Three Ways University Is About More Than A Degree
It seems a strange thing to say, but in my nearly 15 years worth of student ministry I’ve noticed that the academic side of university has taken more and more of a centre stage over the years. And why wouldn’t if you’re paying £9k+ a year for the privilege? Of course you want to make the most of your studies and hopefully be rewarded in the long run as a result.
Yet even with the increase in expense and the change of perspective that comes along with it, I have long held the view that the significance of your time on campus goes way beyond the qualification you get when you graduate.
Here are three ways that I think university is about more than just your degree…
The proximity to such a diverse group of people
It’s unlikely that you’ll ever be exposed to such a wide range of people in such closer quarters as what you’ll experience during your universities years. What an amazing opportunity! Of course you’re likely to gravitate towards certain groups, but don’t also miss the chance to broaden your horizons and learn about people and places beyond what feels safe and familiar. Be curious!
What’s also amazing is that never again are such a wide range of people going to have access to you. Matthew 5:16 says “Let your light shine before men, that they might see your good deeds and praise your father in heaven.” Who knows what might happen in the years to come because of the encounters that people have had with you? Don’t feel the pressure to try and convert everyone you meet, that’s a sure-fire of moving from genuinely loving people to seeing them as projects to work on. But, equally, why not try and make the most of this time where you’re around so many different people to plant lots of gospel seeds and see what God might do through you?
LIFE is more than what you achieve
What constitutes success at uni? In a world focused on performance it’s completely understandable why your results might come to dominate your thinking when considering that question. And, without a doubt, working hard and achieving what you can in the academic arena is both important and a really obvious way that you can worship God with your time and talents. I imagine your parents would pretty pleased with it as well.
However, while your results absolutely matter, what absolutely matters more is learning that they don’t get to define your identity or your value; that any achievement isn’t worth as much as the kind of person that you become in the process. The academic environment of university is actually a brilliant opportunity to learn how to place your trust in who God says you are and not in how the world rates your achievements. It’s a time to discover more of your identity in him and as part of his people. It’s something that absolutely includes working hard and achieving success, but those things end up becoming an expression of who you are, and not the building blocks of it. Learning how to honour your studies whilst not being defined by them might just be the most valuable education you can get. Both your time as a student and the life that follows will be richer as a result.
LEAVING SOMEWHERE BETTER THAN YOU FOUND IT
One of my favourite sayings I learned a few years back goes like this: “Society grows great when people plant trees whose shade they know they will never sit under.” It speaks of an attitude of wanting to do good things even if you don’t directly benefit from them. As you approach your time at university, I wonder how much of a difference it could make to start thinking in a similar way? I wonder what would happen if more people considered the kind of impact they could have? If rather than just seeing uni as a place to get what we want or need and then get out, we could start to imagine leaving the our campuses better than we found them?
And I wonder what that might look like? Statistics show that mental ill-health doubles at university - what if that could change? Many students (way more than you would think from looking around during freshers week) find starting on campus a time of loneliness and isolation - what if that was different? And according to the nationwide data, less than 3% of university students have a relationship with Jesus and almost 3/4 of students who went to church at home don’t find their way into church when they come to study - surely that is a story worth trying to re-write?
The overarching narrative of the Christian story is one of redemption, of God making all things new through the victory of his Son. That victory - Jesus’ life, death and resurrection - was characterised by agape love. That sacrificial, self-limiting love that lays itself down for the benefit of others.
I have a sneaking suspicion that if even a remnant of believers could take up a similar posture towards their campuses we might just see something extraordinary in our generation.
As you embark as this new chapter at university, we know that you’re going to have your hands full. Please don’t read this article as any kind of pressure - you don’t have to be perfect and the fate of the world does not rest in your hands. But there is an invitation here for you; that these next three years could be wilder and fuller than you ever thought possible, and that God wants to do something in this time that reverberates through the rest of your life. Enjoy - we’ll be cheering you on!