2023 Best Value Theological & Ministerial Studies Schools
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best Theological & Ministerial Studies School for You
In 2020-2021, 15,832 people earned a degree or certificate in theological and ministerial studies, making the major the #62 most popular in the United States.
Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value Theological & Ministerial Studies Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 144 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best value experiences for theology students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.
Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.
Top 15% Best Theological & Ministerial Studies Schools
Our 2023 rankings named Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary the best value school in the United States for theological and ministerial studies students. MBTS is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Kansas City.
MBTS undergraduate students pay an average of $9,020 in tuition and fees each year.
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Out of the 144 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Kentucky Christian University landed the # 2 spot on the list. Kentucky Christian University is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Grayson.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Kentucky Christian University are $22,130 a year.
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Out of the 144 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Nazarene Bible College landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the city of Colorado Springs, Nazarene Bible College is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Nazarene Bible College are $10,320 per year. While working on their degree, theology majors at Nazarene Bible College accumulate an average of around $40,489 in student debt.
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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Ohio Christian University is a great value for theological and ministerial studies students. Located in the distant town of Circleville, OCU is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
OCU undergraduate students pay an average of $14,395 in tuition and fees each year.
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The excellent programs at Saint Paul School of Theology helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best theological and ministerial studies schools in the United States. Saint Paul School of Theology is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Leawood.
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With a ranking of #6, Luther Rice College & Seminary did quite well on this year’s best value schools for theological and ministerial studies students. Located in the suburb of Lithonia, Luther Rice is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Luther Rice are $9,088 a year.
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Grand Canyon University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value theological and ministerial studies programs. Located in the city of Phoenix, Grand Canyon University is a private for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Grand Canyon University are $17,189 a year.
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Wartburg Theological Seminary landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value theological and ministerial studies programs. Wartburg Seminary is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Dubuque.
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Lincoln Christian University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Theological & Ministerial Studies Schools list. Located in the distant town of Lincoln, Lincoln Christian College and Seminary is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Lincoln Christian College and Seminary are $14,520 a year. After completing their degree, theology graduates from Lincoln Christian College and Seminary carry an average student debtload of $23,613.
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Moody Bible Institute did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for theological and ministerial studies students. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the city of Chicago, Moody Theological Seminary and Graduate School is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
Moody Theological Seminary and Graduate School undergraduate students pay an average of $14,335 in tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, theology majors at Moody Theological Seminary and Graduate School accumulate an average of around $9,750 in student debt.
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Faith International University landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value theological and ministerial studies programs. Faith is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Tacoma.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Faith are $11,250 per year.
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With a ranking of #12, Ashland University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for theological and ministerial studies students. Ashland is a small private not-for-profit school located in the fringe town of Ashland.
Ashland undergraduate students pay an average of $23,090 in tuition and fees each year.
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SUM Bible College and Theological Seminary ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Theological & Ministerial Studies Schools list. School of Urban Missions is a small private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of El Dorado Hills.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at School of Urban Missions are $10,540 a year.
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With a ranking of #14, Grace College and Theological Seminary did quite well on this year’s best value schools for theological and ministerial studies students. Located in the distant town of Winona Lake, Grace College is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Grace College undergraduate students pay an average of $25,044 in tuition and fees each year.
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With a ranking of #15, Truett McConnell University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for theological and ministerial studies students. TMU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the distant town of Cleveland.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at TMU are $22,852 a year.
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Northwest University - College of Adult and Professional Studies came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Theological & Ministerial Studies Schools ranking. Northwest University CAPS is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Kirkland.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Northwest University CAPS are $11,970 per year. The average amount in student loans that theology majors at Northwest University CAPS take out is $23,310.
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Freed-Hardeman University ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value Theological & Ministerial Studies Schools list. FHU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Henderson.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at FHU are $23,300 per year.
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The Master’s University and Seminary came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Theological & Ministerial Studies Schools ranking. The Master's University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Santa Clarita.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at The Master’s University are $28,740 a year. Theology majors at The Master's University take out an average of $21,500 in student loans while working on their egree.
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Crown College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for theological and ministerial studies students. It came in at #19 on the list. Crown is a small private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Saint Bonifacius.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Crown are $28,110 per year.
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Nazarene Theological Seminary did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for theological and ministerial studies students. It came in at #20 on the list. Located in the city of Kansas City, Nazarene Theological Seminary is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population.
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With a ranking of #21, Clarks Summit University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for theological and ministerial studies students. Located in the large suburb of South Abington Township, CSU is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
CSU undergraduate students pay an average of $27,200 in tuition and fees each year.
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These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Value Theological & Ministerial Studies Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 22 | Luther Seminary | Saint Paul, MN |
| 23 | Harding University | Searcy, AR |
| 24 | Piedmont International University | Winston-Salem, NC |
| 25 | Lenoir - Rhyne University | Hickory, NC |
| 26 | Northwest Nazarene University | Nampa, ID |
| 27 | Houston Graduate School of Theology | Houston, TX |
| 28 | Bethel University Minnesota | Saint Paul, MN |
Theological & Ministerial Studies by Region
View the Best Value Theological & Ministerial Studies Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Theological & Ministerial Studies Rankings
Majors Related to Theology
One of 7 majors within the area of study, theological and ministerial studies has other similar majors worth exploring.
Most Popular Majors Related to Theology
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Biblical Studies | 4,119 |
| Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries | 3,116 |
| 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.
- 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).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Jonund.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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