My guest in this episode is Dr. Roger Parrott, the President of Belhaven University for more than three decades. Over the years, he has thought much about the value of a college education, how higher education has changed, in some cases drastically, and the real cost of a college degree. I’ve invited him to share some of his wisdom with us. 

 

In this podcast we discuss:

• How higher education has changed over the three decades he has been a university president
• The four “S” features most public universities use to recruit students
• The four “C” features that define most Christian universities
• The causes of recent trends in public higher education
• The spectrum of colleges and universities identifying as “Christian”
• The difference between Bible departments and religion departments and what it says about a college or university
• How to cut through the PR and fancy brochures when considering schools
• The two essential questions to ask to choose the school that is right for you
• Answering a common objection to Christian higher education
• The downside of requiring students to sign a statement of faith to be admitted
• The real costs of college and how to navigate the financial challenges
• The problem with “tuition resets”
• The importance of calculating living expenses, textbooks, and fees into the total cost of college
• Understanding good debt and bad debt
• How important graduate-level education is today
• The number one quality employers are looking for, and how the college years can help prepare you for this

 

Resources mentioned during our conversation:

• Roger Parrott, “The Real Cost of College: Insights of an Insider”
• Belhaven University