Directors, Religious Activities and Education
Also called: Children's Ministries Director, Christian Education Director, Religious Education Director, Youth PastorCoordinate or design programs and conduct outreach to promote the religious education or activities of a denominational group. May provide counseling, guidance, and leadership relative to marital, health, financial, and religious problems.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 11 of its 19 tasks, yet jobs are projected to grow 3.3% by 2035. In the most exposed occupations, the squeeze shows up first among early-career workers. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 1.5% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 7.7 hires for every 10 job openings in other services, which employs about 80% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.7.7 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $79,310 | $65,780 to $114,490 | 90 |
| Arizona | $57,140 | $51,200 to $78,420 | 300 |
| Arkansas | $33,920 | $29,150 to $61,460 | 140 |
| California | $61,570 | $45,800 to $76,840 | 3,200 |
| Colorado | $67,760 | $54,520 to $87,050 | 100 |
| Connecticut | $47,850 | $45,000 to $54,670 | 160 |
| District of Columbia | $61,870 | $51,210 to $95,450 | 170 |
| Florida | $49,230 | $38,180 to $62,990 | 1,420 |
| Georgia | $72,910 | $59,680 to $96,770 | 320 |
| Hawaii | $47,590 | $46,080 to $61,190 | 310 |
| Idaho | $44,990 | $40,350 to $60,130 | 40 |
| Illinois | $53,600 | $46,910 to $67,540 | not published |
| Indiana | $58,490 | $48,090 to $75,000 | 670 |
| Iowa | $66,140 | $47,150 to $89,140 | 220 |
| Kansas | $45,640 | $33,380 to $69,540 | 140 |
| Kentucky | $52,230 | $38,710 to $75,420 | 250 |
| Louisiana | $29,540 | $29,540 to $48,550 | not published |
| Maryland | $58,820 | $52,490 to $78,850 | 300 |
| Massachusetts | $62,930 | $61,380 to $75,830 | 160 |
| Michigan | $45,590 | $37,600 to $60,210 | 950 |
| Minnesota | $50,110 | $41,810 to $73,210 | 760 |
| Mississippi | $49,430 | $49,310 to $62,870 | 120 |
| Missouri | $52,980 | $39,780 to $85,720 | 60 |
| Montana | $45,220 | $34,340 to $55,420 | 640 |
| Nebraska | $72,500 | $62,610 to $76,160 | 40 |
| Nevada | $62,460 | $62,300 to $62,460 | 90 |
| New Jersey | $65,730 | $43,680 to $91,770 | not published |
| New Mexico | $48,240 | $46,570 to $50,840 | 60 |
| New York | $49,990 | $43,040 to $77,740 | 3,550 |
| North Carolina | $63,280 | $47,740 to $90,990 | 260 |
| Ohio | $49,340 | $40,160 to $63,460 | 740 |
| Oklahoma | $47,100 | $45,250 to $59,850 | 110 |
| Oregon | $45,360 | $40,170 to $50,150 | 1,860 |
| Pennsylvania | $55,510 | $44,700 to $71,320 | 1,210 |
| Rhode Island | $44,770 | $37,450 to $48,740 | 120 |
| South Carolina | $36,120 | $27,830 to $74,110 | 170 |
| South Dakota | $53,360 | $27,980 to $74,120 | 50 |
| Tennessee | $61,940 | $47,760 to $84,770 | 130 |
| Texas | $75,420 | $50,220 to $101,760 | 330 |
| Utah | $56,790 | $31,380 to $81,960 | 50 |
| Virginia | $59,020 | $46,980 to $104,410 | 380 |
| Washington | $56,480 | $50,610 to $71,670 | 390 |
| Wisconsin | $40,180 | $37,670 to $58,120 | 130 |
Nationally: $52,100. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 11 of its 19 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Not much | Identify and recruit potential volunteer workers. | Not published |
| Not much | Collaborate with other ministry members to establish goals and objectives for religious education programs or to develop ways to encourage program participation. | Not published |
| AI alone | Implement program plans by ordering needed materials, scheduling speakers, reserving space, or handling other administrative details. | Not published |
| Not much | Develop or direct study courses or religious education programs within congregations. | under 0.01% |
| AI alone | Schedule special events, such as camps, conferences, meetings, seminars, or retreats. | under 0.01% |
| AI + software | Select appropriate curricula or class structures for educational programs. | 0.01% |
See all 19 tasks
| AI + software | Analyze member participation or changes in congregational emphasis to determine needs for religious education. | Not published |
| AI + software | Counsel individuals regarding interpersonal, health, financial, or religious problems. | 0.73% |
| Not much | Train and supervise religious education instructional staff. | Not published |
| AI alone | Attend workshops, seminars, or conferences to obtain program ideas, information, or resources. | Not published |
| AI + software | Publicize programs through sources, such as newsletters, bulletins, or mailings. | Not published |
| Not much | Confer with clergy members, congregational officials, or congregational organizations to encourage support of or participation in religious education activities. | Not published |
| AI + software | Analyze revenue and program cost data to determine budget priorities. | Not published |
| Not much | Visit congregational members' homes or arrange for pastoral visits to provide information or resources regarding religious education programs. | Not published |
| AI alone | Locate and distribute resources, such as periodicals or curricula, to enhance the effectiveness of educational programs. | Not published |
