The deciding factor for many new and returning students is the issue of comfort and community. Whether jumping from the supervised and secure environment of high school or getting back into the academic routine after a long absence, higher education can be a difficult transition under the best of circumstances. It is with this concern in mind that some students choose schools with religious affiliation that most closely aligns with their own personal views.

Religious schools—predominantly Christian denomination—maintain a value-oriented foundation, consistent throughout all curriculum and student atmosphere. While structures and specific denominations vary, religiously affiliated schools share an emphasis on healthy moral living and spiritual education as a complement to traditional studies and career learning.

Students increasingly gravitate toward these institutions in search of a learning environment that is accepting of their religious perspectives. Working adults and non-traditional students feel more welcomed and less threatened by returning to school in a religious environment because there is a sense of familiarity. With peers who share the same fundamental value system, acceptance is immediate relative to other schools with greater theological diversity.

Faculty and staff are encouraged to treat each student as an individual and valuable being, rather than a body or a number; a distinction, some argue, from larger secular institutions. Students and staff are permitted and even encouraged to explore personal spirituality.

In a welcoming religious environment, many students feel that they can more easily cultivate religious growth, as well as academic advancement. Often students claim that deep and lasting friendships with like-minded students are much easier to develop within a large spiritually-homogeneous community.

Cost-conscious students may recognize the benefits of a religious education. Religiously-affiliated schools are privately funded and often have extensive scholarships and subsidization through donation, allowing tuition to remain relatively controlled.