On Track
Short-term opportunities to explore God’s track for your life
On Track provides the opportunity to explore longer term cross-cultural mission service by undertaking a short-term placement.
‘Short-term’ can be anything from 4 weeks to 2 years.
12 – 24 months
- On Track
- Service
- Up to 12 months
- For skilled / qualified / professional people with experience in their field, an opportunity to explore missional service.
- Skills are used in a service capacity or to train others, usually alongside long-term Partners.
- Can be extended for a further year through On Track Plus.
- Self-funded, with the option for raising Team Support
- On Track
- Plus
- 12 months – 2 years
- For those seriously considering long term service, but not yet in the position to become long-term Partners.
- Emulates Partnership: includes mentoring, support raising, reflection, training and more.
- Apply directly or extend from On Track Service for a second year.
- Usually Team Support
funded
1 – 6 months
- On Track
- Returning Professionals
- Up to 6 months per year
- For those who are unable to commit to long-term service, but who wish to return regularly to the same location.
- Begin with an On Track Service placement, and explore options with Country Team from there.
- A positive evaluation and updated medicals required before each placement.
- Team Support or self-funded
- On Track
- Consultants
- A few weeks each year
- For those with specific expertise who can support the work of long-term Partners for short periods according to need.
- Availability placed on a register for Partners and Country Teams to contact when they have need.
- Proven cross-cultural experience and/or adaptability required.
- Self-funded
- On Track
- Experience
- Usually 6 – 8 weeks
- Including student internships, student electives, new graduates, gap year and those with little or no work experience.
- Emphasis is on Training and Observation.
Medical and Dental electives are available. - A tailored short-term placement.
- Self-funded
- On Track
- Discover
- 2 – 4 week team trips
- An opportunity for learning & exposure, connecting with other Christians interested in missions. Each trip has a specific focus (e.g. teachers, refugees).
- See long-term work
Some service opportunity – get your hands dirty - An organised trip with clear goals and outcomes. A planned itinerary.
Travelling with an experienced Interserve worker. - Self-funded
Candy is a young professional with a background in law, economics and international development. She served for six months in Central Asia, alongside a family of Interserve Partners who ran a consulting business. They worked with a local mining company to enhance community development outcomes and to minimise environmental impact. Candy’s placement involved language studies, project development and also training for local people. Her presence brought blessing and care to the community, as she shared her hope and faith.
Ben is a primary teacher who is working in South Asia for a two-year term at an international Christian school. The school educates children whose parents are part of the Christian mission community. Ben teaches with energy, creativity and humour. His heart’s desire is that the kids in his class grow in knowledge and love for God and His Word.
Adam and Emma worked alongside local Christians in East Asia for 12 months. Whilst studying the local language, Adam became involved in a basketball ministry engaging primary school-aged students. He also led a Life Group for young men, equipping them to witness to their peers. Emma is an early childhood teacher. She assisted in training local kinder teachers and parents in a play-based learning approach for preschool children with special needs.
Retired pastors John and Robyn have been serving in Christian ministry for 50 years. Now into their second On Track placement in South East Asia, they offer pastoral care to Christian workers who are not supported by a mission agency. They work in conjunction with a local agency, which provides counsellors and psychologists, as well as with expat churches and a Christian school. Networking is an integral part of their valuable ministry, which greatly improves the sustainability and health of the mission community.
On Track Medical Electives
Gain medical experience in an overseas setting whilst exploring how your medical skills could be used in God’s mission! On Track Medical Electives are supervised placements for medical/health students undertaken as a requirement of their university course. Interserve offers placements, usually of 4-8 week duration, in a variety of locations throughout Asia.
For further information or to begin your application, please get in touch via the ‘Start the Conversation’ form at the bottom of this page.
Latest On Track Opportunities
FAQ
Is On Track for me?
Are you a committed, growing disciple of Jesus? Do you have a heart to use your skills to serve? Are you eager to learn? Do you have the availability and flexibility to move and adjust to a new environment? If you’ve answered ‘YES’ to these questions, then On Track may be for you.
What’s involved?
There are three key ingredients of a successful On Track placement:
Preparation
Preparation includes finding your placement, completing training, reading and research, making logistical preparations and – where applicable – raising Team Support. This process generally takes about 7 months.
Experience
Experience is your time in-country, when you’ll provide service, support and encouragement in the partner organisation and the Interserve Country Team. You’ll have the opportunity to walk alongside local people and be mentored by a long-term worker.
Reflection
Reflection is vital to round out your experience, re-integrate into Australian life and to discern your next steps. We will remain in touch with you for at least 12 months following your return.
Where will I go?
We place people in over 20 countries throughout the Arab World and Asia. As we walk with you, hear your story, pray with you and complete the application, we’ll explore possible placement options with our teams around the world. Our aim is to ensure that the environment, the task and the team are all a suitable match for you.
How much will it cost?
When estimating the cost of an On Track placement, you should factor in everything from flights and vaccinations through to living expenses, conferences and training.
The total cost will vary according to placement length and location. Here are some examples:
- A married couple, serving in Cambodia for 3 months: $15,000
- A single person, serving in Central Asia for 6 months: $12,500
- A family of five, serving in South Asia for 15 months: $55,000 + schooling costs
How is it funded?
On Trackers generally serve in unpaid volunteer roles, with living and travel expenses covered by other means.
Self-Funded On Track
On Trackers serving for less than 9 months are self-funded. This means all costs are covered by your own funds, which may be supplemented by gifts from family and friends and/or salaries from your placement. As a self-funded On Tracker, you are responsible for managing your own income and expenses.
Supported On Track
On Trackers serving for 12 months or more join a pooled fund that also resources long term Partners. This is one intentional way that On Track prepares you for long-term service.
We’ll work together to set a budget and fundraising target which is tailored to your family make-up, the country in which you will serve and other relevant factors. With our help, you’ll then raise Team Support by inviting people who share your vision to support you by committing to pray, pledging donations, and offering practical support. This model reflects Biblical models of mission and is an important opportunity for the church and community to be part of your ministry in very real ways.
Interserve manages donations on your behalf, sends you a regular allowance and covers the expenses in your budget. Funds are pooled together with others so that we can pay all allowances reliably, even though individual donation income may go up and down over time. If you are working in community aid and development, donations toward your support may be eligible to be tax-deductible.
Team Support is a requirement for those serving 12 months or more and an option for those serving 9-12 months.
Regardless of the system, you may be amazed how generously God provides through his people.
How do I apply?
If you are considering applying to go with Interserve, then please get in touch with us for a chat. We will answer any further questions you may have, and once you decide to apply, we will set an application process in motion. The application includes filling in an online form, providing some references and having an interview.
There are Interserve staff based in major centres around Australia. Send us a note through the form below to start the conversation.
What can I do now?
First steps on the journey
- Be intentional in being a disciple of Jesus, growing in intimacy with God and understanding of the Bible
- Share your thinking about mission with your Christian friends and church family and ask them to pray with you – be accountable to them and include them in your journey
- Engage cross-culturally whether in your workplace or your neighbourhood (perhaps befriend a neighbour who is from a different culture to you)
- Take an interest in the world at large and ask God to give you a heart for a place or an area of need (e.g. displaced peoples)
- Pray for 1 or 2 missionaries, and for the nations in which they serve. Join a mission prayer group
