How can I get there?
May-2012

Working with SIM’s experienced personnel you can be sure you will be well prepared. Being sent on missions is achieved in two ways – Mission Experience, up to 12 weeks and Mission Placement,  3 months or more.

Mission EXPERIENCE

Up to 12 weeks including medical electives. Mission Experience offers a meaningful period of service within the mission environment with 2 goals in mind.

  • People get helped!
  • You get the change to experience life in the mission settings as an “insider”, rather than a “tourist” – this can be helpful as you consider your suitability to a longer term mission placement.

Mission Experience placements are defined to some extent by their length – you can expect to be involved in project work, support roles and in temporary appointments to enable leave to be taken by permanent personnel.

The medical elective programme is available as a Mission Experience (contact us for more information)

Mission PLACEMENT

3 months to 4 years.  A renewable mission contract of 3 months or longer offers greater opportunity for local relationships to be built as you invest meaningfully into language and cultural understanding.  Empowering and training local people is enhanced as you begin to understand how to pass on skills effectively in a different culture.

Placement will depend on your skill-set, training, & experience (along with a sense of call to serve) and you are carefully matched with personnel needs in countries where SIM works.  There is a greater variety of placement because longer availability enables stronger language acquisition, which broadens the range of service possibilities and increases transferability of skills to local people.  Placement and length of service will define the training required.  In general if you serve longer than 2 years you may require some theological training and also some language and culture skills development prior to departure overseas.

During your preparation you will be mentored on areas like cross-cultural adaptation skills, attitudes to ministry/service, how to work in multicultural teams, as well as being given information about life and faith in your country of placement.

When going on a mission placement, you are encouraged to raise financial and prayer support to enable you to contribute overseas for this longer period of time.  The involvement of your faith community (sending church and friends) will be vital in supporting you in so many different ways during your time overseas, right through the process of being sent.