financial aide. We spent some time working through Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace and no longer have any debt. Our goal with this is to come out with as little debt as possible. Through our meeting we learned about how they work their financial aide and scholarship opportunities through our denomination.
Overall we really liked this school. I really felt at home at the school and in the community. The community really reminded me of San Luis Obispo where I went to college. Of all the places we visited, this is the place where I can imagine us living. Maybe it is because it is so close to the lake and we could run along it. Maybe it was because we know exactly where we will be living. Maybe it was because we have family there. Whatever the reason, we really enjoyed it. Beyond all that, I really appreciated all the work that the school was doing in order to stay current and relevant in the life of an ever present changing Church.
Boston University
Before we began looking at school BU was the top of our list. One thing that stood out was that if you are a certified candidate (which Dan could be) your tuition would be free. Free is hard to argue with. We also were attracted to the idea of living in or very close to the city and how many states are nearby.
When we got to Boston though, it was a whole other story. Drivers are crazy. Pedestrians are crazy. Bike riders are crazy. EVERYONE is crazy. The drive from the hotel (less than 10 miles) took about an hour and we witnessed more crazieness in commuting than I have seen in the last few years combined. Pedestrians were just walking in the middle of the street in front of cars. Cars driving down both lanes at once. Bikers swerving in and out of cars. Pure crazieness I tell you.
We did enjoy exploring the city of Boston and the rich history it had to offer. We also took a trip to Plymouth to see where the Mayflower landed (the rock is way smaller than we expected) and saw the Forefathers Monument which had the name of one of my ancestors on it.
Before we visited Garrett we received an itinerary of our visit as well as instructions on how to park. Dan inquired about where we should park; we were told that there were some meters on some neighboring streets. Yeah, not as welcoming as we had experienced at Garrett, but we have since learned that cars are not really the norm in the city.
When we got to BU, and began to talk with the admissions director, our apprehensions began to dissipate. Dan began to share with her his journey of coming to the path leading to ministry. After speaking for a little bit she stopped him and affirmed him and his pursuit and began to explain why BU would be a perfect fit for where he feels God is calling him.
At BU he can pursue a dual degree in Divinity and Social work; the cool thing here is that it would all be from one school. In their Masters of Divinity program they have several tracks to choose from; two of which would fit Dan's calling. All the tracks would lead to ordination as well so he wouldn't have to worry about which track to choose.
After meeting with the admissions director we were then given a tour of the school by a student. The main chapel on campus is absolutely gorgeous. We then saw classrooms and the library. Dan was a little bit disappointed that they were not that exciting. To me a classroom is a classroom, so they lived up to my expectations.
Of the schools we really feel like this school has the program that is best suited for him. They have been doing the work with social justice and that is a standing tradition with the school. The affirmation of his pursuit from the admissions director was quite welcoming. The social work degree being on campus would also be quite convenient. Oh yeah, and the free part. We would have to pay for half of the last year of the social work degree, but if that is it, 2 masters for the price of half of one year is a lot to pass up.
The housing situation though has been quite troublesome. While Garrett offers reduced student housing, that is not the case for BU. There is some graduate housing that is available, but it is ASTRONOMICAL. In order for us to find reasonable housing we will have to probably move away from the city, but that defeats one of our desires for him to be close to the city. Also, with the cost of housing being so much, it might just wash out the free tuition.
Yale Divinity School
When Dan was first looking at schools and saw that Yale, while not one of the 13 official United Methodist seminaries was one of the approved seminaries, he was in AWE. He was so excited about the possibility of saying that he got in and goes to Yale. But, it was more about going to Yale than the college itself.
When we went to Garrett and BU, we felt a warm welcoming and learned quite a bit about their programs and how they are training up their students to go out in the world; both of the programs seemed like there would be lots of hands on training for how to minister to the world. Yale seemed more pretentious and about book learning as opposed to ministering to the community.
When we fist decided to go on the college road trip Dan contacted all the schools. BU and Garrett immediately got back to him and set up dates and times around our trips to those cities. We heard nothing from Yale, nothing at all. After visiting both Garrett and BU Dan found an online sign up form for visiting the school. He was able to sign up for a visit during the time we were visiting our friends in Connecticut.
