The Student Ministry program is designed for students to complete all of their practicum courses before beginning their internship courses. For special circumstances preventing these classes from being completed in order, accommodations will be made.
The Student Ministry program at SUM consists of twelve practicum courses, six of which are connected to an academic course, two Evangelism Conference and Outreach (ECO) events and three internship courses.
The intention is for students to complete all practicum courses including the two ECO events before beginning the internship sequence. Full time undergraduate students are expected to take two practicum courses per term to stay on track to complete their degree in the estimated time frame.
Internship at SUM is different from most programs in that the experience is centered around developing, implementing and evaluating a senior project under the supervision of the local ministry leadership. These courses represent a process that takes place over time and therefore must be taken consecutively rather than simultaneously. They cannot be stacked and taken at the same time.
Students should begin their internship program when they have three terms remaining at SUM, even if they have not completed all of their practicum requirements.
From time to time students have unique situations that prevent them from completing the student ministry requirements as designed. These might include graduating sooner than the estimated degree completion estimation due to transfer credits, the need to repeat courses or not taking two practicum courses per term. In these cases the registrar will work with students to complete their student ministry requirements successfully. This might include beginning the internships sequence while finishing the final practicum courses or taking a practicum or internship in a summer term. Each situation might vary, but students should expect to complete all student ministry requirements in their program, completing their internship program in consecutive terms, and participating in two ECO events.