CBU Viewbook 2022-23

just have to YOU YOU TO BE PERFECT HERE

At CBU, together is made up of each of us, with all of our quirks, our passions, and our hopes. Students here come from every kind of background. We are veterans and working parents. We are longtime Tennesseans and those who had to look up Memphis on a map. We come from 37 states and 31 countries. We are the first in our family to attend college and the latest in a long line of CBU Buccaneers. We are those who know exactly what they want to do after college and those still figuring it out.

And we are all stronger for the differences and perspectives we bring.

ACADEMICS THAT EMPOWER

One word stands at the heart of your learning at CBU: Value. You’ll pay less here than at other schools in our area—and receive more financial support—because we know an affordable education frees you to go forward with possibility.

But our value goes far beyond a price tag. At CBU, you’ll find the value of learning together with motivated peers. The value of professors committed to your growth. The value of classes tailored to your interests. And most of all, the value of experiences that prepare you to meet a changing world.

Learning here is rooted in a 151-year legacy of forward-looking education. You’ll benefit from the reputation of thousands of CBU alumni making their mark in the world. You’ll find practical courses like Graphic Design Lab and Introduction to Sustainability that let you make an immediate impact. And you’ll learn that college isn’t the end of your learning—it’s part of a journey of improving our world together.

Go with Vision

Maya Clark ’22 came to CBU unsure of her major. Her professor showed her how a love for communications could power a rewarding career in many different fields. Maya worked as a consultant in CBU’s Writing & Communications Corner, consulting for other students and building her confidence in the process. As a commuter student, she found the job gave her another way to connect on campus. When Covid-19 upended the world, Maya watched her professor adapt in the face of hardships, inspiring Maya to trust her own abilities as a leader.

Professors like Dr. Panetta taught me to keep going no matter what happens. She helped guide me as I considered new career opportunities and graduate school. The close environment at CBU really allows these connections to happen.

‘22

Honors

Our honors program has its own living learn ing community where growth comes to life

Student-to-faculty ratio for personalized attention

Maya Clark

English for Corporate Communications Memphis, TN

Maya Clark

Hands-on learning is so important for an engineer, because you never know what you’re going to end up doing. That’s what I love about it. CBU gives me the firsthand knowledge of how to use so many different tools, and how to fix things and solve problems, so I know I’ve got the right qualities to begin my career.

Sebastian Andrew ‘22 Mechanical Engineering Atlanta, GA

learn by doing

business & engineering

Intern at regional companies, making realworld decisions and gaining insight into the industries you will enter.

Computer science & cybersecurity

Build real-world applications of your learning that benefit users everywhere.

Ecology & biology

Explore local ecosystems on restoration and rehabilitation projects.

Education

Teach in schools of every kind, gaining firsthand perspective of the teaching and educational leadership career you want.

Nursing & health professions

Train in local hospitals and clinics, building connections and experience that lead to job offers—sometimes before you even graduate.

Visual art

Display your work in area venues and galleries, joining the artistic world that will inspire you long after you graduate.

every major Intern at local organizations, prepare for graduate school by collaborating with your professors on research, and benefit from a university fully engaged in the world.

Sebastian Andrew

that

Strengthens You Experience

HANDS-ON LEARNING IN EVERY

FIELD

No matter what you study, your learning at CBU includes hands-on experiences that build your strength in a field that matters to you. These experiences give you valuable job-ready experience, and explore industries that interest you, so you can craft a vision of the career you want.

Sebastian Andrew ’22 turned his love for cars into a path into mechanical engineering. The classroom is where he developed abilities in math, sciences, communication, and other foundational skills. But Sebastian says the workshop in Saint Benilde Hall is where the really important work happens: planning, designing, welding, losing track of time, and discussing tricky problems with professors. In the workshop, he and his classmates built a Baja-style off-road car to race against student engineers from across the nation.

As the first in his family to attend college in the US, Sebastian found a circle of friends who motivated his learning. They joined their passions to build a vehicle that is both flexible and tough enough to handle any obstacle. And they built the same qualities in themselves.

