Program FAq
An intern…
- studies theology.
- befriends the outsider.
- leads small group Bible studies.
- listens to students life stories.
- reminds others of the truth of the Gospel.
- assists their Campus Minister with ministry administration and events.
- is joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
- rejoices with those who rejoice and mourns with those who mourn.
- attends two annual weeklong training seminars in Atlanta.
- receives counseling on a monthly basis from a trained professional.
- joins their local church.
… and that’s just the beginning. For an overview of the weekly activities of an intern, please see the sample intern schedule on the resources page of this website.
The RUF Internship program is a two-year commitment. RUF is a relational ministry and we find that interns can have the most personal growth and campus impact when able to spend two full years of relationship building on campus. After completing two years of the program a number of interns pursue a third year of the internship and some elect to become campus staff, an additional 3-5 year commitment to serving with RUF on the college campus.
Since RUF is a ministry of the Presbyterian Church of America (PCA), interns are required to become members of and attend a PCA church while employed by RUF.
In addition to meeting weekly with your campus minister and participating in the intern study program, interns attend two training conferences annually. Each July the entire national staff (including campus ministers, area coordinators, campus staff, interns, and their spouses) gathers in Atlanta for a weeklong conference to pray, reflect, learn, and plan together. Each October, all interns gather in Atlanta for a week of enrichment. First-year interns have an additional weeklong orientation in June which focuses on fundraising, finances, procedures, and policies.
After discussion with the intern’s campus minister and after reviewing an intern’s personality, strengths, weaknesses, preferences, and the needs of their family, the Intern Department places interns where RUF’s greatest needs and the interns greatest gifts best align. Interns cannot select their campus assignment once accepted to the program. Exceptions are made in rare circumstances.
Interns must have completed a bachelor’s degree level of education.
On average, interns fundraise a budget of $35,000. This number can vary based on geographic location, cost of living, student loan needs, and health insurance options. Interns receive support raising training in a number of ways–a fundraising manual, reading material, live video conferences, and a weeklong orientation conference during the first week of June. Further, the Intern Department staff is readily available by phone or e-mail to answer questions and hear concerns.
RUF is a certified 501(c)3 non profit and all gifts are tax-deductible. Donors will receive a receipt by mail for their records.
The application for the upcoming year goes live October 1st (i.e. the application for a 2019-2021 internship goes live October 1, 2018). Once an application is submitted, it is reviewed by the Intern Department and references are contacted. After review, you will be contacted, usually within a week, to schedule an interview. Interviews begin in early November and are conducted via an online video conference call. Scheduling is done on a first come, first serve basis. Before your interview, all references must be submitted. On the day of the interview, you will be e-mailed a link to join the conference at your scheduled interview time. There will be a team of 2-3 RUF Staff on the call, members of the Intern Department, Area Coordinators, Campus Ministers, or either field staff.
After your interview, you will be contacted within a week regarding the decision on your acceptance to the program. If you are accepted, you will be considered in the next placement session for a particular college campus. Early placement session are conducted in December and January; the final placement session is in mid- March. If you apply early and are eligible for placement in December or January, early placement is likely, but not guaranteed. From application to placement, this process could take anywhere between one and five months. We are prayerful through the entire process. It is a joy to carefully built our team of interns and place them on campuses where they can thrive!
We anticipate the likelihood that many of our interns will have student loans to pay off. As such, we factor that into the personalized budget of each intern. For instance, if you have a $80 monthly loan payment, you will raise and receive $80 more each month to pay that bill. If you have an unusually high amount of debt, whether from student loans or credit cards, etc, it could be a barrier to your acceptance. However, this would be our loss for your own good because interns make a base-level salary that may not allow for a wise and timely payment of those loans.
Statistically, only 2% of interns fail to raise their support in time to be released to campus. That’s about one per year. What an encouraging statistic!
As an intern you will begin receiving financial benefits from RUF beginning June 1 of the year you are hired. Salaries, health insurance, trainings, and reimbursements are all part of what is being covered by RUF before you have raised any funds. These expenses often create a deficit in your account which is slowly erased as your support raising efforts bear fruit. Most often an intern who is not able to raise the funds required to be released to campus leaves RUF with an account deficit, and all donated funds are used to minimize the deficit. Any surplus funds in an intern’s account (after all expenses have been paid) may be refunded to donors on a first come, first served basis. Funds not returned to donors will go to the Intern Emergency Fund. The Intern Emergency Fund is a resource for interns who need assistance with unexpected expenses like car repairs, sudden health concern, emergency travel in the case of a family emergency, etc.
Please complete the Contact Us form if you’d like more information or if you have further questions. We’d love to help!
