Why Time Management is Essential for an Internship Director

I am a huge proponent of having Interns for your ministry. Whether they are short term, like summer interns, or longer term such as year long interns, they can be very beneficial for your Church and ministry. There is a lot that goes into making an Internship successful. Here are some blog posts/podcasts I’ve done in the past that highlight some of the work that happens month beforehand.

• How to create a Summer Internship Program
• How to effectively Recruit Summer Interns
• How to Effectively Lead Summer Interns

While there is a lot of work that goes into preparing for the Internship, making sure the Internship runs smoothly while it is actually happening is extremely important. A lot of responsibility rests on the Internship Director. I have discovered that in order for the Internship experience to be successful, an Internship Director must possess an essential quality. That is time management.

Why is Time Management essential for an Internship Coordinator? Here are two specific reasons:

• The Interns are relying on an Internship Director to be prepared. The Interns you have come to your Church to learn and grow. They come in with very little ministry experience and have no idea how your ministry or Church does ministry. In addition, they need to know if ministry is for them or not. So your 3-12 month Interns need you to be prepared for each session with them. They need you ready to train and equip them. So you have to use effective time management principles to juggle all you are doing so that your Interns benefit from the time they are with you.
• An Internship Director need to get work done, too. The work doesn’t stop when you have Interns. Sure they will help you do more ministry but the reality is that you still have to get work done while also training and equipping the Interns to help. This is where time management comes into play. Manage your time well so you can still get the things done that you need to get done while also being prepared to train and equip the interns for what they need to do.

Having Interns is great and can be really helpful to your ministry. However, it takes a lot of work. The Internship Director has to be prepared. Not only are the Interns relying on you to learn and grow over the period of time you have them, but you have plenty of work that needs to get done.

What do you think? What other qualities must an Internship Director possess other than time management? Share your thoughts and experiences below or on social media using #ymsidekick when you share. We’d love to know what you are excited about doing. 

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