At both Garrett and Bu we dressed up, but felt very over dressed. Partly because of this, and partly because our nice clothes were in the laundry we decided to wear a little more casual clothes. Yeah, big mistake. We were the most casually dressed people there, but by that point it was too late. When we went to Garrett and BU they seemed to be waiting for us; they were expecting us...Dan's name was even on a welcome sign at Garrett. At Yale we walked in and nobody seemed to know that we were coming. After wandering around for a bit someone finally came out and greeted us and told us we would be meeting with another prospective student and an admissions advisor.
This was quite different from the other schools. At the other schools it was learning about Dan and his journey to going into ministry and then seeing if the school would be a match. Yale, it was all about Yale. But maybe they can do that because they are Yale. Of the things that stood out in opposition from the other two schools was the guy's insistence that you know what it is that you want to do with the degree when you apply. At the other two schools they welcomed searching and Garrett even has a class to help you discern where you are being called, but that is not the case for Yale. You have to know your specific direction before you go.
After we met with the guy from admissions we met with a lady from financial aide. This was actually quite useful. The tuition is way lower than we expected, and everyone receives some level of financial aide in addition to the possibility of loans. the biggest piece of information she shared with us was a link to various scholarships for students pursuing divinity school. This website will be very useful even if we do not end up going to Yale.
After we met with the guy from admissions and the lady from financial aide, we were given a tour a student (or rather recent graduate). We saw the book store, some of the classrooms, the eating area, and the library. Oh, the library. Part of the library was like a standard library, but then there was a section of the library that was like you see in the movies; two stories tall, with the center portion open to both levels and lots of wooden accents. Dan was in heaven. He wanted to go there right then and there because of the library.
The last few minutes on this tour was probably the best part of our day at Yale. Everything seemed so stuffy and pretentious, and not about training him to go into the world but rather into more book type studies. At the end of the tour Dan was asking the tour guide about what he was pursuing and what led him to Yale. It turns out that he had one of the same passions as Dan: a desire to pursue prison ministry. Yale is just developing in this particular area of social justice and it could be quite powerful for Dan to come in at the ground floor of their growing program.
One of the big benefits of going to Yale would be living so close to our dear friends Alex and Hetti. Dan met Alex when they both lived and taught English in Woodstock Georgia over 10 years ago, and they have been best friends ever since. Alex's wife Hetti and I have hit it off smashingly and always have such a blast together. With Dan going to Yale we would be able to see them much more often as they live about 30 minutes from Yale.
And so the Tour Ends...
We have now been home for over a month from the last of our school visits and I am back at work (hence the long delay in this post). Through writing this post and lots of prayer we have come to a decision of what are top pick is and what our next steps are. As you may have been able to guess, our top pick is Garrett. While we liked BU just a bit better, Garrett had the total package. Dan would get a great education, we would live close to school, housing and parking are set (as long as he gets our housing application in on-time), and we would not be in the crazy city, but we would have access to it if we wanted.
So, Dan is in the process of applying to Garrett right now. They accept applications on a rolling basis and we are hoping to find out if he is accepted before he would have to apply to the others. If he gets in there, we are going to go there. He is also in the process of helping me get my credentials transferred over and we have begun that process as well. Please join us in prayer on this journey, and pray that in all we do God will be glorified.
Our first item on our itinerary was the chapel service. During the school year they have three chapel services, one traditional, one gospel and one praise service and during the summer they have short prayer and music services once a day. During this service we sang some hymms, read some scripture versus and had a prayer time.
After our time in the chapel time we met with the assistant director of admissions. Dan shared with her his path to ministry and why he thinks God is calling him in this direction. We felt very welcomed and at home. We did mention that we hoped to meet with housing and someone in the counseling program. No problem, she contacted them and we were able to work them into our day.
We then met with the head of the Master of Music Ministry. The reason that Dan chose the schools he did was because of their music programs and the ability to get a Masters of Music. He did learn though that since he does not have a Bachelors in Music he would not be able to enroll in the Masters of Music program, however he would be able to take several music classes for his elective classes. One of the benefits of being on the Northwestern campus is that he would be able to take voice lessons on the Northwester campus.
Next came lunch time. They arranged for us to have lunch with a student. I later asked Dan what his favorite part of the day was and he said the lunch with the student. The student we ate with just completed his first year, but graduated with his bachelors at 19, so he was barely 20. He and Dan shared similar sentiments regarding Garrett and the decision to attend there. One thing we thought was interesting was that he said he considered BU and Garrett, and after visiting Garrett decided that was the place for him and didn't even visit BU. I told Dan that was not an option since we already had our plane tickets for Boston. Of course, after visiting all of his choices, we are certain Garrett is the place for us too.
