Many of us know from experience that when a young person leaves home and heads off to college or university, they quickly find themselves in the midst of a culture that espouses a variety of world views. Sometimes, it is extremely difficult to maintain Christian beliefs in such an environment. After a year or two many young people from a churched background turn from the faith. Some who turn away were never there in the first place; others who abandon their Christian faith have done so because they were not prepared or equipped to deal with the challenges of different worldviews present on most campuses.

Budziszewski is a university professor and has been involved in InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, Campus Crusade, and other student ministries. He believes that “Higher education doesn’t have to be a wasteland.” How to Stay Christian in College is written for three audiences: students who plan to go to college, students already in college, and parents of students in both groups. He talks about the experience of aloneness which, added to typical homesickness, devastates many college freshman. What can they do in such a situation? This book will help students navigate this crucial time.

Budziszewski is on target when he says that many Christians never get beyond a child’s understanding of the Christian faith; hence they are not equipped to combat the ideologies of non-Christian worldviews. Surviving spiritually in college, where they have to begin to function like adults is difficult.

In one chapter, Budziszewski discusses nine myths about truth and reality. In class students hear claims like: “The only truth is that with which the immediate community agrees,” or “Reality has  to be constructed sociologically,” or “Truth is whatever works.” This is a good chapter because it deals with arrogance, doubt, and humility as they relate to truth. Another chapter addresses myths about love and sex—issues that often confuse young college students and must be dealt with in the right way. Other chapters discuss coping with social life, religious life, classroom life, friendship, dating, and marriage. Drawing on his experience as a college student and university professor, Budziszewski equips Christian young people to survive spiritually, as well as intellectually, in that setting. Any reader will benefit from this book, especially students and parents.