Interns will arrive mid-August and will depart early August of the following year.
• Marketing and Communications
• Guest Services and Hospitality
• Facilities and Maintenance
• Youth Programs
• Horse Program
• Culinary Arts
• Housekeeping
• and other areas as opportunities and skills become available
In addition to personal devotional time and one-on-one discipleship with a member of the WSS Ministry Team, interns will participate in guided study and discussion in a series of relevant and interesting topics such as:
• Christian hospitality
• Biblical view of leadership
• Personal discipleship
• Christology
• Apologetics
• Biblical financial stewardship
• Biblical approach to relationships
• Christian community
• Conflict resolution
The EXSEL discipleship program is accredited by Liberty University. Upon completion of the program, if all academic requirements are met, you can earn at least 21 academic college credits and up to 12 experiential credits. Please find out more about our partnership with Liberty University here.
• Monday: Day off (for personal time, reading, study and academic preparation)
• Tuesday: Discipleship and/or apologetics classes are held in the morning, followed by a team lunch. Afternoons are reserved for reading and reflection, weekly or term writing assignments, counseling with the EXSEL Director or other ministry team members, and some time for constructive solitude. Interns enjoy dinners on Tuesday evenings in the homes of WSS staff members.
• Wednesday-Saturday: Vocational program, with each intern working alongside their ministry team mentors in their assigned departments.
On Wednesday evenings, interns have dinner at the EXSEL Director’s house.
Sunday: 1/2 of the EXSEL team will attend a local church with the EXSEL Director in the morning and return to WSS in the afternoon to join the other 1/2 who will be working to serve the weekend retreat guests. This will alternate between weeks so that each intern will have an opportunity to participate in corporate worship with a local church body at least twice a month.
June through August, the interns become part of the Senior Staff in support of the various adult and youth programs offered. Each will have one day off each week and will be working long hours and pretty consistently every other day of the week.
Yes. If you are already taking online college or other vocational courses, you may continue to do so, as long as your program of study can be worked around the other requirements of the EXSEL program. Historically, however, program participants have found it challenging to continue academic pursuits given the rigors of the EXSEL program.
The EXSEL experience costs $9250. This fee does not cover all of the costs associated with the program, but helps to at least offset some of the expenses, such as books, materials and instruction provided in the spiritual growth pillar of the program, room and board, and other associated costs. The payment can be made in full, or in two equal payments of $4600 (due by 1 May for the fall semester and 1 November for the spring semester).
For the EXSEL Fellows year, the cost is $2250 unless the Fellow was a prior intern. As a prior intern, the tuition is discounted.
Here is a list of available scholarships:
- Early Application Scholarship – $200 scholarship offered to intern applicants who turn their application in by the 31st of December.
- EXSEL Alumni Referral Program – $200 scholarship to any applicant who is referred by an EXSEL alumni via the EXSEL Alumni Referral Form.
- OCF Member Scholarship – $400 scholarship to any applicant who has parent(s) who are current OCF member(s).
- Active Duty Scholarship – $400 scholarship to any applicant whose parent(s) are currently serving on active duty service.
- Vocational Ministry Scholarship – $400 scholarship is offered to students whose parent is in full-time ministry.
- Sibling Scholarship – $300, plus $100 for each additional sibling, scholarship awarded to interns who are siblings of an EXSEL alumni.
- Summer Apprentice and Support Team Scholarship – $500 scholarship awarded to any intern who has volunteered at White Sulphur Springs during any summer as an apprentice or support team staffer.
There is a $1,500 max cap for scholarships.
Virtually all of your expenses are covered in the EXSEL Program. However, any college or other vocational classes taken apart from the EXSEL program would have to pay individually.
From September through May, Interns will receive $160 & Fellows $400 monthly stipend, intended to help cover some personal and living expenses. Upon successful completion of the spring semester, you will be given a critical leadership role as part of summer senior staff. During the time in this role from June-August, depending on which position you are given, you will receive a stipend in the range of $1,200-$2,000.
All meals are provided. During guest retreats, interns will dine at the hotel. During the rest of the week, food is stocked in their kitchens for their use. Additionally, interns will dine with a member of the White Sulphur Springs ministry team or broader White Sulphur Springs family several times per week in their homes as an intentional time to include the interns in their lives and invest in their future. Men and women will be housed in separate facilities on the White Sulphur Springs property.
The EXSEL Discipleship Program represents a rare opportunity to spend a year maturing in your spiritual walk while learning a vocational skill and, if compatible with your other duties, earning academic credit tailored to your own goals and your own journey. You can prepare for life while serving on the team of this dynamic OCF conference center ministry. Join White Sulphur Springs to take the next step on your journey, in the company of committed followers of Christ, and under the mentorship of experienced Christian leaders who want to invest in you.
EXSEL applications are due by 28 February in the year your participation would begin.
