Internships
Would you like to explore using your gifts, talents, and academic preparation in a church, parachurch, or non-profit community organization? GPS @ APU: Growing for Purposeful Service includes funded internships that generate opportunities for students to apply their learning and interest in service to Christ, the Church, and the world. We fund up to 15 internships each semester; you are expected to complete approximately 100 hours of service in exchange for a stipend of $850. We ask that you participate in three sessions of guided reflection with Doug Stude, career counselor and internship coordinator. Your site supervisor is also encouraged to meet with you regularly to provide mentoring and guidance in processing your experience.
In recent semesters, APU students have served internships at Arrow Community Center, San Dimas Wesleyan Church, Heavenly Treasures, Pomona Vineyard Church, and Highland Avenue Community Church, to name just a few. Our list of approved sites includes opportunities in downtown Los Angeles for those students enrolled in L.A. Term.
Interested? Contact Doug Stude, M.Ed., in the Office of Career Services at dpstude@apu.edu or (626) 812-2103. The Office of Career Services is located in Magnolia Court.
Students Speak About Internships
Students who completed internships during the 2004-05 school year were asked to describe their experience in a few words. Here are some of their comments:
“. . . a humbling and life changing experience.”
Keely Rodman '06, communication studies
“. . . refreshingly uncomfortable.”
James Gutierrez '07, music/theology
“. . . a great way to learn how I can use my major . . .”
Kelly Rolfes '06, social work
“. . . a stretching, career-molding experience.”
Lindsay Reese '06, business administration
“ . . . a whole different world!”
Nathan Sautter '07, global studies/youth ministry
“. . . an invaluable asset to my education and growth.”
Courtney Bacon '05, biblical studies
“. . . reinforced my interest and talents in new ways. . .”
Rachel Pietka '06, English
“. . . discovering God’s will for me in the Church.”
Michelle Kraft '05, Christian ministries
Here are additional insights from James Gutierrez:
James Gutierrez served as the music and worship intern for San Dimas Wesleyan Church in the fall of 2004 where he developed a wonderful relationship with his site supervisor Pastor Kirkes. According to Gutierrez, the most meaningful experience of his internship was his time with his mentor. “I was having my weekly conference with my mentor, Pastor Kirkes, who let me know some aspects of leading worship that I had never considered. He said that if the musicians mess up, it is acceptable to just stop and start over again. The very last Sunday I led worship at the church, it came about on a new song that one of the singers started quite early, and in combination with an already impressionable drummer and a guitar with no monitor, the outcome was far from a joyful noise. I remembered the pastor’s advice and promptly stopped the music, gave a few encouraging words, and began the song again. The second time it was really music, and above all, it was worship.”
