Thank you for your interest in becoming a Bearcat. Southwest Baptist University expects great things from all its athletics teams and its student-athletes. Visit the pages on this site to learn more about the recruiting process and why SBU may be the perfect school for you.

SBU is an evangelical Christian university with roots stemming from a long-standing Baptist heritage. Since 1878, this legacy continues to grow with our everlasting belief that all people are to be treated with respect since they have been created in the image of God. Our institution is committed to helping students grow mentally and spiritually and encourages students to integrate knowledge, character and faith into their everyday lives.

Southwest Baptist University is a Christ-centered, caring academic community preparing students to be servant-leaders in a global society.

The quality of SBU students is apparent from their consistent high-profile recognitions:

• SBU Forensics Team (speech and debate) has won the national championship of the Pi Kappa Delta National Forensics Tournament for 18 of the last 26 years.
• SBU’s Students in Free Enterprise team won its 22nd consecutive regional championship in April 2006.
• SBU has a long history of encouraging scholar athletes, many of whom have been named NCAA Division II Academic All-Americans.
• SBU Computer Information Science teams have consistently earned top-10 finishes in national competitions and first-place finishes in Missouri competitions.

The university has an objective to remain an affordable, high quality, private Christian institution. Among many recent honors:

• SBU has been named one of America’s Best Christian Colleges® for the ten consecutive years.
• For eleven consecutive years, SBU has been recognized as one of America’s Best College Buys® and continues to be one of the lowest-priced Midwest universities.
• U.S.News & World Report ranked SBU third regionally in student debt load, meaning our students leave college with far less debt owed than students at most other area private or public universities.
• The SBU Missions Department was recognized in 2006 by the North American Mission Board for being number one in the nation for sending student missionaries out into North America.

As a distinctly Christian university, integrating faith with every academic pursuit is the cornerstone of an SBU education. While every department addresses issues of faith in the classroom, these unique programs offer in-depth emphasis on ethical and cultural issues:

• The Darrell R. Strait Center for the Integration of Science and Christian Faith offers an interdisciplinary program of study that incorporates appropriate scientific and Biblical principles, grounded in the Old and New Testaments, and consistent with the Christian faith, Christian worldview, Biblical values and Baptist heritage of the University.
• The SBU Honors Program mission is to prepare servant leaders who are recognized for their accomplishments and excellence in academics, intercultural experiences, and spiritual development.
• The College of Business and Computer Science has adopted Psalm 15 as a guiding principle for our students. The College is specifically dedicated to producin “Psalm 15 Professionals” for servant leadership roles in business and computer science.
• The Intercultural Studies Program (ICS) at SBU prepares students to answer the call to reach every nation, tribe and tongue through spiritual, academic and practical preparation. The program requires students to spend a six-month semester abroad.

SBU students enjoy all the amenities of a beautiful, small-town campus setting with big-city access. Just 30 minutes from downtown Springfield and 90 minutes from Branson, the campus is close to many beautiful lakes, parks, and the Ozark Mountains of southwestern Missouri.

• SBU has approximately 1,600 undergraduate students on the Bolivar campus, 900 enrolled in graduate studies.
• SBU is a private four-year Christian comprehensive university.
• Degrees offered include: associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral in more than 45 academic areas including pre-professional programs, business and nursing programs and liberal arts majors

For more information about SBU visit: http://www.sbuniv.edu