The Pioneer Bible Translators Internship Program
Our greatest hope for our interns is that they grow in intimacy with God and learn to hear His voice clearly as they encounter His heart for the world. We are committed to equipping them to thrive in diverse cultural contexts, whether serving overseas or engaging in stateside cross-cultural work. Additionally, we provide job-specific training within the U.S. to help them develop practical skills for the mission field. We are honored to journey alongside our interns as they seek to discern God’s leading for their future.
Vision
To ignite a passion for seeing lives transformed through God’s Word in every language and inspire a new generation of future missionaries through incarnational, cross-cultural experiences and exposure to a myriad of essential support roles to accelerate the ministry of Bible translation.
Mission
To provide transformative opportunities that immerse individuals in both cross-cultural experiences and job-specific vocations that foster spiritual growth, cultural understanding, and practical skills essential for thriving in a ministry context.
Core Values
1. Intimacy with God
We prioritize deepening personal and communal relationships with God, encouraging interns to love His Word, hear His voice, and serve His cause with prayer as the core strategy.
2. Incarnational Living
We value the importance of learning from deep relationships and understanding, engaging effectively and empathetically with diverse communities.
3. Immersive Training
We are committed to providing practical, hands-on learning opportunities that equip interns with essential skills for cross-cultural ministry on a team.
4. Intentional Mentorship
We foster a supportive environment in which interns receive guidance from certified life-coaches who walk alongside them to explore and affirm God’s calling in their lives.
General Summer Internship Structure
Pre-Field Orientation (PFO)
Duration: 2 Weeks
Purpose: To equip interns for their time on the field.
Details
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- Interns receive hands-on training in language acquisition, team formation, cultural anthropology, spiritual formation, and conflict resolution.
- They participate in interactive team-building activities under the direction and mentorship of the Formation Team.
- In addition, interns get to participate in a myriad of learning opportunities – Bible translation demonstrations, literacy equipping sessions, disciple-making strategies, community development, and support ministries.
- They attend Discovery, where they meet many of our missionaries and catch our vision to see networks of churches using translated Scripture to grow, mature, and multiply.
Field Portion
Duration: 6-7 Weeks
Purpose: To help interns acquire a broader vision of God’s world, gain further insight into His heart for the unreached, and continue becoming the people God created each of them to be.
Debrief
Duration: Approximately 1 Week
Purpose: To help interns process their experiences and allow them to reconnect with other intern teams.
Testimonials
“The Lord worked in so many ways through my internship with Pioneer Bible Translators. Not only did He show me the beauty of Christian community, but He also rekindled my desire to love others and share Jesus, abiding and depending on Him for guidance and growth.”
– Julia D., Eurasia 2024
“My experience as an Intern Coach in Summer 2024 taught me how to embody the Christian life as modeled in Romans 12 in a missions context, learning how to 1) offer myself to God daily as a living sacrifice and being transformed by the renewing of my mind, 2) empower a team of interns as members of the body of Christ, each with different gifts, to live out their service in the Kingdom, and 3) facilitate a team dynamic in which the team of interns remained steadfast in prayer and devoted to one another in love. Because of that experience, I’ve been equipped with real skills that will be useful for my future in the field!”
– Jameson M., Italy 2024
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Frequently Asked Questions
What are overseas internships like?
Our teams usually consist of 3-4 students (generally college-aged) and a team coach, who serves as a facilitator, leader and guide. Since we want students to see a broad range of ministry and cultural learning activities, intern teams typically visit multiple locations in the country where they are serving. They also get to interact with many missionaries and their families, and they have opportunities to observe the behind-the-scenes activities that are at the heart of what it takes to be a missionary.
On any given day, an intern might:
- Participate in a literacy workshop with veteran missionaries
- Assist in a back translation or village check of a passage of Scripture
- Work alongside national translators as they edit, revise and discuss word usage in translation
- Practice language learning in an open market
- Go on a prayer walk
- Show the Jesus Film
- Worship in a village church
- Distribute Scripture in villages
- Observe how the local people incorporate their art forms into their worship
- Learn about the local culture and bond with nationals through hunting, fishing, drinking tea, picking peanuts, cooking, fixing thatched roofs, or whatever other adventure God takes you on
Although we do not require potential interns to know they definitely want to be long-term missionaries, we do ask every applicant to be open to the idea of serving overseas as a vocational missionary. Applicants who are just looking for a fun experience or a great short-term mission trip are not a good fit for our internship.
Can I get school credit?
How much do internships cost?
Can I raise support for my internship?
Absolutely. In fact, we highly encourage interns to get the full experience of being a missionary by going through the process of raising both financial and prayer support.
What kinds of interns are you looking for?
We are praying for God to send us teachable, humble and servant-hearted followers of Jesus who are investigating how God may want to use them to impact and build His Kingdom.
How do I apply?
You can apply for an internship by contacting one of our recruiters. After dialoguing with you about which internship is the best fit for your interests, they will send you an information packet that includes:
- An electronic application
- Electronic reference forms
- Sample budgets
Click here to send us a message. (Be sure to select the ‘internship’ option.) Or call the recruitment department at (214) 699-4221.