Internships at Crossroads
Hey! It's so awesome that you're considering an internship here with us at Crossroads! To the right is our dream disk; it's who we are and what we're about. We're looking for some enthusiastic individuals that are keen to help make our vision a reality in 2022. We're located in Palmerston North and love our community! We've put together this page to give you a clearer idea of what the internship would look like, and help you figure out if that's something you'd like to be a part of.
The Heart Behind The Crossroads Internship
Don't worry, we aren't looking for people to make photocopies and sort morning tea (though we all do those things from time to time); rather our vision for our intern programme is to welcome in individuals with passions and gifts that we can support, and create opportunities for them to express and grow in. If you've got a heart for discipleship, awesome! If you're passionate about design, sweet! If you love putting together events or creating more spaces for people to live in community, great! We'd love for you to apply! And those are just a few examples. What we're really trying to say is we're looking for individuals that have a passion for ministry: serving God and others. An internship at Crossroads isn't about taking a year off, it's about going hard and impacting God's kingdom! So prepare to be challenged!
What Does An Internship At Crossroads Involve?
Many prior interns have opted to be involved in our Youth & Young Adults Ministries, however, that doesn’t have to be the area you serve in. It could instead be with another ministry such as Children, Worship, or a totally new role for the year (dependant on past experience).
An internship involves serving for 16 hours a week at Crossroads, using your gifts and passions to positively impact the ministries you are involved in. We understand that ministry shouldn't just be confined to an office, though some of your time will be spent at the office. If you were involved in Youth Ministry for example, that 16 hours would include Friday nights at CY, volunteering as a Youth Chaplain at Cornerstone Christian School, meeting with others for ministry purposes, training opportunities, team meetings, as well as mentoring and supervision.
Study
The other half of your internship is studying through either Pathways Bible College or another such as Emmaus. Generally, our interns in the past have opted for Pathways so we’ll use them as our example here of what you’re study will likely look like. Pathways require you to do 16 hours of study a week, usually resulting in one assignment a week. You also attend 6-week long block courses throughout the year in Tauranga. The course is NZQA accredited and if you qualify you can receive a student allowance while studying.
More information about Pathways can be found on their website https://www.pathways.ac.nz/
Some Specifics
Team Meetings
Each week the entire staff team gets together to talk & work through a number of things, such as upcoming plans. As an intern you will get to be a part of these meetings, getting the opportunity to contribute & learn what it looks like to lead a church as a team.
Studying & Preparing Together
As mentioned, some of your time each week will be spent studying, likely through Pathways Bible College. We will have an office set up at the church which you can use to study and prepare alongside the other interns.
Mentoring and Supervision
Depending on which ministry you are involved in, the leader of that ministry will mentor you and oversee the ministry you are engaged in. Isaac, our Discipleship and Young Adults Pastor will oversee your academic studies. You’ll also meet regularly with a spiritual mentor of your choosing to talk about your journey through life and faith.
FAQs
The internship runs for one year, alongside your studies.
We ask that you bring your computer with you, as it will be needed for the work you do, and we can give you access to our church system.
As is required through your study, we will give you the opportunity for 16 hours of ministry a week. If an event or ministry causes you to work extra in a week we will encourage you to take some time off the next week or elsewhere to prevent you from being overworked. At Crossroads we value a healthy balance between work, study, and personal time.
We are happy to help you find accommodation, whether that be flatting with some of our young adults, or some other arrangement. Basically, like any other student that moves into town.
Who You’ll Be Working With
Depending on which area you choose to serve in for your internship will determine which of our staff members you’ll primarily work alongside. To find out more about our staff team, click here.
Contact
If you're interested in applying or have any questions, contact Isaac at:
isaac@crossroads.co.nz