Seven in ten students in faith-based schools believe in God or some sort of spirit or life force

The Student Spiritual Life Survey (SSLS) explores 6 key themes, one of which is Religious or Spiritual Beliefs. In participating Australian Christian schools, high school students were invited to reflect on their beliefs about God and Jesus.

An initial snapshot was taken based on some 14,461 students in 28 Christian schools who had completed the Student Spiritual Life Survey. Some schools have used the SSLS more than once, but this article uses results only from their most recent survey wave i.e. each student was only counted once. ​

The snapshot of high school students found that around seven out of ten (72%) believed in God, or spirit or life force.  More than half believed there is a God (57%) and a further 15% agreed there is a spirit or life force. Some 18% don’t know what to think, whereas one in 10 do not think God exists.