What does a youth director do?
A Youth Director plans and supervises programs and activities for children and adolescents at a church, community outreach organization, or social service program. Another primary duty is to train and oversee volunteers.
Youth director responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real youth director resumes:
- Lead large group program monthly with kids.
- Manage events including retreats, VBS, mission trips, and local activities.
- Organize and lead weekly youth group meetings as well as retreats for jr. and sr. high students.
- Expand discipleship small group ministry.
- Direct annual summer children's VBS program.
- Supervise teachers and staff to ensure department run with maximum accuracy.
- Create and run major fundraisers for students who cannot afford programs.
- Organize and coordinate day retreats, vacation bible school, and conferences.
- Research, plan and implement bible lessons, speak outs, activities etc.
- Develop processes and procedures for kids and teachers to ensure safety and efficiency.
- Research and start the nursery and later establish the children's church ministry.
- Obtain CPR and a certification, as well as state and national background checks.
- Mail out nursery schedules, recruit volunteers, organize childcare for groups, and any other meetings.
- Start women s enrichment ministry, men s discipleship, single adult, and young marry adults.
- Assist students and families in personal and emotional issues by contact through phone, text, Facebook, and other media.
Youth director skills and personality traits
We calculated that 19% of Youth Directors are proficient in Youth Program, Community Outreach, and Bible Studies. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Problem-solving skills, and Communication skills.
We break down the percentage of Youth Directors that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Youth Program, 19%
Develop Youth programs Develop Budgets Motivational Speaking Plan Educational and Recreational Events Teach Leadership Programs Develop Community Relations
- Community Outreach, 13%
Develop mission and community outreach programs; encourage participation in volunteer opportunities both locally and community-wide.
- Bible Studies, 6%
Created some of my own bible studies for use at swim and studies and also for our Wednesday Night Family Night.
- Event Planning, 6%
Supervised and collaborated with the youth council to ensure that all phases of event planning were accounted for and seamlessly implemented.
- Youth Development, 4%
Monitored and evaluated progress of youth development and professionalism with youth sector.
- Teen, 4%
Mentored and engaged into basic confidential interactions with parishioners from local substance abuse rehabilitation facility for adults and teens.
"youth program," "community outreach," and "bible studies" are among the most common skills that youth directors use at work. You can find even more youth director responsibilities below, including:
Analytical skills. The most essential soft skill for a youth director to carry out their responsibilities is analytical skills. This skill is important for the role because "social and community service managers need to understand and evaluate data in order to provide strategic guidance to their organization." Additionally, a youth director resume shows how their duties depend on analytical skills: "implemented a new community outreach program; initiated and managed capital campaign and maintained information database. "
Problem-solving skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling youth director duties is problem-solving skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "social and community service managers must be able to address client, staff, and agency-related issues." According to a youth director resume, here's how youth directors can utilize problem-solving skills in their job responsibilities: "assisted with volunteer conflict resolution. "
Communication skills. youth directors are also known for communication skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to youth director responsibilities, because "social and community service managers must be able to speak and write clearly." A youth director resume example shows how communication skills is used in the workplace: "counseled teens in safe environment, maintain communication with parents and other staff members. "
The three companies that hire the most youth directors are:
- The Salvation Army3 youth directors jobs
- The Boys' Club of New York2 youth directors jobs
- First United Church of Christ
2 youth directors jobs
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Compare different youth directors
Youth director vs. College ministry pastor
A director of training & education spearheads and oversees the training programs of an organization. They primarily set goals, manage budgets, establish timelines, coordinate with experts in developing curricula, and liaise with internal and external parties, building positive relationships along the way. They also conduct research to identify student needs and ways to meet them, perform assessments to determine the weaknesses and strengths of existing procedures, and develop strategies to optimize training services. Moreover, as a director, it is their duty to lead and manage staff while implementing company policies and standards.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, youth director responsibilities require skills like "community outreach," "bible studies," "youth development," and "teen." Meanwhile a typical college ministry pastor has skills in areas such as "pastoral care," "leadership development," "youth camps," and "local church." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
On average, college ministry pastors reach similar levels of education than youth directors. College ministry pastors are 4.1% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Youth director vs. Religious education coordinator
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that youth director responsibilities requires skills like "bible studies," "youth development," "teen," and "youth events." But a religious education coordinator might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "class schedules," "curriculum materials," "ministry," and "pre-k."
In general, religious education coordinators achieve higher levels of education than youth directors. They're 5.5% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.2% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Youth director vs. Director of teacher education
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, youth directors are more likely to have skills like "youth program," "community outreach," "bible studies," and "event planning." But a director of teacher education is more likely to have skills like "classroom management," "child care," "preschool program," and "staff development."
Most directors of teacher education achieve a similar degree level compared to youth directors. For example, they're 3.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 1.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Youth director vs. Director training & education
Types of youth director
Updated January 8, 2025
