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worship ministry

Types of Degrees worship ministry Majors Are Earning

People majoring in worship ministry can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Associate’s Degree	2
Bachelor’s Degree	63
Master’s Degree	12

What worship ministry Majors Need to Know

Studies in worship ministry emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that worship ministry graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing worship ministry emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Philosophy and Theology — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 6.1 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 5.6 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.3 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.1 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.
• History and Archeology — Importance 3.0 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

Skills emphasized by a worship ministry program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to worship ministry careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Oral Expression — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, worship ministry graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Training and Teaching Others	4.4 / 7
Getting Information	4.4 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.3 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	4.1 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.1 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.0 / 7
Working with Computers	4.0 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	3.9 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	3.9 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	3.9 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by worship ministry professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Word processing software	Word processing software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Collaborative editing software	Word processing software	—
Learning management system LMS	Computer based training software	✓
Calendar and scheduling software	Calendar and scheduling software	—
InteLext Past Masters	Data base user interface and query software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for worship ministry graduates include:

• Online Philosophy Instructor
• Philosophy Lecturer
• Metaphysics Teacher
• College Professor
• Adjunct Instructor
• Adjunct Philosophy Professor
• Religious Studies Professor
• Theology Professor
• Eastern Philosophy Professor
• Associate Professor
• Systematic Theology Professor
• Church Music Professor
• Professor
• Philosophy Assistant Professor
• Religious Educator

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to worship ministry graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Doctoral degree	54.6%
Master’s degree	14.2%
Bachelor’s degree	12.2%
Post-doctoral training	8.8%
Postsecondary certificate	3.7%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	3.4%
Some college courses	0.8%
Post-master’s certificate	0.7%
Less than a high school diploma	0.6%
High school diploma or equivalent	0.6%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	0.4%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in worship ministry?

Gender Distribution

This field has a relatively balanced gender distribution: 44.2% women and 55.8% men among worship ministry graduates.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	34	44.2%
Men	43	55.8%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of worship ministry graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	56	72.7%
Asian	5	6.5%
Hispanic or Latino	10	13.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native	2	2.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	1	1.3%
Two or More Races	2	2.6%
International Students	1	1.3%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do worship ministry Graduates Earn?

The U.S. Department of Education tracks median earnings of worship ministry graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Earnings tend to climb steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$35,384
4 years	$38,039
5 years	$44,242

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $44,242 — roughly 25% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online worship ministry Programs

Distance learning is tracked by IPEDS for worship ministry. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Associate’s	2	1
Master’s	1	2

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in worship ministry Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, worship ministry graduates earn a median of $38,039 four years after completion — essentially in line with the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	CIP Code
Religious Music and Worship	39.05
Religious Music and Worship, Other	39.0599
Religious/Sacred Music	39.0501
Bible/Biblical Studies	39.0201
Chaplain/Chaplaincy Studies	39.0706
Missions/Missionary Studies	39.0301
Pastoral Studies/Counseling	39.0701
Religious Education	39.0401
Urban Ministry	39.0703

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.