MAR in Pastoral Counseling Degree Online Heal Hearts with Faith

60
Credit Hours
100% online, 8-week courses
Transfer in up to 50% of the degree total
Promote Spiritual Growth and Healing with a Master of Arts in Religion – Online Pastoral Counseling Degree
Are you a ministry professional seeking graduate-level training in biblical counseling? Do you enjoy learning about the relationship between Christianity and psychology? Are you passionate about ministering to the mental, emotional, and spiritual needs of those around you? If so, conferring Liberty’s online Master of Arts in Religion (MAR) – Pastoral Counseling degree may be the right next step for you!
Throughout this program, you’ll study core topics in theology, biblical studies, and ministry practice. Our goal is to help you explore rewarding ministry opportunities in churches, parachurch settings, and nonprofit settings. Additionally, our MAR in Pastoral Counseling degree online can help you prepare for future academic studies or pursue employment in higher education.
Learn how to provide effective pastoral care and counseling. With Liberty’s religion and pastoral counseling master’s degree, you can prepare to help meet the personal and spiritual needs of people in your ministry team and congregation. Partner with us and gain the tools you need to pursue God’s calling on your life.
Accreditation
Liberty Theological Seminary, as part of Liberty University’s John W. Rawlings School of Divinity, is accredited by the Commission on Accrediting of the Association of Theological Schools (ATS). Your seminary degree is approved by ATS and has met rigorous accreditation standards, so you can feel confident that your degree is both academically excellent and well-respected among churches, ministries, and nonprofit organizations.







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What Sets Us Apart?
- Private Nonprofit University
- 600+ Online Degrees
- No Standardized Testing for Admission
- Transfer in up to 75% of an Undergrad Degree
- Transfer in up to 50% of a Grad/Doctoral Degree
Why Choose Liberty University’s Pastoral Counseling MAR Program?
As an accredited university, Liberty seeks to offer online programs that blend flexibility, affordability, and high-quality academics. Our goal is to help equip you with the skills you need to impact the world for Christ. With our 100% online format, you can complete your MAR in Pastoral Counseling at Liberty University without putting your life on hold.
Liberty has been a pioneer in distance education since 1985. A lot has changed since then, but our commitment to Training Champions for Christ has not. Our online courses have no set login times, so you can complete your assignments on your own schedule. You’ll also have the freedom to stay invested in your family and job while achieving your academic goals.
Throughout this degree program, you’ll study under faculty who have years of experience working in ministry and pastoral counseling. Our professors are firmly rooted in the Christian faith and committed to helping you thrive in your career. With their guidance, you can develop the practical skills needed to serve the people in your congregation and community. And, because all of our courses are taught from a biblical perspective, you can be confident that your approach to counseling will be grounded in Scripture.
What Will You Study in a Religion and Pastoral Counseling Master’s Degree Online?
Liberty’s master’s degree in pastoral counseling online offers a mix of core religion classes and specialized pastoral counseling courses. You can enrich your understanding of Christian theology while learning how to minister to people’s psychological and spiritual needs from a biblical perspective. With this knowledge, you can prepare for a variety of ministry opportunities both inside and outside the church.
Prepare to conduct effective ministry in a variety of settings. The core of this program covers important topics in apologetics, the history of Christianity, discipleship, hermeneutics, and theology. You can also explore methods for fostering spiritual growth among believers, preparing sermons, and witnessing to non-believers.
Within the pastoral counseling specialization, you’ll explore how psychology and theology relate to each other so you can build a solid theoretical and practical foundation for faith-based counseling. Our program also introduces a solution-based model for short-term counseling that incorporates facilitation skills, cognitive behavioral approaches, and biblical teaching. By studying essential aspects of premarital and marital counseling, you can prepare to help couples work through challenges and grow stronger together.
After earning this pastoral counseling master’s degree, you may want to pursue our online Doctor of Ministry (DMin).
Potential Career Opportunities
Our Master of Arts in Religion – online pastoral counseling degree is designed to help you tackle challenges in active, full-time ministry roles at churches and parachurch organizations. You could also pursue opportunities for college-level and non-licensure K-12 religious studies teaching.
Some of the roles you may qualify for include:
- Adjunct religion instructor
- Associate pastor
- Church education administrator
- K-12 religion instructor (non-licensure)
- Lay ministry leader
- Missionary
Featured Courses
Degree Information
- This program falls under the John W. Rawlings School of Divinity.
- View the Graduate Divinity Course Guides (login required).
Degree Completion Plan

