DTS

Yes, successful completion of the outreach phase of your school is REQUIRED for all DTSes.

Students stay a short walk from our main hub property in shared accommodation with other students. Living in community is a great way to meet people from diverse backgrounds, and it’s lots of fun! We value community by sharing sit-down meals (lunch and dinner on weekdays, dinner on weekends) prepared by our kitchen ministry and enjoyed together like a big family. The kitchen will supply some basic breakfast staples to stock your dormitory.

Life and missions will always have their risks, but we do thorough, prayerful research and risk assessment before heading anywhere on outreach. We are mindful of travel advisories and ensure we have appropriate insurance in place, as well as local contacts and contingency plans. We work hard to train our outreach leaders and have local and Perth-based support in place for them. There are no guarantees in life of course, and reaching those who need Jesus won’t always be easy. In doing that, we want to both stretch our comfort zones and exercise wisdom.

Yes, we welcome families! We believe that families, and not just individuals, have a calling in missions to serve together as a family. Please let us know if you are planning on bringing your family. Please also note that school-aged children may need to be enrolled in schooling as a condition of your visa. More information regarding costs, accommodation and education for children can be provided by the Registrar.

Yes, certainly! Just chat with your school leader about when would work best. If your guests are hoping to stay for a few days, you can email hospitality@ywamperth.org.au to see if any of our guest accommodation is available.

Yes, you’re welcome to visit! Just contact our Registrar at info@ywamperth.org.au and you can arrange a time to join us for a meal or a tour or a chat.

DTS is a full-time training program and is designed for wholistic learning which happens through all kinds of activities (see our DTS page for more info) so the schedule doesn’t work well alongside a job. Most DTS students will take leave from their jobs if they’re employed before coming.

You can apply online here or email us at info@ywamperth.org.au, and we will send you information regarding the school you are interested in.

Some people pick a DTS based on when it starts (our DTSes start at the beginning of January, April, July and October) and others choose based on the specific focus of a DTS. We’re confident God has the right fit for you, and we’d love to talk more if you’ve got questions.

As YWAM, we believe God wants to use every Christian to make a difference in the world! It could be in a ministry role, like a cross-cultural missionary or pastor, or as a faithful member of a local church who’s a light in their community and workplace. A DTS can help you build a solid foundation of deepened relationship with God, walking in His ways, hearing His voice and carrying His heart for those who don’t yet know Him. This can prepare you for any path God has ahead – whether you have a clear idea of what that will be, or whether you’re still exploring what He’s calling you to.

Every DTS has the same core content, and the same discipleship and missions framework. From there, each DTS will have its own flavour or focus for ministry.

Don’t worry too much if you don’t see a specific type of DTS listed, our focused DTSes are still broad enough for lots of different kinds of interests.

If you’re not sure whether or not a certain DTS is the right fit for you, just get in touch with us, we’d love to chat.

There is no age limit as such, DTS students just need to be old enough to have completed secondary school or high school and further parental permissions are needed if you’re under 18. The one school we run for a specific age group is the Young People’s DTS which is designed for 18-25 year olds.

Sorry, not right now. To complete your DTS here in Perth you need to be confident in listening to, reading, writing and speaking English to participate in our training. Please note that for some nationalities the visa process will require proof of your English Proficiency.

We’re confident God can direct each person step-by-step as to what’s best for their own calling. Some people find doing a DTS before they go to university (or other post-high school qualifications) helpful as it can prepare you with a strong foundation of faith, a clearer sense of direction, and a greater confidence in sharing your faith. Others have put their studies on pause and done a DTS part way through their higher education. Others have done a DTS after they’ve finished university or other training and found it’s clarified how they will use their qualifications for God’s purposes. There's no right or wrong way to do it!

Each weekday you will have lectures and work duties, (helping practically around the YWAM centre) plus worship or prayer. There are also weekly small groups, one-on-one catch-ups with one of your staff and time reaching out in the city to share the love of Jesus. Some DTSes also have workshop times. Weekends may have some school activities but will generally be free for you to rest, explore the city and have some study time. Learn more about DTS activities.

We have an amazing kitchen team who prepare all our meals. They do their best to cater for those with food allergies and intolerances. So, we typically have diary and gluten free options at meal times. If you have a more specific dietary requirement, please let us know.

DTS is a six-month entry level course to Youth With A Mission focused on knowing God and making Him known. Three months of lectures in Perth focus on learning about who God is and what it means to follow Him. This is followed by three months with a team from your school, serving practically and sharing God's love overseas, and in some cases, here in Australia as well.