Parent FAQ
The two-year campus intern program offers college graduates an opportunity for learning how to minister to others through ministering to students on campus. Each intern serves under the direction of a campus minister who oversees the intern’s training program and their work with students. The intern’s personal development and spiritual growth are emphasized as important parts of this learning-ministering program.
The Internship is a two year commitment with the first year beginning on June 1 after the intern has graduated college, and ending on May 31 of their second year.
Interns are assigned to campuses around the country based on the strategic needs of the campus and region. Placement decisions are made by our regional leaders and the RUF National Office. RUF campuses are located all across the U.S.
Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) is an agency in good standing of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). The PCA is a denomination composed of agencies, presbyteries, and more than 1400 congregations. The denomination has received recognition from the Internal Revenue Service as a tax-exempt organization, and RUF is included in the group.
RUF has also achieved accreditation by the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability or ECFA as it is more commonly known. You can find more info about ECFA and their standards and practices by clicking here.
Yes. RUF is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization as recognized by the Internal Revenue Service. All donated funds go to further the mission of RUF. Whether you give to an individual campus, intern, the opening of a new work, or to our general fund, your gift will help us demonstrate to the world the work of Jesus. Additionally your donation provides the basis for the transformation of the world and the “healing of the nations.”
Contributions are made with the understanding that the donee organization has complete control and administration over the use of the donated funds.
Yes, because RUF is a non-profit organization, all interns are responsible for raising their annual budgets through the donations of friends, churches and businesses.
The average budget for an RUF intern is around $35,000. The budget includes salary, health insurance, ministry expenses, training expenses, and administrative fees. Budgets vary based on the individual intern’s financial needs as well as the cost of living for the area in which they are serving.
Yes, all interns receive thorough and practical training in fundraising during the June Orientation lead by the Intern Department. In addition to group training, interns have regular contact with RUF National staff who check in to evaluate and encourage during the process. We consider support raising to be a benefit of the program because it requires that initiative be taken and personal responsibility developed in order to succeed. The skills learned throughout the fundraising process are some of the most helpful skills the intern acquires as they plan for whatever vocation they pursue post-internship.
Statistically, only 2% of interns fail to raise their support in time to be released to campus. That’s about one per year. What an encouraging statistic! Interns are equipped and encouraged to succeed in every way that we can, but it does happen that an intern may not raise the funds necessary to do the job.
Interns begin receiving financial benefits from RUF beginning June 1 of the year they are hired. Salaries, health insurance, trainings, and reimbursements are all part of what is being covered by RUF before the intern has raised any funds. These expenses often create a deficit in the intern’s account which is slowly erased as the intern’s support raising efforts bear fruit. Most often an intern who is not able to raise the funds required to be released to campus leaves RUF with an account deficit, and all donated funds are used to minimize the deficit. Any surplus funds in an intern’s account after all expenses have been paid may be refunded to donors on a first come, first served basis. Funds not returned to donors will go to the Intern Emergency Fund. The Intern Emergency Fund is a resource for interns who need assistance with unexpected expenses like car repairs, sudden health concern, emergency travel in the case of a family emergency, etc.
You can help your child raise support a number of different ways:
- Pray. Your child needs your prayers and they need to know you are praying for them!
- Encourage. Raising support is scary. They are putting themselves in challenging situations every time they meet with a potential donor, and they are doing it for the sake of the Gospel on the college campus and beyond. Let them know that you support them and that you are proud of them.
- Think about your friends who may be interested in supporting your child, and talk about the internship favorably with them. Pass along names to your child, and “set the table” for them for when they go to ask for support.
- Support them yourself. It doesn’t have to be a lot, but interns are so encouraged by the financial support their parents give. A lot or a little, it really is the thought that counts. (The additional funds are really helpful, too!)
Interns are intentionally developed in the areas of spiritual growth, leadership skills, and entrepreneurial skills. Specifically, this happens through the one-on-one mentoring relationship with their Campus Minister as well as three national staff training events each year. Many skills are also developed through the experience itself, such as creative thinking and problem solving, relational authenticity, personal time management, volunteer coordination, and donor relations. These are all skills and experiences that employers find very attractive in new hires.
The following is an example of what your son or daughter may put on his or her resume at the end of the RUF Internship:
- Initiated development and training programs for students.
- Effectively identified and developed potential student leaders.
- Raised over $35,000 for personal budget.
- Traveled to Norway with a team for a five-week project to train student leaders.
- Counseled and mentored students in decision-making and character issues.
Click here to view some real life resume examples from former RUF interns.
Yes, many seminaries offer discounts and scholarships to RUF interns who complete the two year program.
Read more in our blog.
