Journey: U.S. and Canadian applicants
鈥淭he Journey program is opening a new door for my life now. I kept thinking, 鈥榊es, God is calling me, but where am I going to start?鈥� But now God is putting it all together. Journey is like a journey with God. It鈥檚 not just a name; it鈥檚 a real-life story for me.鈥� 鈥� Rebecca Riek (Journey student, 2017 to 2020)
Read more about Rebecca鈥檚 real-life story >>
Cultivate your spiritual formation. Nurture your leadership abilities. Deepen your theological perspectives.
The two-and-a-half to three-year Journey program is designed for pastors, those exploring a call to ministry, church planters and other congregational lay leaders.
Throughout the program, learners will find a rhythm of group and individual learning that includes a combination of online classes, bi-weekly meetings with a mentor, and face-to-face gatherings. In addition, your congregation or community ministry setting will be an important place to try new ideas, test new skills and deepen the self-understanding you will gain.
Through Journey, you鈥檒l name and develop strengths in six Transformation Areas:
- Spiritual disciplines, especially prayer and inner work
- Bible study and theology from an Anabaptist perspective
- Personal character, including courage, consistency, love and self-discipline
- Mentoring and community, as you mentor others and are mentored yourself
- Recognizing spiritual gifts in yourself and your congregation
- Leadership skills, including preaching, worship, conflict transformation, time management and more
Table of contents
The Journey curriculum
The Journey curriculum consists of a combination of online classes, regular meetings with a pastoral mentor and face-to-face gatherings.
Online classes
Five online classes introduce the following themes:
- The Biblical Story
- The Mission of God and the Witness of the Church
- Anabaptism: Foundations and Future鈥擜 Way of Being Church
- Leadership: The Ministry of Reconciliation
- Announcement and Celebration: Proclamation and Worship that Participate in the Mission of God
To request an overview of the Journey curriculum, email us at churchleadership@ambs.edu or call 574-296-6269.
Pastoral mentors
As a student in the Journey program, you will work with a pastoral mentor who is recommended by a conference minister or other suitable official.
Your mentor-mentee pair is expected to meet every two weeks for one-to-two hours, in person or online. In addition, your mentor commits to regularly reading your learning journal and to participating in all Weekend Learning Events.
Qualified mentors typically have experience as a pastor, church planter, missionary or have served in another relevant church role. Ideally, your mentor also has a seminary degree or has completed the Journey program. Journey mentors may have up to three mentees simultaneously. Mentors do not receive remuneration.
Weekend Learning Events
At Weekend Learning Events, you will gathering with mentor-mentee pairs, conference leaders, seminary faculty and staff, and other pastoral teachers.
These events are a time set apart for worship, learning, reflection and friendship planned by seminary and conference staff. They are typically held at Amigo Centre in Sturgis, Michigan, and on the bg真人 campus in Elkhart, Indiana.
These gatherings happen twice each year 鈥� once in the fall and once in late winter or early spring. Attendance by all students and mentors is required at the fall gathering. Attendance at the winter/spring gathering is required for students from sponsoring conferences and optional for all others. If students choose not to attend the winter/spring gathering, they are required to view videos of the event and submit a reflection paper on the videos.
Ready to begin your application?
International applicants
Interested in studying from outside of the U.S. or Canada? We welcome pastors, lay leaders and church planters from any church affiliated with Mennonite World Conference to visit the International page.
Program requirements
In order to participate in Journey, you鈥檒l need:
- A pastoral mentor. On the Journey application, you may nominate a mentor or indicate that you would like help identifying a mentor.
- Availability to meet with your mentor in person or online every two weeks for one-two hours.
- Reliable highspeed internet.
- Availability to participate in the Fall Weekend Learning Event each year. (Students from sponsoring conferences have additional requirements.)
- A congregation or other community ministry setting in which to practice your learning.
How much time will this take?
- Plan to spend at least five hours of study in online classes each week.
- Each online class session lasts 20 weeks.
- The total amount of time to complete the program is two-and-a-half to three years.