We then met with the girl in housing. For me, the housing is a huge plus for Garrett. The school has housing for the students that is reduced and they allow cats! They even have a parking (a parking lot, and covered parking)...parking is a huge plus for me. I told Dan that wherever we move I have to have a dedicated parking spot; I am not dealing with street parking. Since the housing is reduced, it would also be quite affordable, which is awesome. It would be quite smaller then we have now, but it would definitely be a lot easier to clean than our current house. We also had a good time talking with the girl in housing as she was from Orange County and went to UCR. We were able to ask about the reality of a southern Californian moving to the cold and not dying. She said that it was doable. We really enjoyed talking with her and learning about transitioning to Chicago.
We then met with a professor in the Pastoral Care and Counseling department. This is the current area that we feel that God is calling Dan. What exactly it will look like in practice is unclear, but that is the current path that he will be pursuing. In this meeting Dan learned not only about the possibility of pursuing a dual degree in Divinity and Pastoral Care and Counseling, but they also partner up with Loyal University for a dual degree in Divinity and Social Work. We really enjoyed meeting with this professor and learning about the new possibility of getting a degree that includes social work. One aspect that I really appreciated was that he mentioned that he and his wife do a counseling type meeting with all new students and their spouse. This was a cool thing since it will not just be Dan on this adventure, but both of us. I shared with him how this degree pursuit finally seemed right for our family and that this is the first degree pursuit that I thought would work out. He said that was a strong indicator that this is probably the right move then.
We then met with the director of financial aide. We spent some time working through Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace and no longer have any debt. Our goal with this is to come out with as little debt as possible. Through our meeting we learned about how they work their financial aide and scholarship opportunities through our denomination.
Overall we really liked this school. I really felt at home at the school and in the community. The community really reminded me of San Luis Obispo where I went to college. Of all the places we visited, this is the place where I can imagine us living. Maybe it is because it is so close to the lake and we could run along it. Maybe it was because we know exactly where we will be living. Maybe it was because we have family there. Whatever the reason, we really enjoyed it. Beyond all that, I really appreciated all the work that the school was doing in order to stay current and relevant in the life of an ever present changing Church.
Boston University
Before we began looking at school BU was the top of our list. One thing that stood out was that if you are a certified candidate (which Dan could be) your tuition would be free. Free is hard to argue with. We also were attracted to the idea of living in or very close to the city and how many states are nearby.
When we got to Boston though, it was a whole other story. Drivers are crazy. Pedestrians are crazy. Bike riders are crazy. EVERYONE is crazy. The drive from the hotel (less than 10 miles) took about an hour and we witnessed more crazieness in commuting than I have seen in the last few years combined. Pedestrians were just walking in the middle of the street in front of cars. Cars driving down both lanes at once. Bikers swerving in and out of cars. Pure crazieness I tell you.
We did enjoy exploring the city of Boston and the rich history it had to offer. We also took a trip to Plymouth to see where the Mayflower landed (the rock is way smaller than we expected) and saw the Forefathers Monument which had the name of one of my ancestors on it.
Before we visited Garrett we received an itinerary of our visit as well as instructions on how to park. Dan inquired about where we should park; we were told that there were some meters on some neighboring streets. Yeah, not as welcoming as we had experienced at Garrett, but we have since learned that cars are not really the norm in the city.
When we got to BU, and began to talk with the admissions director, our apprehensions began to dissipate. Dan began to share with her his journey of coming to the path leading to ministry. After speaking for a little bit she stopped him and affirmed him and his pursuit and began to explain why BU would be a perfect fit for where he feels God is calling him.
At BU he can pursue a dual degree in Divinity and Social work; the cool thing here is that it would all be from one school. In their Masters of Divinity program they have several tracks to choose from; two of which would fit Dan's calling. All the tracks would lead to ordination as well so he wouldn't have to worry about which track to choose.
After meeting with the admissions director we were then given a tour of the school by a student. The main chapel on campus is absolutely gorgeous. We then saw classrooms and the library. Dan was a little bit disappointed that they were not that exciting. To me a classroom is a classroom, so they lived up to my expectations.
Of the schools we really feel like this school has the program that is best suited for him. They have been doing the work with social justice and that is a standing tradition with the school. The affirmation of his pursuit from the admissions director was quite welcoming. The social work degree being on campus would also be quite convenient. Oh yeah, and the free part. We would have to pay for half of the last year of the social work degree, but if that is it, 2 masters for the price of half of one year is a lot to pass up.
