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The differences between youth leaders and youth pastors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a youth leader, becoming a youth pastor takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a youth pastor has an average salary of $39,712, which is higher than the $29,481 average annual salary of a youth leader.
The top three skills for a youth leader include CPR, fine arts and academic enrichment. The most important skills for a youth pastor are outreach events, disciple, and youth program.
| Youth Leader | Youth Pastor | |
| Yearly salary | $29,481 | $39,712 |
| Hourly rate | $14.17 | $19.09 |
| Growth rate | 12% | - |
| Number of jobs | 31,851 | 3,120 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Average age | 45 | 51 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
A youth leader is a young individual who is responsible for building a sense of community within the church youth that can provide an opportunity for both spiritual and social development. Youth Leaders organize regular social, educational, and spiritual oriented events with parents and volunteers to maintain a vibrant program. They establish support and appropriate relationships with their youth members and their families. Youth leaders also maintain social media and emails to provide information publicly to youth members about their organized events.
A Youth Pastor is focused on offering spiritual guidance. They also ensure that the youth ministry is functioning in an effective and focused manner.
Youth leaders and youth pastors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Youth Leader | Youth Pastor | |
| Average salary | $29,481 | $39,712 |
| Salary range | Between $23,000 And $37,000 | Between $31,000 And $50,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | Vancouver, WA |
| Highest paying state | Pennsylvania | Maine |
| Best paying company | First Book | First Presbyterian Church |
| Best paying industry | Education | Education |
There are a few differences between a youth leader and a youth pastor in terms of educational background:
| Youth Leader | Youth Pastor | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Theology |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Boston University |
Here are the differences between youth leaders' and youth pastors' demographics:
| Youth Leader | Youth Pastor | |
| Average age | 45 | 51 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 45.3% Female, 54.7% | Male, 87.7% Female, 12.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 5.2% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 6.6% White, 68.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 14% | 16% |