Journey follows a typical annual schedule:
- Early September: Fall Weekend Learning Event at Amigo Centre (Sturgis, Michigan)
- Mid-September to mid-February: Online class
- February or March: Winter Weekend Learning Event at bg真人 (Elkhart, Indiana)
- Mid-February to mid-July: Online class
Journey program certificate of completion
Once you have met all the requirements for the Journey program, you will receive a certificate of completion from bg真人. Journey is primarily seen as a way to deepen your understanding of Christian leadership in the Anabaptist tradition, in order to better serve your church or community. Completing the Journey program is beneficial to those who want to continue their studies and apply to a degree program at bg真人.
If you are interested in receiving undergraduate level credit for Journey, please enquire about this option before the start of your first semester (additional fees apply).
More information
2025-26 important dates
Fall 2024:
- Feb. 11, 2025 鈥� Online classes end
Spring 2025:
- Jan. 24 鈥� Final tuition due
- Jan. 24-26 鈥� Weekend Learning Event at bg真人
- Feb. 26 鈥� Online classes begin
- July 22 鈥� Online classes end
Fall 2025:
- July 9 鈥� Early application deadline
- Aug. 8 鈥� Final application deadline
- Aug. 14 鈥� Tuition deposit and Weekend Learning Event fees due
- Sept. 5 鈥� Final tuition due
- Sept. 5 鈥� Unit reflection papers due
- Sept. 5-7 鈥� Weekend Learning Event
- Sept. 10 鈥� Online classes begin
- Feb. 10, 2026 鈥� Online classes end
Winter 2026:
- Nov. 14, 2025 鈥� Early application deadline
- Dec. 12 鈥� Final application deadline
- Dec. 30 鈥� Tuition deposit and Weekend Learning Event fees due
- Jan. 23, 2026 鈥� Final tuition due
- Jan. 23 鈥� Unit reflection papers due
- Jan. 23-25 鈥� Weekend Learning Event
- Feb. 25 鈥� Online classes begin
- July 21 鈥� Online classes end
2025-26 costs
Online classes cost $600 USD each before the early registration deadline and $700 USD after the early registration deadline.
- A $300 USD non-refundable tuition deposit is due upon acceptance.
- The remaining tuition payment is due prior to the start of the session (see dates above).
- Weekend Learning Event fees are an additional cost (see below).
- Members of Journey鈥檚 sponsoring conferences are eligible for a tuition discount.
Refund policy
- No refunds will be granted after the first week of the online class.
- Weekend Learning Event fees are due in advance of each gathering (see dates above) and are non-refundable.
2025-26 Weekend Learning Event fees
Weekend Learning Event fees cover both the student and pastoral mentor, are all inclusive, and are non-refundable.
- Individual room: $595 USD per mentee/mentor pair
- Shared room, 2 per room: $410 USD per mentee/mentor pair
- Shared room, 3 per room: $315 USD per mentee/mentor pair (not available for January WLE)
- Shared room, 4 per room: $285 USD per mentee/mentor pair (not available for January WLE)
Details for applicants from sponsoring conferences
We are grateful to our sponsoring conferences for their support and guidance in shaping the Journey program. Sponsoring conferences are:
Students from sponsoring conferences enjoy unique benefits and take on unique responsibilities in the Journey program.
Learn more about being a student from a sponsoring conference.
Students from sponsoring conferences are expected to attend both Weekend Learning Events each year and to design and implement a final independent project. Like each of the online Journey classes, this independent project lasts approximately twenty weeks, bringing the total time in the program to three years.
Benefits to students from sponsoring conferences include:
- Reduced tuition fees (25% off tuition)
- Help from the conference minister in finding a suitable pastoral mentor
- The opportunity to develop a relationship with one鈥檚 conference minister, peers and select bg真人 professors through two Weekend Learning Events each year
- Supervision of a final project by the conference minister
- Confidence that your conference minister will use your input to help shape the future of the Journey program!
If your conference is interested in becoming a sponsoring conference for the Journey program, please email churchleadership@ambs.edu to request more information.
