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2023 Best Pastoral Specialized Ministries Schools

81 Colleges
$31,592 Avg Salary
$26,577 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries School for You

Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries is the #168 most popular major in the country with 3,116 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Pastoral Specialized Ministries Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 81 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries Schools in the United States

The following schools top our list of the Best Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries Colleges.

Top 15% Best Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries Schools

Our 2023 rankings named Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion the best school in the United States for pastoral counseling and specialized ministries students. Located in the city of New York, HUC - JIR is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Bethel Seminary - San Diego. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Pastoral Specialized Ministries Schools list. Bethel Seminary - San Diego is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of San Diego.

Read full report on Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries at Bethel Seminary - San Diego

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Pastoral Specialized Ministries Schools list. IWU is a large private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Marion.

After completing their degree, pastoral counseling graduates from IWU carry an average student debtload of $25,563.

Read full report on Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries at Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global

#4

Olivet Nazarene University

Bourbonnais, IL

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Olivet Nazarene University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Pastoral Specialized Ministries Schools list. Olivet Nazarene is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small suburb of Bourbonnais.

Read full report on Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries at Olivet Nazarene University

#5

Moody Bible Institute

Chicago, IL

The excellent programs at Moody Bible Institute helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best pastoral counseling and specialized ministries schools in the United States. Located in the large city of Chicago, Moody Theological Seminary and Graduate School is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Pastoral Counseling majors at Moody Theological Seminary and Graduate School take out an average of $7,500 in student loans while working on their egree.

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The Master’s University and Seminary came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Pastoral Specialized Ministries Schools ranking. The Master's University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Santa Clarita.

Read full report on Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries at The Master’s University and Seminary

#7

Crown College

Saint Bonifacius, MN

With a ranking of #7, Crown College did quite well on this year’s best schools for pastoral counseling and specialized ministries students. Crown is a small private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Saint Bonifacius.

On average, pastoral counseling graduates from Crown take out $27,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries at Crown College

#8

Bethel University Minnesota

Saint Paul, MN

Bethel University Minnesota did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for pastoral counseling and specialized ministries students. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the large suburb of Saint Paul, Bethel University Minnesota is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Full Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries at Bethel University Minnesota Report

#9

Southeastern University

Lakeland, FL

Southeastern University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Pastoral Specialized Ministries Schools ranking. SEU is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Lakeland.

The average amount in student loans that pastoral counseling majors at SEU take out is $25,500.

Read full report on Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries at Southeastern University

#10

Nazarene Bible College

Colorado Springs, CO

Nazarene Bible College ranked #10 on this year’s Best Pastoral Specialized Ministries Schools list. Located in the large city of Colorado Springs, Nazarene Bible College is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population.

While working on their degree, pastoral counseling majors at Nazarene Bible College accumulate an average of around $42,116 in student debt.

Full Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries at Nazarene Bible College Report

Colorado Christian University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Pastoral Specialized Ministries Schools ranking. Located in the midsize city of Lakewood, CCU is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

Full Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries at Colorado Christian University Report

#12

Johnson University

Knoxville, TN

Johnson University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for pastoral counseling and specialized ministries students. It came in at #12 on the list. Johnson University is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Knoxville.

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Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Pastoral Specialized Ministries Schools award.

Rank College Location
13 Ohio Christian University Circleville, OH
14 Westminster Theological Seminary Glenside, PA
15 Concordia University, Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
16 Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL

Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries by Region

View the Best Pastoral Specialized Ministries Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

One of 7 majors within the area of study, pastoral counseling and specialized ministries has other similar majors worth exploring.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Theological & Ministerial Studies 15,832
Biblical Studies 4,119
Religious Education 1,417
Missionary Studies 1,220
Theology & Religious Vocations (Other) 1,166

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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