Academics
Illinois College located in Jacksonville, Illinois is a 鈥減rivate, liberal arts college, affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church. Built on 鈥渁 strong educational foundation and history,鈥 academics are 鈥渃hallenging, but in an extremely satisfying way.鈥 Small classroom sizes foster 鈥渋ndividualized learning as well as close connections with professors,鈥 whose students count as Illinois鈥檚 鈥済reatest strength.鈥 Faculty and staff 鈥済ets to know you on a personal level and will do anything in their power to help you,鈥 offering 鈥渙pportunities for experiential learning, and funding for such opportunities if the need is there.鈥 The student-faculty research is highly valued, offering 鈥渇irst-hand鈥 experience, and undergrads believe the chosen pedagogy leads them to feel 鈥渆xtremely confident鈥 in 鈥減ublic speaking, presentation giving, writing,鈥 and participation in 鈥渃lass discussions.鈥 The faculty makes 鈥渂ig contributions in the world and send students all over the world to get some valuable experiences.鈥 Programs such as 鈥淭RIO, a mentoring program done through the [Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion] ODEI, the tutoring program, and the campus writing and speech centers鈥re great resources for students,鈥 assisting with both academics and to get help 鈥渁cclimating to life at college, particularly for those who are first generation college students or who are minorities.鈥 Students believe the liberal arts education they receive is 鈥渁bove-average quality.鈥 Financial aid is generous, as 鈥渆veryone gets some sort of scholarship.鈥
Student Body
Illinois College is a 鈥渄iverse family.鈥 鈥淚 use family,鈥 one student says, 鈥渂ecause it鈥檚 really hard to walk through campus and not see a smiling face that you know.鈥 There is a 鈥渦nique blend of urban culture, mostly coming from students from Chicago and a surprisingly large number of international students given the size of the college.鈥 The 鈥渆nd result is an inescapable exposure to the culture of the rural Midwest for any student at IC and the opportunity to learn about other nations and areas,鈥 for students who come from out of state. Based on the student body, one student remarks that the college appears to 鈥渓ook at applicants鈥 participation in clubs and organizations鈥 and 鈥渟elects well-rounded and caring individuals.鈥
Campus Life
Students praise the 鈥渇ootball program, made great by the coaches and elite players鈥 that the college recruits. Students like to party, and when not in class, 鈥渞elax with鈥riends.鈥 Local food options include fast food and family restaurants like 鈥淗ardee鈥檚, Little Mexico, Buffalo Wild Wings, Norma鈥檚 North Star, Lonzerotti鈥檚, and Steak n鈥 Shake.鈥 Students enjoy going out to 鈥淟ake Jacksonville and fishing鈥 when the weather permits. The city of 鈥淪pringfield is nearby for shopping.鈥 In general, 鈥淭hursday nights are when a lot of students go to the bars. The popular places to go are Don鈥檚, KJB鈥檚, and The West Morgan County Depot.鈥 One student offers an example of a life one can have at Illinois: 鈥淚 am treasurer of the Black Student Union, and also Special Committee chair for Student Activities Board, so I spend a lot of time planning my events in the Center for Student Involvement. Between all of that I go to meetings for my other clubs and extracurriculars.鈥 Students take part in 鈥渟ervice fraternities such as Alpha Phi Omega,鈥 which engage 鈥渋n community service鈥 and put on events. 鈥淎lmost everyone鈥 on campus is involved in 鈥渁 sport, theater, choir, and literary societies.鈥 Students are involved in 鈥渋nternational projects,鈥 鈥渟tudent senate,鈥 and many students work on-campus jobs.
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