Best programs to become a religious worker in New Jersey
2 New Jersey schools offer programs that train for this job, graduating 15 people a year. The job pays a median of $43,480 in New Jersey across about 560 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
BLS lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for this job. The fields of study that lead most directly to this job in New Jersey are Theological and Ministerial Studies; Women's Ministry; and Pastoral Studies/Counseling (IPEDS completions).
All religious workers not listed.
3 programs in New Jersey that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in New Jersey (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own New Jersey page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 39.0699In New Jersey → | 12 | 80.0% | 1 | $32,202 | $25,375 |
| 2 | CIP 39.0704In New Jersey → | 2 | 13.3% | 1 | $32,226 | $26,000 |
| 3 | CIP 39.0701In New Jersey → | 1 | 6.7% | 1 | $32,226 | $26,000 |
Top 2 schools in New Jersey
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 0 of the 2 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Brunswick Theological Seminary New Brunswick, NJ Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 13 | Theological and Ministerial Studies, Other | — | — | — | — |
| 2 | Drew University Madison, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder program | 2 | Women's Ministry | — | 70% | $23,094 | 68% |
All 2 schools in New Jersey
Every school in New Jersey with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Brunswick Theological Seminary | New Brunswick | Private not-for-profit | 13 | 2 |
| Drew University | Madison | Private not-for-profit | 2 | 1 |
Fields of study in New Jersey that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
What religious workers, all other earn in New Jersey
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $45,280. New Jersey pays below the national figure.
Concentrated here: New Jersey employs more of this job per worker than the U.S. average.
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Religious Workers, All Other page.
How to become a religious worker
- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 13 majors mapped to Religious Workers, All Other11 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 30.2502Contemplative Studies/Inquiry
- 30.5301Thanatology
- 39.0302Church Planting
- 39.0399Missions/Missionary Studies and Missiology, Other(no graduates reported)
- 39.0599Religious Music and Worship, Other
- 39.0699Theological and Ministerial Studies, Other
- 39.0701Pastoral Studies/Counseling
- 39.0703Urban Ministry
- 39.0704Women's Ministry
- 39.0705Lay Ministry
- 39.0706Chaplain/Chaplaincy Studies
- 39.0799Pastoral Counseling and Specialized Ministries, Other
- 39.0802Religious/Canon Law(no graduates reported)
Common questions
Answers for people weighing religious workers, all other programs in New Jersey.
What degree do you need to become a religious worker?+
BLS lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for this job. The fields of study that lead most directly to this job in New Jersey are Theological and Ministerial Studies; Women's Ministry; and Pastoral Studies/Counseling (IPEDS completions).
Which college majors lead to becoming a religious worker?+
The fields of study that lead most directly to this job in New Jersey are Theological and Ministerial Studies; Women's Ministry; and Pastoral Studies/Counseling (IPEDS completions). In all, 3 feeder programs graduate about 15 people a year in New Jersey (IPEDS completions).
How much do religious workers, all other earn in New Jersey?+
The median is $43,480 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 4.0% below the U.S. median of $45,280. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for religious workers, all other growing?+
BLS projects a +0.6% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, little or no change, with roughly 11,100 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in New Jersey?+
2 institutions in New Jersey reported graduates from at least one of the 3 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
Do you need training or experience beyond a degree?+
BLS lists 'None' for related work experience and 'None' for on-the-job training typically needed to reach competency.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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