Hospital chaplain vs catholic priest

The differences between hospital chaplains and catholic priests can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a hospital chaplain and a catholic priest. Additionally, a hospital chaplain has an average salary of $49,423, which is higher than the $37,428 average annual salary of a catholic priest.

The top three skills for a hospital chaplain include patients, clinical pastoral and pastoral care. The most important skills for a catholic priest are pastoral care, pastoral ministry, and public speaking.

Hospital chaplain vs catholic priest overview

	Hospital Chaplain	Catholic Priest
Yearly salary	$49,423	$37,428
Hourly rate	$23.76	$17.99
Growth rate	6%	-
Number of jobs	4,343	100
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Average age	51	51
Years of experience	4	4

Hospital chaplain vs catholic priest salary

Hospital chaplains and catholic priests have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Hospital Chaplain	Catholic Priest
Average salary	$49,423	$37,428
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $92,000	Between $24,000 And $57,000
Highest paying City	-	Dublin, CA
Highest paying state	-	Rhode Island
Best paying company	-	Baptist Health South Florida
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between hospital chaplain and catholic priest education

There are a few differences between a hospital chaplain and a catholic priest in terms of educational background:

	Hospital Chaplain	Catholic Priest
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Most common major	Theology	Theology
Most common college	Boston College	Boston College

Hospital chaplain vs catholic priest demographics

Here are the differences between hospital chaplains' and catholic priests' demographics:

	Hospital Chaplain	Catholic Priest
Average age	51	51
Gender ratio	Male, 68.4% Female, 31.6%	Male, 97.1% Female, 2.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.1% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.2% Asian, 6.7% White, 67.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.1% Asian, 6.7% White, 67.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	16%	16%

Differences between hospital chaplain and catholic priest duties and responsibilities

Hospital chaplain example responsibilities.

Lead outreach efforts to local faith groups engaging them in the life and ministry opportunities on campus.
Conduct spiritual assessments and develop pastoral care plans for assign patients.
Minister to cardiac, pediatrics, oncology, mental health, and hospice wards.
Show compassion, empathy and care for each patient.
Educate patients and families in stress management and facilitate comforting end-of-life conversations.
Counsele inmates struggling with a variety of problems including: psychological issues, addiction recovery, abuse recovery, and rehabilitation.

Catholic priest example responsibilities.

Lead the largest VBS program and confirmation class ever, with aggressive marketing, recruiting, and coaching.
Perform other various functions as needed including communication with church leadership to ensure efficient operations for church outreach activities.
Perform other various functions as needed including communication with church leadership to ensure efficient operations for church outreach activities.

Hospital chaplain vs catholic priest skills

Common hospital chaplain skills

Patients, 30%
Clinical Pastoral, 12%
Pastoral Care, 11%
Spiritual Care, 9%
Patient Care, 6%
Crisis Intervention, 4%

Common catholic priest skills

Pastoral Care, 60%
Pastoral Ministry, 15%
Public Speaking, 10%
Spiritual Support, 8%
Bishops, 3%
Parishes, 2%