CURIOSITY CURIOSITY

CURIOSITY CURIOSITY

thatServiceShapes

ENTER TO LEARN, LEAVE TO SERVE.

You will see those words posted in classrooms across campus because service runs to the very heart of who we are. CBU students volunteer through class projects, student organizations like the Sustainability Coalition, University-wide events like CBU Serves, and partnerships between the Center for Community Engagement and organizations across Memphis.

Students assemble meal kits at the Mid-South Food Bank, nurture organic plants in community gardens, and paint faded buildings across the city, to name a few examples. They mentor young athletes and students, host thought-provoking film festivals and other events, and organize cultural events that bring our community closer, including celebrations for holidays like Día De Los Muertos and Diwali.

At CBU, we volunteer because our city and our world need our gifts. We volunteer because it teaches us about the world around us. We volunteer because it’s what our Catholic roots teach us to do. And we volunteer because it’s who we are—a community that gives our all and finds ourselves richer because of it.

Community Core at Our

CAMPUS LIFE THAT ENERGIZES

At the core of our campus is a spirit of community that makes us all stronger. It comes to life through traditions like Late Night Breakfast, through classroom discussions that continue after class on the Quad, and through students bringing coffee for each other as they meet in the parking lot before class. We gather and connect across campus–from the Swashbuckler Lounge for commuter students to inviting residence halls and laboratories for research and discovery.

life in action

Our community takes shape through countless forms.

Student clubs

Including the Asian Student Association, Best Buddies, Black Student Association, Catholic Student Association, Chess Club, Divine Voices Gospel Choir, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Gay Straight Alliance, Hola CBU, Voices United, and others.

Professional organizations

Including the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, Phi Alpha Theta History Honor Society, Psi-Chi/Psychology Club, Society of Women Engineers, and many others.

Fraternities and Sororities

Cultivate your leadership strengths and foster long-lasting bonds through Greek organizations including Alpha Kappa Alpha, Alpha Phi Alpha, Alpha Xi Delta, and many others.

Athletics

Sports at every level, from varsity to intramurals, invite everyone to try new activities.

Coming from a small town, I’ve benefited so much from meeting people from all different cultures. My first year was lonely at first, and then I saw how making friends in the dorm can change everything. Now as an RA I can help new students find those connections. People make time for each other here. I love that.

Paola Campos-Luis

Paola Campos-Luis ’24 Biomedical Sciences McMinnville, TN

FIVE

Purpose

that Guides Us

ROOTED IN MEANINGFUL VALUES

Every moment of your learning here is shaped by a deep sense of purpose that enriches and inspires us.

Our identity as a Catholic university in the Lasallian tradition gives us a wellspring of wisdom and teaching. Whatever your background, you will find values of justice, inclusion, and compassion front and center as we discover together what it means to live a meaningful life.

Students at CBU come from many religious backgrounds, including none at all. We come with all kinds of spiritual questions, which we explore together through study and worship. Our spiritual life finds expression through Mass in De La Salle (Stritch) Chapel, Bible study groups and Campus Ministry events, quiet moments of reflection, and acts of service that bring our values to the world around us.

The Lasallian values have been absolutely influential to me. Coming into CBU, they were just a list of words. But I’ve come to appreciate the importance of each of them. As a peer mentor and a resident assistant, I can model things like inclusiveness and compassion to others the way they were modeled to me.

Ebuka Ibekwe ’23 Electrical Engineering Imo State, Nigeria

Ebuka Ibekwe

DIVERSITY THAT INSPIRES US

Students at CBU come from every kind of background and all over the world. Our diversity arises from our Lasallian conviction that everyone deserves a quality education.

First-Generation Students

First-generation students find powerful support here. The Office of Student Success hosts frequent events that serve first-generation college students, including welcome events in the fall, weekly discussions, and alumni panels. Buttons and signs displaying “WE ARE F1RST GEN” are a common sight here because we are proud that so many of us are blazing a new path for our families.

