IMB Students
Saturday, May 25, 2013
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 Dear Parent:
Congratulations on your child's appointment as a student missionary with the International Mission Board (IMB). We assure you that you and your son or daughter have our full support during their preparation for, travel to, and service on the mission field. We are excited to help your student take the Gospel to the nations. Releasing your child to serve internationally is no small thing. In fact it might be a bigger step of faith for you than it is for your child! It is our hope that these resources will help answer your questions and provide the information you need as your child prepares, goes, and returns.
Understanding The Call:
Parents' Frequently Asked Questions
Question 1: What is the organization through which my student is serving? Question 2: How are students chosen to serve through IMB Student Missions? Question 3: How are student missionaries supported financially? Question 4: What about insurance for my student while on the field? Question 5: Who will supervise my student on the field? Question 6: Who makes transportation arrangements to the field for my student? Question 7: Who arranges housing for my student and what is the housing like? Question 8: How can I contact my student on the field? Question 9: What if there is a family crisis or some other emergency while my student is on the field? Question 10: Can I send packages to my student? Question 11: Can I visit my student on the field? Question 12: What if I have other questions? Question 1: What is the organization through which my student is serving? The International Mission Board (IMB), an agency of the Southern Baptist Convention, works in cooperation with Southern Baptist churches to send career, short-term and volunteer missionaries to the international mission field. IMB Students offers high school, college, graduate school and seminary students the opportunity to serve alongside experienced IMB career missionaries. Students serve in short-term, summer and semester assignments. IMB Students began in 1947 with 11 students going to Hawaii (an international territory at that time). Since that time, more than 65,000 students have participated in the IMB Students program. Question 2: How are students chosen to serve through IMB Student Missions? Individual students complete an in-depth application and submit it to the IMB Students application review committee. A background check and four references from ministers, professors and friends are also required for each applicant. The committee approves and assigns students based on the information gathered from the application and references, including skills, interests, abilities, field preferences, dates of availability, and references. Specific project assignments are primarily based on the preferences of the student, with consideration also given to the skills and experience of the student. Students serving with a team from their campus or church generally apply directly with their local team leader who selects team members and registers the entire team with IMB Students.
Question 3: How are student missionaries supported financially? Students serving on short-term and summer projects are responsible for all of their expenses. These expenses include passport/visa, immunizations, travel costs, insurance, and cost of living on the field (food, lodging, and in-country transportation). The supervising missionary determines the cost of the project and makes the field arrangements for the students. The written project request will give a detailed breakdown of field costs and instructions for travel and visa (which are not included in the field cost written on the project request). NOTE: Students who are serving on semester projects through the Hands On program pay for a set portion of the costs outlined above (see the project request for the exact amount) but do receive funding assistance from IMB. Question 4: What about insurance for my student while on the field? In order to serve through the IMB, all students and other volunteers must have the required insurance coverage through Gallagher Charitable International Insurance Services (formerly Adams and Associates International). This insurance is comprehensive coverage, not just medical insurance, and costs are just a few dollars a day. All students should keep their current U.S. coverage while on the field, but these U.S. policies generally do NOT cover emergency medical care overseas, emergency evacuation, repatriation, etc. Therefore, ALL students are required to obtain this insurance through Gallagher. Question 5: Who will supervise my student on the field? The field supervisor will be a career missionary, a local pastor/partner, or a journeyman. Each student will be accountable to a supervisor and to the IMB leadership of the country in which they serve. Question 6: Who makes transportation arrangements to the field for my student? Most students are responsible for making their own travel arrangements, but this does vary by program. Some projects require the use of a specific travel agent so that the travel can be coordinated for many students serving on the same project. If this is the case, the information for that travel agent will be provided with the project assignment when the student is approved. Other projects allow the students to use their own travel agent. It is recommended that students begin travel arrangements 3 months prior to the start of their project. Question 7: Who arranges housing for my student and what is the housing like? The field supervisor is responsible for the living arrangements and all other logistics on the field, unless otherwise noted on the project request or communicated by the field supervisor. General information is included in the project request that your student received when they were assigned. You may contact the supervisor directly for answers to specific questions about these logistics. Question 8: How can I contact my student on the field? The field supervisor can give you the contact information (email address, mailing address, phone numbers) where your student can be reached throughout their assignment. You may be used to daily contact with your student via text, cell phone, and facebook. Please realize that due to the nature of the schedule your student will be keeping, time differences, cell phone coverage, power outages, etc., it will NOT be possible for your student to communicate with you every day. When you do contact your student, please keep in mind the security level of the place where your student is serving. If the security code is 2 or 3, please refrain from using vocabulary which indicates the religious nature of this trip ("missions," "evangelism," "God or Jesus," "church," etc.) when communicating with your student or the field supervisor. In security-sensitive areas, privacy is not highly regarded. Remember, email is like a postcard - it is open for anyone to read. Postal mail is often opened before it arrives to the intended recipient, and phone lines are frequently tapped by government officials. Please be cautious when communicating with your student who is serving in a security 2 or 3 area and ask them to give you the security guidelines they received with their project assignment. Question 9: What if there is a family crisis or some other emergency while my student is on the field? In the case of an emergency, you may contact your student’s supervisor directly. If you are not able to reach them, the IMB Students team is available to help you contact your student and make necessary arrangements. Even if your student is in a place where communication is difficult, we will be able to get in touch with your student on short notice. Call 1-800-999-3113. During business hours (8:30am-5:00pm EST) press 0 and ask for someone on the student team. If it is after business hours, call the same number and follow the instructions for an emergency. Leave your message with the answering service, including your name, the name of your student, the location of your student, the nature of the emergency, and two phone numbers that can be used to reach you. The answering service will contact an IMB Students manager and we will return your call ASAP. Question 10: Can I send packages to my student? In general, the answer is yes, BUT, be sure and check with your student's field supervisor about the correct procedure. Postal mail is so slow in some countries that without the correct procedure your package would not arrive on the field until your student is back in the U.S. If your package does make it to the field, it is very possible that it will be searched and items taken before your student receives it. Be advised that some countries require the recipients to pay duty for packages when they retrieve them from the post office and that this duty sometimes costs more than the items in the package. If you are planning to send packages, we recommend you investigate these things first. Question 11: Can I visit my student on the field? We appreciate your support of and interest in your students' ministry. If you would like to visit your student while s/he is serving, the field supervisor MUST give approval. It is important that your visit not interfere with the ministry. Question 12: What if I have other questions? If you have questions, please talk with your student and ask to see the project request and other information they received when they were assigned to their project. The chances are good that they have received the information but that they may not have shared it with you yet. If your questions relate to packing, logistical details for their project or things specific to their location, their supervisor is the best source of information. For questions about visas, travel, insurance, and preparation, IMB Students can help. Please feel free to contact us any time with your questions or concerns and we will help you as much as we possibly can. 800-789-4693
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