Church-Sponsored Educational Opportunities

Many parents and their high school youngsters are wondering these days, “What do we do now?”

Faced with a bewildering array of post-high-school education choices and conflicting messages regarding the desirability of those choices, they are understandably confused.

The best way to reduce the confusion is to gather as much information as possible about the total situation, discuss it together carefully, and then work out the best plan. Later, as more information becomes available, the plan can be modified, but it will serve well as a guide.

The plan for a Latter-day Saint youth may be based on two considerations: getting training beyond high school that is appropriate for his interests and abilities, and taking advantage of Church-sponsored educational opportunities.

The major Church-sponsored opportunities are found in the institutes of religion located adjacent to more than 300 technical schools, junior colleges, and four-year colleges and universities. If there is no institute near you, or if you have special interests or needs that can best be accommodated at one of the Church schools, consider the following opportunities:

1. The Church College of Hawaii, with an enrollment of 1,300, is an accredited four-year, coeducational, liberal arts college with the primary mission of offering training to Church members in the Pacific basin.

2. The LDS Business College in Salt Lake City, with an enrollment of 800, offers an educational program designed to prepare students for positions in business.

3. Ricks College, with an enrollment of 5,300, is a fully accredited junior college at Rexburg, Idaho, with credit for courses transferable to Brigham Young University or other four-year institutions.

Admission to Ricks College is open-door, with all students who have graduated from high school and who live the standards of the Church eligible to apply. While the American College Test is required, it is used only for placement purposes. August 1 is the admission deadline. Those desiring to apply for fall semester, 1972, should write to the Director of Admissions, Ricks College, Rexburg, Idaho 83440, or contact their stake BYU admissions adviser.

4. At Brigham Young University, some 4,000 freshmen as well as 21,000 continuing, transfer, and graduate students are involved in a wide variety of programs.

One thing should be immediately noted: April 30 is the deadline for applications from beginning freshmen. The admissions deadline for transferring and returning students is July 15.

An important change has been made for 1972 and thereafter in the calendar, which will consist of three sixteen-week semesters, with the third semester divided in half so that students may attend either or both halves.

Fall semester will begin August 31 and end December 22, 1972. Winter semester goes from January 8 to April 19, 1973. The first half of the spring-summer session goes from April 30 to June 22 and the second half from June 25 to August 16, 1973.

The admission requirements include taking the American College Test, a fifteen-dollar application fee, an application and transcript of credits, and the bishop’s recommendation concerning the applicant’s willingness to live Church standards.

At each of the Church-sponsored educational facilities, students are invited to take courses in Church doctrine and history and to participate in ward and stake activities.

As parents and students prayerfully consider the possibilities, they have the following resources available to them: their bishop, their school counselor, the admissions offices or administrative offices of the Church schools and institutes, and the Educational and Career Advisement Center, A-152 ASB, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah 84601.