A ministry degree offers practical preparation and skills to pursue a calling as a pastor or other kind of Christian job in service to the Lord. They build skills in counseling, evangelism, and liturgy to prepare preachers, missionaries, and faith-based non-profit workers. Ministry degrees offer a general liberal arts education with a religious knowledge that has broad applications in industries from social work to international aid.
Ministry is the process of offering support and spreading the Word of God’s salvation. It’s an act of service, both to God and to others in His name.
It’s a broad calling that many Christians engage in through the course of their lives. But degrees in ministry offer training and preparation to better fill that role.
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The clearest career path for those who earn degrees in ministry is, of course, Christian ministry itself. But modern Christian ministry is a big and diverse field of service. It ranges from the traditional roles of small parish pastors to entire preaching teams at massive megachurches to roles in social services agencies. Missionaries strike off for distant lands and uncontacted tribes with their ministry degrees as preparation.
Ministry degrees are designed to equip people with the skills and knowledge to take on diverse roles of service in the Christian tradition.
Ministry degrees open up a wide array of different jobs, volunteer positions, or even individual roles working in His service that people invent for themselves. Calling and imagination are the only real restrictions to what you can do with a ministry degree.
A Ministry Degree Can Fulfill the Requirements for a Countless Number of Callings
There are so many different kinds of ministry in practice today that it’s impossible to list them all. And even a list made today of every known type of ministry would be incomplete tomorrow. Someone will come up with a new way of glorifying God and supporting people through His love.
A ministry degree offers the kind of training necessary to accomplish that kind of innovation and care. With a combination of Scriptural knowledge, pastoral training, and specialized skills in counseling or care, they deliver a broad set of capabilities to serve and to praise.
Ministry degrees are often offered with specializations. Some of the most common are:
Christian ministry - Trains graduates to take on a wide variety of different ministry positions with in-depth knowledge of Christian beliefs, Bible knowledge, and evangelical skills.
Community Development - Trains students to incorporate larger economic, social, and cultural considerations in community organizing and ministry work for social justice and local revitalization efforts.
Counseling - Develops secular as well as spiritual understandings of human needs and emotions, training graduates to work directly with couples, individuals, and families to provide healing through faith.
Global ministry - Offers international perspectives and training to perform Christian missionary work in challenging conditions worldwide.
Leadership - Develops Christian leadership skills along with practical management and strategic planning training.
Pastoral ministry - Develops skills for preaching and ministering directly to a congregation in either lead or assistant pastoral roles.
Scripture - Dives into the Word of God as delivered through the Bible, helping students become expert in analysis, citation, and theological discourse based in Scripture.
Worship and Liturgy - Concentrates on musical ministry and leading and performing ceremonial worship practices in churches of all sizes.
Youth ministry - Prepares individuals as youth counselors or youth or children’s pastor roles, or as teachers in Christian or secular schools.
But there are dozens more. Each concentration opens up a pathway to all different sorts of opportunities.
Different Ministry Degree Levels Offer Different Kinds of Capabilities in Christian Jobs
Besides the specialization, the level of the degree is the biggest factor in determining what you can do with an education in Christian ministry. The qualifications are very different between a two-year associate degree program and a doctoral degree that may take a decade to earn.
What Can You Do With an Associate Degree in Ministry?
With two years of study split between basic education courses and Christian essentials such as Scripture and pastoral skills, associate-level ministry degrees only touch on the important knowledge of ministry. With luck and experience, an associate degree will allow graduates to take on ground-level jobs in ministry such as:
- Sunday School teaching
- Church daycare assistant
- Administrative church positions
Associate degrees are also a good choice for people who want to perform in volunteer roles in different ministries.
The most common thing people do with an associate degree in ministry, however, is go on to enroll in more advanced college degree programs. An associate degree is sometimes also called a transfer degree for just that reason. If certain standards are met or transfer agreements are in place between two schools, a university might accept an associate degree in ministry as counting for the first two years of a longer bachelor’s degree program.
What Can You Do With a Bachelor’s Degree in Ministry?
Bachelor’s degrees open up your career prospects in vocational ministry quite a bit more than an associate degree. With four full years of training, combining general education standards with in-depth studies of pastoral care and Biblical knowledge, the qualifications you earn at this level are much higher. A bachelor’s degree in ministry can qualify you for jobs such as:
- Youth Counselor
- Teacher
- Non-profit coordinator or manager
- Associate minister or chaplain
In some churches, it’s possible to become ordained with only a bachelor’s degree, although this is rare. More commonly, those called to become ordained pastors will earn a bachelor’s degree as a necessary step on their way to getting a master’s degree.
What Can You Do With a Master’s Degree in Ministry?
Master’s degrees in ministry or divinity are the most common education requirement for ordination in most Christian denominations today. These programs can run between two and four years, with a singular focus on pastoral and spiritual care, Scriptural studies, and practical, hands-on ministry techniques.
Earning a master’s degree in ministry or a related field like divinity is a major qualification for every parish minister or independent pastor. But it’s also flexible enough to serve as preparation for other ministry work. There are even many secular positions that will accept these degrees as qualifications.
Almost any leadership role in faith-based or community service draws on the kind of skills a master’s degree in ministry can offer. They are excellent preparation for:
- Managers of food banks
- Coordinators at international relief agencies
- Executive positions at non-government organizations focused on human services
What Can You Do With a Doctoral Degree in Ministry?
There are actually two different types of doctoral-level ministry degrees. Each offers training for different types of work.
Doctor of Ministry, or DMin, degrees are almost always pursued by people who have already settled into a career in ministry. These are designed as professional degrees. They offer practical coursework that hones existing skills in ministry and pastoral care. They also deepen knowledge of Scripture and theological studies to better prepare graduates for offering spiritual guidance or writing sermons. They are commonly earned by high-level officials in a church such as bishops or elders.
A PhD in Ministry, or Doctor of Philosophy in Ministry, is intended to prepare graduates for academic or research roles. They are aimed at developing skills in scholarship and a deep theological expertise to help tackle tough questions in the ministry. They are usually earned by people who are following a path to becoming a college professor in the field, or who want to engage in Scriptural or related research.
All doctoral programs allow a high degree of customization in what you can study. That means they can be tailored to qualify graduates for almost any type of ministry-related goal. And although the two types of degree have different strengths, there are many DMin graduates who go into teaching and plenty of PhD in ministry graduates who are active in the ministry.
Like all Christian degrees, ministry degrees are just a tool. With the right guidance and inspiration, they can be a path to prepare to meet any calling that the Lord sets people on.