DTS goes beyond learning information about God. DTS is about applying what we’re learning in real-time – we call that a “live-learn” approach. It’s more than just lectures, it’s growing through living in a multicultural, missions-focused intentional community (yeah that’s a kinda long description!). You’ll get individual mentoring, small group processing time, plus lots of opportunities to grow as you serve practically, encounter God through prayer and worship and gain confidence in sharing His love with others. There’s also lots of fun and friendship mixed in with all that. You’ll keep learning and being stretched as you head out on outreach with your team to bring His hope to those in need.

We want to help you get where God is leading you! God can use DTS to get you ready to make a difference anywhere in the world – in your hometown, in a remote people group, or anywhere in between. Specifically within YWAM, DTS opens opportunities for ministry and more specialised training here in Perth and around the world! Explore ywam.org for more opportunities within YWAM internationally. Or check out opportunities to continue to serve in missions or get further training here in YWAM Perth.

Clothing

‍Apart from casual wear, bring one set of formal clothes for meetings, church and formal events. Many outreach locations do require at least knee-length skirts for women and pants for men. Unless you want your casual clothes turned into work clothes, we strongly suggest you bring a set of clothes that can get dirty. There is a wide variety of jobs to tackle, and some can get messy. For recreation clothes, we suggest you bring shorts and runners (sneakers). With bathing suits, please be sensitive to our cross-cultural context and bring one-piece bathing suits for women and swim shorts for men. For shoes, you'll want a pair of casual shoes and dress shoes.During winter it can get cold (June – September), so bring jeans, jumpers (sweaters) and a jacket. Remember, outreaches may be in another climate, so come prepared for different types of weather.Please note: We have an international student body and as such need to consider a larger audience of cultures in our dress (what is OK in your culture might cause offence to someone from another).

‍

Bedding

‍You will have a bed (most often a bunkbed) during the lecture phase, but you will need your own bedding (pillows, sheets, blankets, duvet/quilt, etc.) as none will be provided. A fitted sheet is required for all students. Please bring this with you unless you prefer to buy it when you get to Perth. There will be times on outreach where you may not have a bed and will be sleeping on the ground; you may therefore want to bring a sleeping bag and suitable air mattress/mat/Therma-rest with you, though these can also be readily purchased in Perth.

‍

Personal Items

With regard to personal items, please bring whatever articles of clothing you need, limiting it to one large hiking backpack or suitcase. You will have some space under your bed, 2 or 3 shelves in a cupboard and a small amount of wardrobe space. Our storage is limited, meaning you will need to be able to carry everything with you during the outreach phase. There is no storage space provided on campus for your things while you are on outreach.

‍

Cars

If you are planning on bringing a car please let us know. Please be advised that due to local parking restrictions there is no personal parking available on campus. Wherever you chose to park your car, you do so at your own expense. We aim to have all of our accommodation located within walking distance from the YWAM property. Public transportation is easily accessible and can take you throughout the city.

Generally, your school leaders will research and pray over options for outreach locations before the school starts, based on considerations like ministry opportunities, local contacts and ongoing partnerships. These locations will be communicated early in the school, or beforehand if already set. Some DTSes will have more than one option for you to pray about, and some will go as one team on outreach. Some teams will serve in multiple locations on outreach, and others may focus on one location for the whole three months. We have a significant focus on Asia, Africa and Australia, but we can send teams anywhere in the world.

We are an urban “walking campus,” so you’ll stay a short walk away from the main YWAM hub in shared accommodation with other students. Classes, meals and other events take place at our central facility. Our main property includes an in-house café, lounge spaces, library, wifi and more.

Our DTS leaders and staff are full-time volunteer staff serving with Youth With A Mission Perth. DTS leaders have generally staffed previous DTSes and have demonstrated both character and leadership capability. Staff and leaders have all done their own DTSes and received leadership training. Over the course of the schools, they’ll continue to receive ongoing leadership development, input and mentoring from our training team.

DTS is for those hungry to know God more, who want to grow in their walk with Him and share His love with others. Whether you’ve been following Jesus for a long time, you’re still fresh to faith or you’re wrestling with the big questions, DTS can give you powerful space to meet with God.

One of our big values in YWAM is that we want to be people who “do first, then teach.” So the men and women who teach on our DTSes are people who live what they’re teaching. They’re practitioners, not just lecturers. You’ll likely hear from a lot of full-time missionaries, as well as people living missionally in their careers, pastors, or other faith leaders.