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What does a pastoral assistant do?

Updated January 8, 2025
6 min read
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Pastoral assistant responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real pastoral assistant resumes:

  • Manage company's twitter account and communicate with multiple physical therapy providers around the country
  • Help with church activities such as bazaars and vacation bible school.
  • Coordinate events, vacation bible school, special occasions and events from parishioners.
  • Create advertising and marketing materials and PowerPoint presentations.
  • Examine injured persons and administer first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), using training and medical supplies/equipment.
  • Disseminate news alerts and other pertinent information throughout organizational leadership and congregation.

Pastoral assistant skills and personality traits

We calculated that 21% of Pastoral Assistants are proficient in Community Outreach, Pastoral Care, and Scheduling Appointments. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Organizational skills, and Writing skills.

We break down the percentage of Pastoral Assistants that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Community Outreach, 21%

    Supported the pastor and over a 75 volunteers in executing church services, Christian education and community outreach.

  • Pastoral Care, 11%

    Manage Pastoral Care Ministry department by overseeing seven committees to include program development, evaluation and adequate volunteer support.

  • Scheduling Appointments, 7%

    Performed the tasks of greeting clients and scheduling appointments.

  • Event Planning, 6%

    Provided administrative support through event planning, committee meeting preparation and schedule creation.

  • Youth Ministry, 5%

    Maintained records of all active and inactive participants in the youth ministry program.

  • Graphic Design, 5%

    Used graphic design in numerous outreach projects to include bulletins, newsletters, and other marketing materials.

Most pastoral assistants use their skills in "community outreach," "pastoral care," and "scheduling appointments" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential pastoral assistant responsibilities here:

Interpersonal skills. The most essential soft skill for a pastoral assistant to carry out their responsibilities is interpersonal skills. This skill is important for the role because "secretaries and administrative assistants interact with clients, customers, or staff." Additionally, a pastoral assistant resume shows how their duties depend on interpersonal skills: "experience in crisis intervention and conflict resolution among interpersonal and workplace relationships. "

Organizational skills. Many pastoral assistant duties rely on organizational skills. "secretaries and administrative assistants keep files, folders, and schedules in order so that an office runs efficiently.," so a pastoral assistant will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways pastoral assistant responsibilities rely on organizational skills: "provide all pastoral care, budgeting, and organizational communications for the congregation. "

Writing skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of pastoral assistants is writing skills. This skill is critical to many everyday pastoral assistant duties, as "secretaries and administrative assistants write memos and emails when communicating with managers, employees, and customers." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "job duties included: ghost writing/editing rev. "

All pastoral assistant skills

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Compare different pastoral assistants

Pastoral assistant vs. Administrative assistant & marketing assistant

An administrative assistant/marketing assistant is responsible for performing administrative duties to support the operations of the marketing department. Administrative assistants/marketing assistants join the marketing team in identifying business opportunities that would increase the company's sales and profitability, meeting customers' demands by analyzing the current industry trends. They also prepare partnership contracts, monitor the distribution of marketing materials, negotiate with suppliers and third-party vendors, schedule appointments and promotional events, and respond to customers' inquiries and concerns, escalating a high-level complaint to management for immediate resolution.

We looked at the average pastoral assistant salary and compared it with the wages of an administrative assistant & marketing assistant. Generally speaking, administrative assistants & marketing assistants are paid $2,968 higher than pastoral assistants per year.Even though pastoral assistants and administrative assistants & marketing assistants are distinct careers, a few of the skills required for both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require scheduling appointments, event planning, and graphic design in the day-to-day roles and responsibilities.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, pastoral assistant responsibilities require skills like "community outreach," "pastoral care," "youth ministry," and "worship services." Meanwhile a typical administrative assistant & marketing assistant has skills in areas such as "database management," "email blasts," "provides administrative support," and "press releases." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

Administrative assistants & marketing assistants earn the highest salaries when working in the technology industry, with an average yearly salary of $47,233. On the other hand, pastoral assistants are paid more in the education industry with an average salary of $38,094.The education levels that administrative assistants & marketing assistants earn slightly differ from pastoral assistants. In particular, administrative assistants & marketing assistants are 13.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a pastoral assistant. Additionally, they're 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Pastoral assistant vs. Assistant secretary

An assistant secretary is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties to support the daily operations of various departments and management personnel and ensure the efficiency of business functions. Assistant secretaries usually assist in business communications, responding to customers' inquiries and concerns, reaching out to existing clients to schedule appointments, welcoming guests on the office, and routing calls to the appropriate department. They also handle data entry procedures, updating customer information on the database, as well as creating reports on business and financial transactions.

Assistant secretary positions earn higher pay than pastoral assistant roles. They earn a $70,770 higher salary than pastoral assistants per year.Only some things about these jobs are the same. Take their skills, for example. Pastoral assistants and assistant secretaries both require similar skills like "scheduling appointments," "event planning," and "travel arrangements" to carry out their responsibilities.

Each career also uses different skills, according to real pastoral assistant resumes. While pastoral assistant responsibilities can utilize skills like "community outreach," "pastoral care," "youth ministry," and "graphic design," assistant secretaries use skills like "telephone calls," "payroll," "financial statements," and "office equipment."

In general, assistant secretaries achieve lower levels of education than pastoral assistants. They're 9.5% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Pastoral assistant vs. Administrative assistant/personal assistant

An Administrative Assistant/Personal Assistant performs daily and time management tasks, meeting schedules, note-taking, and correspondence. Administrative Assistants answer and direct phone calls to the appropriate staff. They are in charge of ordering and purchasing office supply stocks. Their duties and responsibilities depend on the company and the industry they are working for. They serve as the point of contact for external stakeholders and staff. They must develop professionalism, inventory control, and administrative writing skills.

On average scale, administrative assistants/personal assistants bring in higher salaries than pastoral assistants. In fact, they earn a $4,155 higher salary per year.By looking over several pastoral assistants and administrative assistants/personal assistants resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "scheduling appointments," "event planning," and "administrative tasks." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a pastoral assistant is likely to be skilled in "community outreach," "pastoral care," "youth ministry," and "graphic design," while a typical administrative assistant/personal assistant is skilled in "payroll," "financial statements," "front desk," and "real estate."

Most administrative assistants/personal assistants achieve a lower degree level compared to pastoral assistants. For example, they're 13.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Pastoral assistant vs. Assistant operator

The duties of an assistant operator depend on one's industry of employment or the kind of machine that they are operating. Typically, their tasks may revolve around coordinating with operators and other staff, handling and managing documents, understanding blueprints, and adhering to the directives of operators and supervisors. Furthermore, as an assistant operator, it is essential to perform support tasks, such as preparing tools and conducting regular maintenance checks to ensure the efficiency of machines and maintain a safe work environment.

Assistant operators tend to earn a higher pay than pastoral assistants by an average of $1,011 per year.While some skills are required in each professionacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities, there are some differences to note. "community outreach," "pastoral care," "scheduling appointments," and "event planning" are skills that commonly show up on pastoral assistant resumes. On the other hand, assistant operators use skills like customer service, ladders, safety procedures, and cash control on their resumes.The energy industry tends to pay the highest salaries for assistant operators, with average annual pay of $43,976. Comparatively, the highest pastoral assistant annual salary comes from the education industry.The average resume of assistant operators showed that they earn lower levels of education compared to pastoral assistants. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 13.6% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.6%.

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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