Host an Intern

Churches provide an essential service to seminary students when they host interns.

During 9-month internships in which they serve in a church setting for 12 to 15 hours a week, United students: Learn how congregations function on a day-to-day basis Are given opportunities to preach, teach, do pastoral visits, attend church meetings, work with youth, lead retreats, organize mission trips, and explore the work of congregational ministry Develop and assess their skills for church leadership Work with clergy and lay supervisors to reflect on strengths and weaknesses, successes and struggles, and the meaning of it all

Is your congregation interested in hosting an intern? If so, please remember this involves a genuine commitment of congregational resources. Churches hosting interns agree to:

• Pay a small stipend to their intern totaling $2,000 for the academic year
• Set aside time for a clergy person to serve as the internship supervisor, who will meet weekly with the intern, help the student engage in learning opportunities, and provide periodic evaluations to the seminary
• Designate a committee, called a Lay Advisory Group, to provide monthly or bi-monthly opportunities for the student to receive support and engage in reflection about the internship

There is no automatic guarantee of an intern for a given school year. Interested congregations fill out a church profile, and students fill out a student profile. Churches are given an opportunity to review student profiles and interview potential interns. When both the church representative and the student agree there is a good match between the student’s goals and the church’s resources, they enter into an agreement with one another and the seminary to fulfill the requirements of the internship.

Is your congregation willing and able to make such a commitment? If so, click here for more information or contact:

Trish Greeves 651.255.6140
Contextual Studies Coordinator

Thank you to Chapel Hills United Church of Christ, Edina, Minn., for the financial support to develop this Web page and its links.