| AI alone | Participate in denominational activities aimed at goals, such as promoting interfaith understanding or providing aid to new or small congregations. | Not published |
| AI alone | Plan fundraising activities for the church. | Not published |
| Not much | Interpret religious education activities to the public through speaking, leading discussions, or writing articles for local or national publications. | under 0.01% |
| Not much | Plan or conduct conferences dealing with the interpretation of religious ideas or convictions. | Not published |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 5 of the 19 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 19 tasks fall under 19 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #4 Maintain current knowledge in area of expertise
- #5 Provide information or assistance to the public
- #21 Interpret language, cultural, or religious information for others
- and 2 more, in the table below
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plan events or programs | |||
| Develop business or marketing plans | |||
| Teach academic or vocational subjects | |||
| Develop educational programs, plans, or procedures | |||
| Maintain current knowledge in area of expertise | |||
| Provide information or assistance to the public | |||
| Interpret language, cultural, or religious information for others | |||
| Assist others to access additional services or resources |
Show all 19 activities
| Provide support or encouragement to others | |||
| Advise others on healthcare or wellness issues | |||
| Promote products, services, or programs | |||
| Assess living, work, or social needs or status of individuals or communities | |||
| Counsel others about personal matters | |||
| Manage budgets or finances | |||
| Train others on operational or work procedures | |||
| Distribute materials, supplies, or resources | |||
| Perform recruiting or hiring activities | |||
| Collaborate in the development of educational programs | |||
| Supervise personnel activities |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- Advice or a recommendation51%
- An email or message15%
- An explanation or answer13%
- An analysis or summary6%
- A document or report3%
How they worked with Claude
5% of these conversations were about work. Anthropic Economic Index, May 2026.
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for directors, religious activities and education specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 66,128 moves out
- 1 Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive Very high -6.0% 4%
- 2 Chief Executives Very high +3.2% 4%
- 3 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 4%
- 4 Postsecondary Teachers, All Other Very high +2.0% 3%
- 5 Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education High -0.4% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 62,174 moves in
- 1 Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive Very high -6.0% 5%
- 2 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 3%
- 3 Office Clerks, General Very high -6.0% 3%
- 4 Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education High -0.4% 3%
- 5 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 3%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
O*NET survey of workers in this occupation
- 1% high school
- 21% postsecondary certificate
- 14% associate's
- 54% bachelor's
- 1% post-bachelor's certificate
- 9% master's
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 19 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 1% less than high school
- 12% high school
- 17% some college
- 7% associate's
- 39% bachelor's
- 19% master's
- 2% professional degree
- 2% doctorate
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 843 people surveyed.
Why the two can differ
O*NET asks about 20 people in each occupation, which makes its shares uncertain, but it reports the exact occupation and counts certificates. The Census survey reaches thousands, but it groups some occupations together and counts degrees only. More in the Guide
Median pay by highest degree full-time, year-round · Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation
16 programs, such as Contemplative Studies/Inquiry, Thanatology and Bible/Biblical Studies.
See all
- Contemplative Studies/Inquiry
- Thanatology
- Bible/Biblical Studies
- Missions/Missionary Studies
- Religious Education
- Worship Ministry
- Religious Music and Worship, Other
- Pastoral Studies/Counseling
- Youth Ministry
- Urban Ministry
- Women's Ministry
- Lay Ministry
- Chaplain/Chaplaincy Studies
- Pastoral Counseling and Specialized Ministries, Other
- Clinical Pastoral Counseling/Patient Counseling
- Bioethics/Medical Ethics
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
BLS publishes no credential figures for this occupation.
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeships: DOL's list of apprenticeable occupations doesn't include this one.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS · Brynjolfsson, Chandar and Chen, Stanford (Aug 2026)
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/21-2021.00