Master of Arts in Pastoral Counseling – Pastoral Counseling
Provide Biblical Guidance and Counsel by Earning a Master’s in Pastoral Counseling Degree Online
As a Christian counselor, you do more than just help people work through their problems – you help people recognize their spiritual needs and connect with God’s healing grace. Whether you need a biblical counseling degree to further your current ministry or want to branch out into Christian counseling as your primary ministry role, our online M.A. in Pastoral Counseling – Pastoral Counseling will provide a flexible and affordable path to the skills and knowledge you need. Liberty’s online seminary, the John W. Rawlings School of Divinity, partnered with our School of Behavioral Sciences to develop an online master’s in pastoral counseling program that is both a study of human psychology and a biblically-based ministry practice degree.
Through Liberty’s online pastoral counseling master’s degree, you will develop the biblical counseling skills you need to address the relational, mental, and spiritual needs of suffering people in your community. You will further your career and your ministry by applying the skills you learn directly to helping people in your community grow and conquer their emotional and spiritual challenges so they can lead healthy, productive, and Christ-centered lives. As a pioneer in distance learning since 1985 and a Christian university recognized for its academic quality, affordability, and accessibility, Liberty has the resources, reputation, and biblical worldview you need to equip yourself for an effective and impactful Christian counseling ministry.
What Will You Learn in Our Pastoral Counseling Degree?
- Biblical and theological concepts and topics that will ground your ministry in the Word of God
- Essential counseling practice methods and intervention techniques
- Foundational principles of human psychology that will teach you how people think and change
You may also be interested in exploring our master’s degrees in addictions counseling, human services counseling, marriage and family therapy, or clinical mental health counseling.
Potential Career Options with Your Degree in Pastoral Counseling
- Church counselor
- Ministry worker
- Pastor
Highlights of Liberty’s Online M.A. in Pastoral Counseling Degree
As a leader in distance education since 1985, we understand what it takes to create a flexible and affordable education for busy people. Since we have been investing in distance and online learning for decades, our experience has taught us how to streamline our degree options so you can focus on what really matters to you. While many schools offer online degrees, we believe Liberty stands out.
Here’s what sets us apart:
- We are recognized by multiple institutions for our academic quality, affordability, and accessibility. Our commitment to excellence also helped us rank in the top 10% of Niche.com’s best online schools in America. Earning your online MA in Pastoral Counseling degree from a nonprofit university with this kind of recognition can help set you apart from others in your field.
- The majority of tuition for undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs has not increased in 9 years. While many other online colleges have raised tuition, Liberty has been able to keep costs low as a nonprofit university.
- Your ministry matters – so when you take 9-15 credit hours per semester in your divinity program, you’ll pay a discounted block rate of $2,750. It’s our way of supporting all you do to serve others.
- Gain hands-on experience in your own community with the online M.A. in Pastoral Counseling program’s internship.
- You can complete our online master’s in pastoral counseling degree in as little as a year and a half.
Military Benefits
Service is important to us, so whether you’re currently serving in the Armed Forces, have served, or are married to someone who serves, we’re here to serve you. Liberty’s military benefits are available to:
- Active duty service members of the U.S. Armed Forces
- Reserve/National Guard
- Veterans/retirees
- Spouses of service members and veterans/retirees
- Current Department of Defense employees
We are proud to support you in your pursuit of a flexible and affordable online education by offering you the following benefits:
- Tuition discounts – $275 per credit hour for graduate courses
- Additional discount for veterans who serve in a civilian capacity as a First Responder (less than $625 per course)
- Discounted divinity block rate: $2,475 per semester – only $165/credit at 9-15 credit hours*
- 8-week courses, 8 different start dates each year, and no set login times (may exclude certain courses such as practicums, internships, or field experiences)
*Credits taken below 9 and above 15 credit hours for the online Master of Arts in Pastoral Counseling are charged at the part-time rate.
Credit Hours
Transfer Credits
Transfer in up to 50% of the degree total
Next Start Date
Aug 19, 2024
Accreditation
Liberty University is accredited by SACSCOC
“In the times in which we’re living today, Liberty University’s mission, the mission of training up a generation of
FORMER VICE PRESIDENT MIKE PENCE
Experience That Matters to You
As an accredited Christian college with a 7,000-acre campus in Lynchburg, Virginia, Liberty University offers you an education that is both academically challenging and rooted in a biblical worldview.
At Liberty, you’ll benefit from 35+ years of learning, growing, adapting, and innovating for the distance learner — and more than a decade of researching the needs of the online student. You can be confident that we’ve taken the time to learn what’s important to you.
And what’s that?
- Affordability
- Accessibility
- Academic Quality
These important factors challenged us to find new financial solutions, get ahead of industry trends, and blaze trails into cutting-edge career fields — and it’s paid off. That’s the difference experience makes.
Ranked in the top 10% of Niche.com’s best online schools in America and recognized by multiple institutions for academic quality, affordability, and accessibility.
Why Choose Liberty University?
Enjoy Flexible Courses
Choose from a wide variety of programs at the associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral level, most of which are 100% online*. With an 8-week format and 8 start dates per year, it’s easy to fit your courses around your schedule!
* Some exclusions apply. Please refer to our exclusions page for more information.
Maximize Your Time
Start and finish your degree faster! Liberty requires no standardized testing for admission, and you can transfer previous course credit — transfer in up to 75% of a bachelor’s degree and up to 50% of a master’s, postgraduate, or doctoral degree — or discover how your life, career, or military experience may count toward your college degree.
Grow in Your Faith
All of our courses are taught from a Christian perspective, and our faculty see themselves as mentors. Our mission is to Train Champions for Christ — we’re committed to championing you as you study to go further in your field, become a leader in your industry, or start a new career.
Access Academic Support
Throughout your educational journey, you will have access to academic resources that will aid in the completion of your degree. Services include our Jerry Falwell Library, writing center, tutoring, study aids, IT assistance, 30+ tutorial videos, live webinars, and personalized help from our academic advising team.
An Online Education with On-Campus Benefits
Cheer on 20 NCAA Division I
games that air nationwide
Graduate with your peers
Be inspired by world-renowned
speakers at Convocation
As a nonprofit (not-for-profit) university, Liberty is in the business of training skilled professionals to make a difference in the world – not gaining profit, revenue, or producing dividends for shareholders. In keeping with our commitment to your education, we invest our resources back into degree programs and into your student experience.
While many other online colleges have raised tuition, Liberty has been able to keep costs low as a nonprofit university and has not increased tuition for 9 straight years. Lower tuition means less student loan debt for students.
For Liberty University, nonprofit is more than a status; it is a valuable opportunity to invest in the lives of students who will go out and impact the world.
Financing Options
Financial Aid
Nearly 80% of all Liberty students in an online program are awarded financial aid. Virginia residents may qualify for additional aid — learn more!
Corporate Tuition Assistance
Deferred – If your company reimburses you for the cost of your education, you pay only a portion of your balance up front. You submit your grades to your employer who pays you, and then you pay the remaining balance for your classes.
Tuition Discounts
Qualified military service members, veterans, and their spouses can receive up to 55% off their tuition rate for eligible programs!
Contact one of our Admissions Counselors for more information by calling (800) 424-9595.