This is our introductory program and consists of 12 months on the Bethany College of Missions campus with either an August or January start date.
Designed to help students become global Christians with a missional approach to all life, work, relationships, and ministry.
Holistic preparation, focusing on Scriptural understanding, skill acquisition, character development, and deepening the students relationship with the Lord and with others.
This program exists for individuals who are seeking a grounding faith, an intensive focus on their prayer and devotional life, and an introduction to Biblical and theological study. Those who complete this program are welcome and encouraged to apply for either the associates or the bachelors degree during which they will begin applying their first year learning on the mission field as well as immersing themselves in missiological issues and courses.
This program consists of a total of 16 months of training with August and January enrollments available.
Students in the AA program spend the first 12 months on the Bethany campus completing the Certificate in Bible and Missions pre-requisite requirements.
The first year is followed by a four month internship overseas; all internships are developed by Bethany College of Missions and have both hands-on ministry experience and academics as part of the program.
Once the internship is complete, the student will return to campus for a two week debriefing at which time they will graduate with an Associates Degree.
Graduates of the associates program are welcome to apply for the BA as well and if they are accepted, they would be sent out for a 16 month internship (see Global Internship Description).
This program exists for those who have a passion for the nations, and are developing a solid foundation in their Christian faith but who are not sure that missions is the call God has on their life. In today's rapidly changing world, mission strategy has also changed. In many parts of the world it is not necessary to spend twenty years on the mission field to have an impact. The four-month internship component of this program provides an exciting opportunity to have a genuine short-term impact. A.A. students are prepared to take a full-time, short-term assignment in strategic global missions once graduating from this program and have the option to continue into the BA program or transfer the associates degree to one of several accredited schools which receive our credits.
This program entails the full content of any BA program but is compressed into three solid years.
Phase one occurs on campus for twelve months.
Phase two is a four month time of support building, fundraising and reconnecting with family and your local church.
Phase three is a 16 month internship overseas alongside seasoned missionaries and this phase is broken up into four terms during which students continue their studies.
Global Internship involves study of local language and culture, evangelism, church-planting, and instruction in a variety of other ministry skills appropriate to the specific internship context.
Global Internship coursework is taught by missionaries and local ministers who serve as adjunct faculty.
Breaks and holidays are built into the Global Internship schedule and some travel is permitted.
Global Internship is designed to give students in-depth training and first-hand experience in cross-cultural life and ministry.
The focus of Global Internship is on acquiring transferable skills, useful in any context.
The final phase of this program is a reentry term back on the campus of Bethany College of Missions; at the time of completion, students will have earned a BA in Cross Cultural Studies.
This program is designed to prepare long term workers for the mission field as well as give students a legitimate experience doing cross cultural ministry with a long term approach in mind. Upon graduating, students are prepared to work in cross cultural church planting or church development, as well as a wide variety of missionary service fields, depending on the specific training received during Global Internship.. Nearly every mission agency in America has sent out Bethany graduates therefore opportunities abound for anyone who completes this BA program.
We have chosen to remain non-accredited over the years because many elements of our program are not conventional. We do not, for instance, have any liberal arts courses (English, Math, Science etc) in our curriculum. Instead we've chosen to offer only courses that directly apply to missionary training. Remaining non-accredited enables us to retain the excellence of our program rather than changing our program to remove critical components or add non-essentials in order to become accredited.
However, many well known christian colleges do transfer our credits because of the quality of our curriculum and our alumni. A number of our alumni have gone on to earn post-graduate degrees in related fields from schools such as Wheaton Theological Seminary, Fuller Theological Seminary, Regent University, Liberty University, Columbia University in North Carolina, Bethel University, and others.
Interdenominational
The largest denominational groups represented in our Freshman class are Non and Inter-Denominational
Founders came from an evangelical Lutheran background
Worship style is contemporary
Bethany International is a member in good standing with the following organizations:
Evangelical Fellowship of Mission Agencies (EFMA)
Evangelical Council of Financial Accountability (ECFA)
National Association of Evangelicals (NAE)
GlobeServe Training Network (international network of missions training schools)
Teen Mania Ministries (TMM)
International House of Prayer (IHOP)
Bethany College of Missions has been a SEVIS (Student and Exchange Visitor Information System)-approved school since January of 2003 and has authority to grant F-1 Student Visa immigration paperwork.
Minnesota Higher Education Services Office registration
Bethany College of Missions is exempt from registration with the MHESO in accordance with Section 136A.657 of the Registration Statutes for private institutions.
