Nick VanRijs ’23 Admissions Counselor

712-707-7135
nicolaas.vanrijs@nwciowa.edu

Hometown 
Hudsonville, Michigan

Education 
Unity Christian High School; Northwestern College, bachelor’s degree in international business with a minor in Spanish

Favorite restaurant 
Shout-out to Mr. Burger—or “The Burg,” as the cool kids call it. Worked there for a bit in high school, and the Mr. Combo with extra sauce never gets old.

A trip I’d like to take 
I’d love to go backpacking on the Te Araroa Trail in New Zealand. It goes for more than 2,000 miles from north to south, and I think it’d be awesome to do a thru-hike there. Plus then maybe I can see some of the Misty Mountains in real life.

Hobbies 
I enjoy doing pretty much any sort of outdoor activity, like hiking, biking and especially Spikeball. Love that game! I also grew up around a lot of water, so I love water sports too.

Favorite book
My favorite book that I read in college was probably American Nations. It talks about the identity of America and how conflicts between the different American nations in the past are continuing to shape the present and the future. Lately I’ve been reading An Unhurried Life, by Alan Falding. He talks about how “unhurrying” ourselves is essential for our spiritual development.

Favorite sports team  
The Detroit Lions. MCDC is turning things around. I think it’s going to be fun to watch the team the next few years. At least I hope.

College search advice
The most important thing I did while looking at colleges was going on overnight visits. It gives you a better picture of what campus life actually looks like, instead of just going on a tour or two. For athletes, though, I would encourage you to think about if you ended up getting hurt and couldn’t play your sport anymore. Would you still find that college to be home?