I chose Christian Brothers University because they help students from all over the world. My professors help me in learning English, and people here are friendly. That’s why I stay.

Zainab Quaab ’25 Biomedical Sciences Kirkuk, Iraq

Students of all kinds

Our learning community includes commuter students, homeschool students, online students, adult learners, and working parents. Professors here adjust to fit the different needs of students at different stages of life. Students like Thomas Podesta, who worked in the auto industry before returning to CBU as an engineering technician, benefit from flexible schedules as they work toward their degrees.

International

students

International students find support and community through resources such as admissions staff trained in international and immigration questions, student groups representing cultures across the world, and events that connect us across differences.

Here, you’ll meet students like Zainab Quaab ’25, who traveled with her family from Iraq to Syria Lebanon to Memphis, where she is building a future in healthcare. You’ll study with students like Ebuka Ibekwe ’23, who finds spiritual support in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and career inspiration in the CBU chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

Thomas Podesta Mechanical Engineering Memphis, TN

Zainab Quaab

Go with SUPPORT SUPPORT

RESOURCES TO THRIVE

At CBU, we support you with powerful resources for overcoming hurdles in life. Across campus you’ll find professors and staff checking in on students and working with them to find inventive solutions through things like customized financial aid, personalized tutoring, spiritual counseling, and flexible coursework.

Lacey Conley ’24 found support through the Honors Program, which challenged her with new ideas and opportunities. Her professors challenged her to take her learning further, and the Honors Program director became a mentor who nurtures her ambition to become a lawyer.

As a home-school student and a Memphis native, Lacey found at CBU a warmhearted community that inspired her to grow through leadership roles on student government and Campus Ministry and as president of the Honors Program.

Lacey

Lacey Conley

CBU helped me become more confident in my abilities. I left knowing I had an excellent education and that I had made the connections I needed to. They really prepare you to be successful in whatever field you want to be in.

Chawan Rasheed

Chawan Rasheed ’15 Biology Memphis, TN

recent graduates either employed or in a graduate program within 12 months of graduating 97 %

CareersMatter that

PROFESSIONAL SUCCESS IN ANY FIELD

At CBU, you don’t have to choose between a career you love and a life that enriches others. Here, we pursue them together. CBU graduates go on to success as healthcare professionals, software programmers, engineers, entrepreneurs, educators, artists, lawyers, and leaders in every field. And they know that their work can improve communities around them.

Classes at CBU are tailored to a changing 21st century economy, including future jobs that don’t yet exist. Whether you build skills through a paid CBU internship, or connect with intriguing opportunities through our Career Services office, you’ll feel prepared to take on anything. And when you graduate, you’ll join a community of CBU alumni looking out for each other in their careers.

For Chawan Rasheed ’15, the first breakthrough came when her CBU professor told her about a clerkship program at Southern College of Optometry that gave her a path into eyecare.

Shadowing healthcare providers as an undergraduate gave her the experience to thrive in a demanding graduate program. Upon finishing, she returned to lead the same clerkship program that prepared her, training future eye doctors in bringing vision and clarity to their community.

TakeNextYourStep

Step

A CBU education is a powerful investment in your future. The value you unlock here comes through hands-on learning, meaningful relationships, and job-ready skills. We offer a large array of scholarships, loans, and grants because we believe CBU should be affordable, whatever your situation. And we walk with you through the process, answering your questions and connecting you with financial aid resources.

We’re ready to support you. Our team of admissions counselors will answer your questions about applying, paying for college, choosing classes, living on campus, or anything else. We’ll introduce you to professors and classmates who spark your growth. We’ll build a future together.

CBU full-time undergraduate students who receive financial aid

GO WITH PURPOSE. GO WITH PASSION. GO Together.

CBU celebrates how far you’ve already come—and inspires you to live into every bit of your potential.

Visit our beautiful campus and community and see where your growth comes to life.

MAKE A PLAN TO VISIT TODAY. CBU.EDU/VISIT