Monika Gunnar
Major: Engineering
Graduation Year: 2006
Grew up in: India
Parents: Missionaries
What's your background?
My name is Monika Gunnar and I am from India. I went to an international high school, Woodstock, in India and was determined to come to the U.S. for further education. I was told that the expectations are higher and the standard of education better here and I must say, I was not told anything wrong. My parents are missionaries in India working independently to serve God.
How did you hear about Calvin?
Through my school counselor at Woodstock School. After looking into several technical as well as liberal arts colleges, I can surely say that Calvin has been one of my best life choices.
I applied here because of Calvin's Christian background and strong (accredited) Engineering program. Being one of the few Christian colleges that offers engineering courses, my choices were easily narrowed down. A good scholarship enabled me to finally make my way half way across the globe to come and study here.
What was your academic experience at Calvin like?
The teaching environment and the integration of faith with learning are outstanding at Calvin. By giving students biblical and faith related examples, it is easy to see that science and technology are part of God's bigger plan and not ideas opposing His existence.
The academics are challenging, especially for those who are in technical and professional or pre-professional courses. However, I would not exchange the broad exposure to the core classes that students must take. Engineering students sometimes complained about having to take these seemingly "unnecessary" core classes but we all knew that the core classes shaped us more and more into the diverse and well educated people God wants us to be.
Although the academics were challenging, there was always time to spend with God and with my friends.
What was the community like at Calvin?
The love and support from the Christian community at Calvin never let me down. After the dorms I lived in one of the College's on-campus apartments. The international community here is amazing in its rich diversity and culture. I have grown and learned so much about God's world just by the friendships that I share with other students here.
I am the Vice President of the International Students Association, an experience that is priceless. We have over 300 international students who make up one big family. The size of Calvin (about 4,300 students) makes the relationships so much more personal than at a big university. It was amazing for me to find a world of different people here at Calvin.
What was one of your favorite experiences at Calvin?
During the month of January 2005 I spent interim touring Europe with one of my Engineering professors and a small group of Calvin students to study various companies and opportunities for engineers. We had plenty of time to enjoy the sites and culture of these European countries!