Bethel University: Courses, Admission, Cost

Established in the year 1871, Bethel University is a highly-ranked private higher education institution in Arden Hills of the state of Minnesota, United States. The institution was set up as a seminary for the Swedish immigrants and operated in the basement of the First Swedish Baptist Church in Chicago city. It has accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission and affiliation from the Council for Christian Colleges. The university is a member of the Universities and the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. It is also associated with the Christian College Consortium and the evangelical Baptist body named Converge.

Bethel University has a beautiful 247-acre campus located along a lakeside in suburban Arden Hills of Ramsey County. The site features well-maintained ancient as well as modern buildings, green spaces and parking areas. The Academic Centre is home to all the major educational facilities like classrooms, lecture halls, laboratories and practice centres. The university library holds a wide collection of rare and unique books, periodicals, e-books, journals, e-journals and other resources in the printed and digital form, which are accessible by both students and faculty members. Both the Benson Great Hall and Brushaber Commons house a two-storey dining centre, coffee shop, restaurant, campus store, admission centre, meeting halls and offices of student organizations. Clauson Fine Arts Center and Hagstrom Student Services Center are the other important buildings on the campus.

With sports affiliation from the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the institution maintains 18 varsity teams of both men and women. These teams participate in various intercollegiate events as the Royals and compete in sports like basketball, baseball, golf, soccer, tennis, ice hockey and softball. Further, the institution maintains excellent athletic and recreational facilities in the Ona Orth Athletic Complex, Robertson Center Gymnasium, Royal Stadium, Bethel University Arena and Hargis Park. Additionally, the university has a news publication titled 'The Clarion', which is run by the students' association, and printed and distributed every year. The students can also access free Internet throughout the campus.

Bethel University comprises four academic schools that focus on different disciplines of business, art and design, education and healthcare. The university offers over 100 educational programmes at undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral levels as well as various associate degrees and certificate programmes. At present, the university has a total enrolment of 4,500 students from as many as 47 states of the US and 22 countries of the world. It has about 600 employees, including academics, administrative officers and supporting staff.

The university has produced many popular names like Chad Anderson (Politician), Jeffrey Nelson (Professional Baseball Umpire), Mark Johnson (Lawyer and Politician), Dawson McAllister (Author and Radio Host), Peter Ludlow (Academic), Douglas Dean (Abstract Artist), Joshua Becker (Writer and Philanthropist), Gary Thomas Smalley (Family Counsellor and Author), Chris Meidt (Football Coach and Former Player) and Joel Hodgson (TV Actor, Comedian and Writer).