The housing situation though has been quite troublesome. While Garrett offers reduced student housing, that is not the case for BU. There is some graduate housing that is available, but it is ASTRONOMICAL. In order for us to find reasonable housing we will have to probably move away from the city, but that defeats one of our desires for him to be close to the city. Also, with the cost of housing being so much, it might just wash out the free tuition.
Yale Divinity School
When Dan was first looking at schools and saw that Yale, while not one of the 13 official United Methodist seminaries was one of the approved seminaries, he was in AWE. He was so excited about the possibility of saying that he got in and goes to Yale. But, it was more about going to Yale than the college itself.
When we went to Garrett and BU, we felt a warm welcoming and learned quite a bit about their programs and how they are training up their students to go out in the world; both of the programs seemed like there would be lots of hands on training for how to minister to the world. Yale seemed more pretentious and about book learning as opposed to ministering to the community.
When we fist decided to go on the college road trip Dan contacted all the schools. BU and Garrett immediately got back to him and set up dates and times around our trips to those cities. We heard nothing from Yale, nothing at all. After visiting both Garrett and BU Dan found an online sign up form for visiting the school. He was able to sign up for a visit during the time we were visiting our friends in Connecticut.
At both Garrett and Bu we dressed up, but felt very over dressed. Partly because of this, and partly because our nice clothes were in the laundry we decided to wear a little more casual clothes. Yeah, big mistake. We were the most casually dressed people there, but by that point it was too late. When we went to Garrett and BU they seemed to be waiting for us; they were expecting us...Dan's name was even on a welcome sign at Garrett. At Yale we walked in and nobody seemed to know that we were coming. After wandering around for a bit someone finally came out and greeted us and told us we would be meeting with another prospective student and an admissions advisor.
This was quite different from the other schools. At the other schools it was learning about Dan and his journey to going into ministry and then seeing if the school would be a match. Yale, it was all about Yale. But maybe they can do that because they are Yale. Of the things that stood out in opposition from the other two schools was the guy's insistence that you know what it is that you want to do with the degree when you apply. At the other two schools they welcomed searching and Garrett even has a class to help you discern where you are being called, but that is not the case for Yale. You have to know your specific direction before you go.
After we met with the guy from admissions we met with a lady from financial aide. This was actually quite useful. The tuition is way lower than we expected, and everyone receives some level of financial aide in addition to the possibility of loans. the biggest piece of information she shared with us was a link to various scholarships for students pursuing divinity school. This website will be very useful even if we do not end up going to Yale.
After we met with the guy from admissions and the lady from financial aide, we were given a tour a student (or rather recent graduate). We saw the book store, some of the classrooms, the eating area, and the library. Oh, the library. Part of the library was like a standard library, but then there was a section of the library that was like you see in the movies; two stories tall, with the center portion open to both levels and lots of wooden accents. Dan was in heaven. He wanted to go there right then and there because of the library.
The last few minutes on this tour was probably the best part of our day at Yale. Everything seemed so stuffy and pretentious, and not about training him to go into the world but rather into more book type studies. At the end of the tour Dan was asking the tour guide about what he was pursuing and what led him to Yale. It turns out that he had one of the same passions as Dan: a desire to pursue prison ministry. Yale is just developing in this particular area of social justice and it could be quite powerful for Dan to come in at the ground floor of their growing program.
One of the big benefits of going to Yale would be living so close to our dear friends Alex and Hetti. Dan met Alex when they both lived and taught English in Woodstock Georgia over 10 years ago, and they have been best friends ever since. Alex's wife Hetti and I have hit it off smashingly and always have such a blast together. With Dan going to Yale we would be able to see them much more often as they live about 30 minutes from Yale.
And so the Tour Ends...
We have now been home for over a month from the last of our school visits and I am back at work (hence the long delay in this post). Through writing this post and lots of prayer we have come to a decision of what are top pick is and what our next steps are. As you may have been able to guess, our top pick is Garrett. While we liked BU just a bit better, Garrett had the total package. Dan would get a great education, we would live close to school, housing and parking are set (as long as he gets our housing application in on-time), and we would not be in the crazy city, but we would have access to it if we wanted.
So, Dan is in the process of applying to Garrett right now. They accept applications on a rolling basis and we are hoping to find out if he is accepted before he would have to apply to the others. If he gets in there, we are going to go there. He is also in the process of helping me get my credentials transferred over and we have begun that process as well. Please join us in prayer on this journey, and pray that in all we do God will be glorified.
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