Simpson religion majors participate in a variety of experiences during their Simpson Experience. Recent internship sites include Bloomfield United Methodist Church, UnityPoint Bereavement Services, Trinity United Methodist Church, and OneIowa. Some interns are paid through a grant Simpson received to fund internships at new and/or non-profit internship sites. In the past, religion students have interned at Children and Family Urban Movement (CFUM), the Iraqi Refugee Resettlement Project, Youth Services of Iowa, Catholic Charities, a variety of local churches, Bidwell-Riverside, and a number of other sites in Des Moines and the surrounding communities. In several cases, a semester-long internship or volunteer experience led to extended summer internships and/or summer jobs.
Many Simpson religion majors pursue graduate education after Simpson. While some students attend theological school to prepare for a wide variety of careers in ministry and service, others attend library school, law school, schools of social work, or pursue public policy degrees. Simpson religion majors are well prepared for graduate school, and each year some of the country’s best graduate programs welcome our majors. In the past several years, religion majors matriculated at the following graduate schools: Boston College, Duke University, Vanderbilt Divinity School, Candler School of Theology, Garrett Evangelical Seminary, St. Paul School of Theology, Chicago Theological Seminary, Iliff School of Theology, University of New Hampshire Law School, University of Minnesota School of Social Work. In 2016, four of our graduates were offered full-ride plus stipend scholarships at some of the country’s best graduate schools.