Internship
The M.A.M. program requires the satisfactory completion of a supervised internship in a church or agency setting appropriate to the student’s area of specialization. The internship is months long, over the fall term of one academic year, and it carries three credit hours of academic credit. ST 6303 - Interpretation of the Christian Message is recommended prior to the Intersip Course.
All internships are coordinated through the Perkins Intern Office. The placement process begins in September when a prospective intern is invited to apply for an internship that would begin in August of the following year. A student completes an application and interviews with the intern faculty who will determine throughout the placement process the student’s readiness for internship. If at any point during the placement process, the student exhibits patterns of behavior that suggests that the student needs further preparation prior to participating in an internship, the intern faculty may conclude that a student is not ready for an internship. The intern faculty will engage in a consultative process to determine appropriate measures to help the student become prepared for internship.
If a student declines two faculty-approved intern placements in a year, the Intern Program will remove the student from the placement process for that year. A student who is removed from the placement process is encouraged to re-apply for an internship the following year; however, the student must accept a subsequent faculty approved intern placement.
A student demonstrating readiness for an internship is encouraged to pursue placement possibilities for discussion in the initial interview with the intern faculty. Internship placements include church, agency and hospital chaplaincy settings. During the placement process serious consideration is given to the student’s denominational preference.
The M.A.M. internship is part-time, requiring 20 hours per week (inclusive of the internship seminar) of work in the internship setting. All interns receive a stipend.
Master of Arts in Ministry students may complete the Perkins internship requirement (three credit hours) by successful completion of either:
- An introductory unit of Clinical Pastoral Education (Level 1), or
- An extended unit of Clinical Pastoral Education (Level 1). In most cases the unit schedule is 20 hours per week, between seven and nine months, within the span of August and May.
Master of Arts in Ministry students who choose either option to fulfill the Perkins internship requirement may not also receive academic credit for PC 7340 - Level 1 Clinical Pastoral Education .
An intern faculty member will be assigned to the CPE intern and will consult with the CPE certified educator regarding satisfactory completion of the internship requirement.
During the internship course, students do ministry under supervision and reflect theologically on their experiences. As the interns become more competent and self-confident in carrying out the tasks of ministry and gain theological, emotional and spiritual maturity in their understanding of it, they prepare themselves to provide resourceful, faithful Christian leadership in the world.
The design of the Perkins Intern Program assumes interns to be adult learners who can assess and value their past experiences and vocational goals and build on these creatively and systematically in pursuing the learning opportunities offered at their particular internship site. To that end, the internship course curriculum specifies a set of required competencies under each of three categories (be aware, think theologically and lead faithfully), tailored to the student’s particular degree concentration.
The Perkins Intern Program faculty partners with staff and laity at congregations and agencies and with mental health professionals experienced in church family systems to provide supportive supervision for students during internship. The mentor pastor and lay teaching committee assigned to each intern receive orientation and training as part of the intern program.
A student’s internship begins with a required Intern Orientation conducted by the intern faculty.
Pre-Internship Screenings
As a condition of participation in any off-site internship or clinical experience, Perkins requires any student enrolled in a degree program which requires an internship experience to provide written consent to a pre-placement screening for any criminal record/history. Students must complete the criminal background screening process during the internship application process and no later than April 1 of the spring semester prior to the start of the internship. The background screening process is administered by the Perkins Internship Office via a University-approved third-party vendor. The process will be administered in compliance with all applicable federal, state, and local laws as well as the SMU Policy Manual and SMU Student Handbook.
In the event a criminal background check report is returned with information indicating any history or pending matters beyond minor traffic offenses, the Director of the Internship Program will contact the student and may request the student to submit additional information regarding the listed offense. The Director may then consult with other appropriate SMU offices and personnel in order to determine appropriate next steps. SMU reserves the right to defer or deny enrollment in any experiential-based course – including placement at an internship site –to any student whose criminal background screening process indicates items of concern, including but not limited to previously adjudicated matters, or pending matters.
Third party internship placement sites may also require an additional criminal background check. Payment and processing of these background checks will be determined by the internship placement site.