Pastoral Counseling at Taylor University

Upland, IN · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's Degree · Pastoral Counseling and Specialized Ministries
42 /100
DegreeWorth Score (Base Case)
42
Optimistic
42
Base Case
42
Pessimistic
Earnings $37,035/yr (16% vs median)
AI Risk Moderate (21% exposed)
Job Market Large (70,400 openings/yr)

How AI Changes the Outlook

Three scenarios based on how aggressively AI disrupts the career paths available to Pastoral Counseling graduates.

Optimistic
No Disruption
Base Case
Gradual AI
Pessimistic
Aggressive AI
10-Year Earnings $425K $375K $333K
Earnings Multiple 2.7x 2.4x 2.1x
Viable Career Paths 6 of 6 6 of 6 6 of 6
DegreeWorth Score 42 42 42

10-Year Earnings Projection

*Year 1 uses actual reported earnings. Scenarios diverge as AI impact compounds over time.

4-Year Tuition
$156,416

Career Paths

Where Pastoral Counseling graduates typically work. Raw data — no blending. The scenarios above model how these factors interact. This field has roughly 70,400 combined openings per year.

Career Path Wage Openings/yr Growth AI Risk
Philosophy and religion teachers, postsecondary $78,050 2,000 +0.7% 51%
Clergy $60,820 23,000 +1.0% 33%
Community and social service specialists, all other $54,940 13,100 +4.6% 0%
Directors, religious activities and education $54,840 13,800 +2.1% 44%
Counselors, all other $49,830 7,400 +12.6% 0%
Religious workers, all other $45,120 11,100 +0.6% 0%

Compare & Explore

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the DegreeWorth Score for Pastoral Counseling at Taylor University?
This program scores 42/100 in the Base Case scenario, factoring in earnings, AI disruption risk, job market size, and earnings multiple. The score ranges from 42 (optimistic) to 42 (pessimistic) depending on AI's impact.
How does AI affect Pastoral Counseling career prospects?
We model three scenarios: Optimistic (no disruption), Base Case (gradual AI adoption), and Pessimistic (aggressive AI displacement). In the base case, Pastoral Counseling graduates retain 6 of 6 viable career paths. 10-year earnings range from $332,689 (pessimistic) to $424,564 (optimistic).
How many job openings are there for Pastoral Counseling graduates?
The career paths mapped to Pastoral Counseling have roughly 70,400 combined job openings per year nationally, making this a large job market.
Is Pastoral Counseling at Taylor University worth it?
In the Base Case, this degree earns 2.4x its in-state tuition over 10 years. Even in the Pessimistic scenario, the multiple is 2.1x. The spread between scenarios tells you how sensitive this degree is to AI disruption.
Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024-2034 (employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE. Scenarios use a continuous weighting function combining AI exposure and BLS job growth projections. "Earnings Multiple" is total 10-year projected earnings divided by tuition — not a discounted financial ROI. Last updated 2025.