Ministry Placement
Having invested several years of one’s life in training for ministry, students in their final year inevitably ask the question, “What happens after Seminary?”
While we cannot guarantee anyone a ministry placement after graduation, we do offer assistance in linking with ministry opportunities in the church, schools, mission agencies, and other para-church organizations. The class, Ministry Placement Prep, includes a series of pre-placement sessions on subjects like resume development, shaping a job description, candidacy ethics and etiquette, negotiating, finances in the ministry, and others. In addition, the class gives students a place to process their questions, feelings, and experiences as they move through the ministry search process.
A separate placement track is offered for MFCC graduates each year.
Placement
MB Biblical Seminary helps students in the area of career development from the time they enter seminary through graduation and beyond. Upon entry to seminary, the faculty adviser or mentor meets with students to discern their calling, gifts and strengths, and then to shape an appropriate degree. Through the Supervised Ministry Experience, students receive further input regarding their strengths and growth areas. In their final year, students participate in mentoring and courses designed to help them clarify and find an appropriate place of service. Over the past five years more than 90 percent of our grads have confirmed placements before graduation. MB Biblical Seminary has a strong commitment to help students work through both the discernment process and actual placement.
MB Biblical Seminary maintains a close link with Mennonite Brethren Churches, mission programs and institutions. All of these collaborate with Seminary faculty and staff in placing graduates. Faculty in the Marriage, Family and Child Counseling department maintain ties with counseling agencies in Canada and the United States to help place students after graduation. Seminarians planning to serve in other church traditions are encouraged to contact their own denominational offices, in addition to the Seminary placement office, in order to find ministry placement.
Besides helping students find prospective placements for full-time service, MB Biblical Seminary also keeps students posted on part-time ministry opportunities in the Fresno area. Many students find part-time church/agency employment a good way to supplement both education and their finances.