Ordained minister vs associate pastor

The differences between ordained ministers and associate pastors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an ordained minister and an associate pastor. Additionally, an ordained minister has an average salary of $48,558, which is higher than the $46,081 average annual salary of an associate pastor.

The top three skills for an ordained minister include pastoral care, public speaking and GOD. The most important skills for an associate pastor are community outreach, pastoral care, and oversight.

Ordained minister vs associate pastor overview

	Ordained Minister	Associate Pastor
Yearly salary	$48,558	$46,081
Hourly rate	$23.35	$22.15
Growth rate	-	-
Number of jobs	103	432
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Average age	51	51
Years of experience	4	4

Ordained minister vs associate pastor salary

Ordained ministers and associate pastors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Ordained Minister	Associate Pastor
Average salary	$48,558	$46,081
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $91,000	Between $29,000 And $71,000
Highest paying City	-	Fremont, CA
Highest paying state	-	West Virginia
Best paying company	-	Calvary Church
Best paying industry	-	Education

Differences between ordained minister and associate pastor education

There are a few differences between an ordained minister and an associate pastor in terms of educational background:

	Ordained Minister	Associate Pastor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Most common major	Theology	Theology
Most common college	Northwestern University	North Park University

Ordained minister vs associate pastor demographics

Here are the differences between ordained ministers' and associate pastors' demographics:

	Ordained Minister	Associate Pastor
Average age	51	51
Gender ratio	Male, 60.4% Female, 39.6%	Male, 87.6% Female, 12.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.5% Asian, 5.2% White, 68.4% 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, 67.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	16%	16%

Differences between ordained minister and associate pastor duties and responsibilities

Ordained minister example responsibilities.

Lead church to incorporate a vision for integrating evangelistic and discipleship efforts.
Supervise the administrative staff and day-to-day operations of a 1200-member, three campus organization to include business development and programmatic oversight.
Supervise the administrative staff and day-to-day operations of a 1200-member, three campus organization to include business development and programmatic oversight.

Associate pastor example responsibilities.

Manage and provide oversight for the administration of all ministry areas within the organization.
Deliver messages base on the bible.
Assist children's outreach including VBS and AWANA.
Produce services through media development, PowerPoint, sound system, and print materials.
Direct all children and youth ministries, including outreach, VBS, missions, and choirs.
Implement a comprehensive prayer strategy.

Ordained minister vs associate pastor skills

Common ordained minister skills

Pastoral Care, 48%
Public Speaking, 21%
GOD, 11%
Memorial Services, 7%
Spiritual Guidance, 7%
PowerPoint, 6%

Common associate pastor skills

Community Outreach, 20%
Pastoral Care, 12%
Oversight, 9%
Youth Ministry, 5%
Youth Program, 4%
Public Speaking, 4%