The longstanding stereotype of Christian colleges being good places for MRS degrees seems to have gotten an empirical boost this week, thanks to Facebook.
The social network's Data Science Team ran an analysis of how many married college graduates in America state on Facebook that they are married to a fellow graduate of the same institution. The answer: 28 percent.
And while school size and shared political affiliation play a role, the strongest correlating factor proved to be religion.
In fact, 12 of the top 25 colleges for women also rank among the top 25 colleges for men—and 11 are Christian schools (plus Brigham Young University, depending on how the Mormon school is categorized). For all 12, between 50 and 70 percent of graduates married a fellow alumnus.
The Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) counts 11 members among top schools for men (led by Cedarville University), but only 3 members among top schools for women (led by Kentucky Christian University (KCU)). Three CCCU schools appear on both lists: Dordt College, Oklahoma Christian University, and KCU.
Facebook notes that, given limitations, the findings are only "a rough proxy for the chance of finding a spouse" at a given college.
As the study bounces around the Internet, Religion News Service gathered reactions from CCCU president Edward Blews Jr. and others.
CT regularly covers marriage and Christian higher education, including the dating do-over on Christian campuses.
