The ideal applicant is someone committed to a life of ministry who desires to grow in godliness, all while being big believers of the local church! Residents should be recent college graduates and committed members of their local church (Highland or otherwise). Our expectation is that every Highland Resident would have previously completed one summer of Highland Leader College, whether the summer preceding the Residency or in previous years. However, applicants will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Highland is not a perfect church and by no means has it all figured out. We are all still learning and growing, yet also seeing the Lord move in miraculous ways in our midst. We want to fulfill our God-given responsibility to multiply disciples (Matthew 28) for His Glory and equip the saints for ministry (Ephesians 4). We pray Highland’s name is forgotten, but that this program would leave you with tangible ministry experience and spiritual markers, pointing you towards a lifetime of further sanctification as a healthy member of whatever church you are called to.

While in the Residency, you will be considered a part of our staff ministry team by our whole church. Residents serve in a part-time capacity (20-25 hours/week), which includes Sunday ministry responsibilities, staff meetings, Residency classes, churchwide events and more! You will be partnered with the same ministry partner (i.e. Students, Groups, Women, Worship, College, etc) for the entire program, and you would be a pivotal member of their team, in addition to having many opportunities that are unique to our Residents. We place a high value on learning by doing, so it will be roughly 75% doing/25% learning within your weekly responsibilities.

Great question! We place a high value on creating an individualized experience that is specific to your gifting, wiring and desires. If you do this, you trust Highland as your church family that will equip you, invest in you and not waste your time. We want this to be something that you will look back on for the rest of your life as a formative and impactful experience that grows you as a disciple of Jesus. Another reason to consider this Residency is that we expect God to use you in our church to better Highland for this year.

The Highland Residency 2026-2027 begins August 16, 2026 and concludes May 16, 2027. The summer beforehand would be leveraged for participating in Highland Leader College (HLC) if you have not yet. HLC runs from May 27 - July 2, 2026. We can discuss what HLC entails more in the interview process.

We do not ask that you pay to participate in the Residency. While we do not pay our residents, we offer to place you in host homes. Overall, we ask for 50% of your time, with the hope of host homes reducing roughly 50% of your expenses of living in Waco. Also, we encourage residents to get part-time jobs that are flexible to work with the residents hours that can provide valuable marketplace experience.

We do provide host homes on a case-by-case basis with a Highland family to reduce expenses while in Waco. Residents do not have to live in host homes if they already have housing arrangements. If you are interested in more information on serving as a host home for the Residency in future years, email Ben-Calkins@hbcwaco.org.

Good news: there are none! Your picture is on the website, you come to the Staff Christmas party, and no meeting is off-limits to you! You are not the future of the church, but as a Resident, you are already relied upon as a key member of the team for this year of ministry.

If you’re seriously considering the Highland Residency, we would strongly encourage you to apply by the priority deadline. We cannot guarantee spots will still be available to interview for after the priority deadline passes. Ultimately, why wait to apply for what could be the best year of your life?

That is the plan eventually! Our hope is to partner with seminaries, so that this can kickstart your formal theological training if you desire more. Also, if you are interested, we are open to you beginning seminary classes while you are a resident.

We don’t have a set number in mind year-to-year. We trust the Lord to lead us to the right “who” and the right “how many,” but we wouldn’t want the number of participants to affect the depth and personalized nature of their experience.

Applications are currently closed for the 2026-2027 Residency class. The priority deadline was December 1, 2025 with the extended deadline on February 14, 2026. If you have any questions or would like to be considered for future years, please email Ben Calkins.