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Tuition & Aid
Your success is our success, which is why we are committed to providing quality academics at an affordable tuition rate. While other colleges are increasing their tuition, we have frozen tuition rates for the majority of our undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs for the past 9 years – and counting.
To continue our mission of providing affordable education, electronic textbooks are provided for many divinity courses* all for one convenient fee.
*Electronic textbooks are not provided for PACO courses or courses that fall under departments outside the School of Divinity.
Grad & Postgrad Divinity Block Rate (9-15 credit hours) | $2,750 |
---|---|
Grad & Postgrad Divinity Part Time (1-8.99 or over 15 credit hours) | $395/Credit |
Military Grad & Postgrad Divinity Block Rate (9-15 credit hours) | $2,475 |
Military Grad & Postgrad Divinity Part Time (1-8.99 or over 15 credit hours) | $275/Credit |
Tuition rates may change annually. For the most current information, please visit our LU Tuition Cost page.
Financial Aid & Scholarships
Admission Requirements for Liberty’s MAR Degree in Pastoral Counseling
Admission Requirements
- Apply online or over the phone with an admissions counselor by calling (800) 424-9596.
- A non-refundable, non-transferable $50 application fee will be posted on the current application upon enrollment (waived for qualifying service members, veterans, and military spouses – documentation verifying military status is required).
- Send official college transcripts (mailed as sealed, unopened copies or sent via a direct electronic transcript system). A regionally or nationally accredited bachelor’s degree with at least a 2.0 GPA is required for admission in good standing. Applicants who have earned a master’s degree or at least 12 graduate credits from an accredited institution will be assessed on the basis of the master’s-level degree work.
- Unofficial transcripts can be used for acceptance purposes with the submission of a Transcript Request Form.
- Admission to this program also requires:
- The School of Divinity Questionnaire (login required).
- Submission of contact information (login required) for 1 pastoral recommender.
- Applicants whose native language is other than English must submit official scores for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or an approved alternative assessment. For information on alternative assessments or TOEFL waivers, please call Admissions or view the official International Admissions policy.
Preliminary Acceptance
If you are sending in a preliminary transcript for acceptance, you must:
- Be in your final term and planning to start your master’s degree after the last day of class for your bachelor’s degree.
- Complete a Bachelor’s Self-Certification Form confirming your completion date. You may download the form from the Forms and Downloads page or contact an admissions counselor to submit the form on your behalf.
- Submit an official/unofficial transcript to confirm that you are in your final term. The preliminary transcript must show a minimum of 105 completed credit hours.
- If you are a current Liberty University student completing your undergraduate degree, you will need to submit a Degree/Certificate Completion Application.
- Send in an additional, final official transcript with a conferral date on it by the end of your first semester of enrollment in the new master’s degree.
Dual Enrollment
Please see the Online Dual Enrollment page for information about starting graduate courses while finishing your bachelor’s degree.
Transcript Policies
Unofficial College Transcript Policy
Unofficial transcripts combined with a Transcript Request Form can be used for admission. Official transcripts are required within 60 days of the admissions decision or before non-attendance drops for the first set of matriculated classes, whichever comes first, and will prevent enrollment into future terms until all official transcripts have been received.
Before sending unofficial college transcripts, please make sure they include the following:
- Your previous school’s name or logo printed on the document
- Cumulative GPA
- A list of completed courses and earned credit broken down by semester
- Degree and date conferred (if applicable)
Official College Transcript Policy
An acceptable official college transcript is one that has been issued directly from the institution and is in a sealed envelope. If you have one in your possession, it must meet the same requirements. If your previous institution offers electronic official transcript processing, they can send the document directly to luoverify@liberty.edu.
If the student uses unofficial transcripts with a Transcript Request Form to gain acceptance, all official transcripts must be received within 60 days of the admissions decision or before non-attendance drops for the first set of matriculated classes, whichever comes first. Failure to send all official transcripts within the 60-day period will prevent enrollment into future terms until all official transcripts have been received.
Admissions Office Contact Information
Liberty University Online Admissions Verification
1971 University Blvd.
Lynchburg, VA 24515

Ready to Apply?
Submit your application online or over the phone.
Military
Liberty University is dedicated to providing world-class educational experiences to military students across the globe.
Who May Qualify?
- Active Duty
- Reserve/National Guard
- Veterans/Retirees
- Spouses of Service Members and Veterans/Retirees
- Current Department of Defense Employees
Available Benefits:
- Tuition discounts – $275 per credit hour for part-time graduate and postgraduate divinity courses
- Discounted divinity block rate – $2,475 per semester*
- Additional discount for veterans who serve in a civilian capacity as a First Responder (less than $625 per course)**
- 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 per semester are charged at the part-time rate.
**Not applicable to certificates.
Tuition rates may change annually. For the most current information, please visit our LU Tuition Cost page.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between an MDiv and the MAR in Pastoral Counseling degree?
A Master of Divinity (MDiv) and a Master of Arts in Religion (MAR) have much in common, with both degrees providing core training in topics like apologetics, the history of Christianity, and evangelism. However, Liberty’s online MDiv is a longer, more comprehensive program that covers additional subjects, such as Greek and Hebrew language tools.
If you complete your MAR and later want to pursue an MDiv, you can potentially transfer 2/3 of your MAR degree into our online MDiv program, allowing you to save time and money! For instance, you may be interested in our MDiv in Pastoral Counseling.
Should I pursue an MAR or an MA in Pastoral Counseling?
Liberty offers different types of pastoral counseling master’s degrees, so you can pick the program that best meets your personal and professional needs. Our Master of Arts (MA) in Pastoral Counseling is a great option if you primarily want to learn about biblical counseling while specializing in an area like crisis response, addiction recovery, life coaching, military resilience, or marriage and family studies.
Perhaps you’d like to mainly study Scripture, theology, and the Christian faith, but you also want to receive foundational training in pastoral counseling. If so, our MAR in Pastoral Counseling may be right for you. While the MA in Pastoral Counseling focuses entirely on biblical counseling methods, the MAR in Pastoral Counseling provides extensive ministry training as well as 12 credit hours of specialized pastoral counseling study. Both programs can help you develop vital skills — you’ll just need to evaluate which subjects you’re most interested in studying.
What can you do with a master’s in pastoral counseling?
As a non-licensed pastoral counselor, you can help people work through the challenges of life using best practices in mental health and biblical guidance. You could work directly in the church or in various settings within your community, such as:
- Domestic violence centers
- Hospices
- Non-licensure counseling centers
- Workplaces
Is Liberty accredited?
Liberty University’s John W. Rawlings School of Divinity is accredited by the Commission on Accrediting of the Association of Theological Schools (ATS). Your seminary degree is approved by ATS and has met rigorous accreditation standards, so you can feel confident that your degree is both academically excellent and well-respected among churches, ministries, and nonprofit organizations.
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- Why Choose Liberty?
- What Will You Study?
- Tuition & Aid
- Admission Information
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