Ask Sophia Dicks how she’d describe herself, and her answer comes quickly, she loves people. She’s naturally relational and outgoing, and she has a gift for creating spaces where others feel known, welcomed, and like they belong. For this senior psychology major, that gift has shaped nearly everything about her time at Houston Christian University.
A League City native, Sophia chose HCU in part because she didn’t want to move far from home. The small campus drew her in, but what sealed her decision was the chance to pursue her education without compromising her faith.
“I didn’t realize at the time how much HCU would become a place where I would grow personally, spiritually, and relationally,” she says.
She knew she had found her place right after Welcome Days. Upperclassmen and staff worked to make her feel she belonged while she got comfortable on a brand-new campus. It felt like home that very first weekend, and many of her closest friends today are people she met in that first week of classes.
That sense of belonging carried into her studies. As a psychology major, Sophia has always been fascinated by the way people think, feel, and interact. She loves studying the brain through the lens of faith and seeing the human mind as something God created both complexly and intentionally.
“The more I study psychology and grow in my relationship with the Lord the more intertwined I feel like both are and it’s so cool,” she shares.
Her purpose is simple. “I chose psychology because I want to understand people better so that I can love and serve them better.”
Her favorite class, Experimental Psychology, let her design her own research on campus pride and campus involvement, surveying fellow students to test whether more pride leads to more involvement.
“Finishing it was the most successful I have probably ever felt,” she says.
Outside the classroom, Sophia invests in other students. She is the Student Involvement Intern in Student Life and President of the Student Programming Board, and she has served as a Peer Mentor, Welcome Days Pack Leader, and Summer RA. Having stood on both sides of the experience, she says, “I know what it feels like to be the student looking for community and trying to figure out where you fit, and now I get to help create those opportunities for other students.”
Those roles have reshaped how she sees leadership. “It’s about serving your team, listening to people, bringing out the best in others, and creating an environment where everyone feels like they have something valuable to contribute.”
Through church, her college ministry, and Bible studies, her faith has grown alongside her confidence, and HCU taught her that “people really do need people.”
Away from campus, you’ll likely find her cooking, baking, or catching up with friends over coffee.
After graduation, Sophia plans to pursue grad school in psychology and hopes to keep working with college students, helping them find community and feel seen.
Her advice to future Huskies is simple: say yes. Say yes to meeting new people, joining the organization, going to the event, starting the Bible study, and showing up even when it feels uncomfortable.
Sophia hopes to be remembered for the people she invested in, and for being the reason someone feels at home at HCU.
