Chaplain vs deacon

The differences between chaplains and deacons can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a chaplain and a deacon. Additionally, a deacon has an average salary of $49,574, which is higher than the $46,392 average annual salary of a chaplain.

The top three skills for a chaplain include patients, social work and clinical pastoral. The most important skills for a deacon are pastoral care, community outreach, and bible study.

Chaplain vs deacon overview

	Chaplain	Deacon
Yearly salary	$46,392	$49,574
Hourly rate	$22.30	$23.83
Growth rate	-	-
Number of jobs	2,600	117
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Average age	51	51
Years of experience	4	4

Chaplain vs deacon salary

Chaplains and deacons have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Chaplain	Deacon
Average salary	$46,392	$49,574
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $83,000	Between $26,000 And $92,000
Highest paying City	San Jose, CA	-
Highest paying state	California	-
Best paying company	UofL Hospital	-
Best paying industry	Health Care	-

Differences between chaplain and deacon education

There are a few differences between a chaplain and a deacon in terms of educational background:

	Chaplain	Deacon
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Most common major	Theology	Theology
Most common college	Emory University	Emory University

Chaplain vs deacon demographics

Here are the differences between chaplains' and deacons' demographics:

	Chaplain	Deacon
Average age	51	51
Gender ratio	Male, 68.3% Female, 31.7%	Male, 79.7% Female, 20.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 6.6% White, 68.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.1% Asian, 6.7% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	16%	16%

Differences between chaplain and deacon duties and responsibilities

Chaplain example responsibilities.

Provide full pastoral ministry, visitation and counseling to inmates and incarcerate patients.
Participate as members of a psychiatric or rehabilitation team in staff conferences concerning patients and inmates.
Perform functions in field and combat environments, combat lifesaver tasks and apply communication skills in crisis/potential suicide intervention.
Visit patients/families identify as appropriate for pastoral services and provide direct spiritual counseling, prayer, and ministry as appropriate.
Certify in ASIST (suicideprevention )
Participate in bi-weekly IDG meetings as part of IDG team.

Deacon example responsibilities.

Lead Jr and Sr high youth ministries.
Coordinate serving and prayer schedules.
Develop and participate in leadership workshops for new leaders and assist new leaders in assuming leadership responsibilities.
Develop deacons in fulfilling their respective leadership obligations.

Chaplain vs deacon skills

Common chaplain skills

Patients, 21%
Social Work, 11%
Clinical Pastoral, 10%
Spiritual Care, 8%
Pastoral Care, 7%
Patient Care, 5%

Common deacon skills

Pastoral Care, 46%
Community Outreach, 26%
Bible Study, 8%
Prayer, 8%
Oversight, 7%
Leadership Meetings, 5%