This spring semester, Hillsdale College welcomed a record number of new students, 23 in all.
Sixteen of these students are transfers from around the country and across the ocean, including Ireland and Italy.
Applications for the spring 2022 semester increased by 46% compared to the spring semester of 2021, said Zachary Miller, senior director of admissions.
The number of admitted students depends on available housing for the spring semester, he said.
“We’ve seen more and more interest in Hillsdale over the last few years, and for many different reasons,” Miller said.
Miller attributes the rise in interest to the college’s rare and unique qualities.
“I think by and large, students are seeing that there aren’t many schools across the country like Hillsdale, specifically in the principles for which we stand and the offering of a classical liberal arts education focused on the pursuit of truth,” he said. “That’s become evident even more in the last couple of years.”
Geert Ensing, a transfer student from Tuscany, Italy, enrolled at Hillsdale in January. It was his first time entering the United States. For the past year and a half, Ensing has studied Ludwig Von Mises’ economic thought, leading him to Hillsdale to study economics
“I had been looking for a place where I could study Austrian economics, and more specifically the works of Mises and Hayek,” Ensing said. “When I found out that Mises donated his library here, I had to check out the college. The economics curriculum at the college really intrigued me, and Hillsdale was one of the few colleges where I felt I could study Austrian economic thought.”
Ensing said he found the application process to be enjoyable and inviting.
“I felt that the Hillsdale application process was very easy and comprehensive,” Ensing said. “Everyone I was in touch with or talked to was super helpful and friendly, and all the processes involved were simple and efficient.”
He said he enjoys both the Hillsdale atmosphere and the academic challenge.
“I have found life here on campus, in the small time I have been here, really vibrant and lively. Safe to say, it never feels boring,” he said. “I feel that the workload at the college can be quite intense and challenging, but the academic rigor is one of the main reasons I signed up for the college, and I enjoy the challenge.”
On top of the academic and location adjustment, Ensing said he has also had to adjust to the bitter Michigan weather.
“Coming from Tuscany, the weather at first needed getting used to, but I like the cold and snow for a change,” he said. “Having been in Italy for 10 years, I have had enough blue skies and warm weather for half a lifetime, so I am happy about the change.”
Another transfer student, Stephen Brindle, left Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, to come to Hillsdale this spring. Brindle compared his education at Trinity to that of students he had met at a Hillsdale Scholarship Weekend, so he decided to join them.
“I felt that the education I was receiving at Trinity was not sufficient,” he said. “I picked Hillsdale because I had always heard that it was a school that focused on giving a real and meaningful education. What my friends were telling me about Hillsdale simply confirmed that, and I realized that I had to transfer.”
Brindle said he appreciated the application process and the support he received throughout his transition to Hillsdale.
“Everyone at Hillsdale has been extremely welcoming and inviting and I could not have asked for a better cohort of students to transfer with,” he said. “Life at Hillsdale is obviously different from life in Dublin, yet different in a good way. The quality of students and intensity of study here at Hillsdale is exactly what I was hoping for when I transferred.”
One transfer student, Nickaylah Sampson, is a cadet from the United States Military Academy. Sampson transferred as a sophomore from the Academy because of the vaccine mandate for all who serve. Unlike most of the other transfers, Sampson didn’t find Hillsdale – Hillsdale found her. After reading her story, Hillsdale Chief of Staff Michael Harner reached out to her.
“I didn’t choose Hillsdale,” Sampson said. “The opportunity was by the grace of God to me when the Chief of Staff at Hillsdale read about me in an article and contacted me. I applied very quickly and efficiently, and the transition was incredibly smooth.”
Like the other transfers, the cold has been a bit of a shock to Sampson.
“People here are incredibly nice and welcoming, but I am from Texas, so I don’t think I will ever get used to the cold,” Sampson said.
At Hillsdale, Sampson is pursuing her dream of becoming a teacher and one day starting her own school.
“When I graduate,” Sampson said, “I aspire to be a math teacher, and then one day, fulfill my dream of starting my own Christ-centered private school or orphanage where children can be raised with classical, traditional, and upright morals.”