Guidance.help

Clergy

The occupation Clergy covers people who conduct religious worship and perform other spiritual functions associated with beliefs and practices of religious faith or denomination. Expect to pray and promote spirituality. With a code of SEA, this is mostly a job for people drawn to helping, teaching or caring for people. Enterprising interests also help, rated 4.2 out of 7. Plan on graduate school and often five years or more of related experience; O*NET labels this extensive preparation. Strength in speaking, active listening, and social perceptiveness helps most here. You may also need to prepare and deliver sermons or other talks. People who want helping, teaching or caring for people usually fit better here than those who need hands-on work with tools, machines or the physical world.

What they do

Conduct religious worship and perform other spiritual functions associated with beliefs and practices of religious faith or denomination. Provide spiritual and moral guidance and assistance to members.

Main tasks

  • Pray and promote spirituality.
  • Prepare and deliver sermons or other talks.
  • Read from sacred texts, such as the Bible, Torah, or Koran.
  • Organize and lead regular religious services.
  • Instruct people who seek conversion to a particular faith.
  • Share information about religious issues by writing articles, giving speeches, or teaching.

Skills

  • Speaking
  • Active Listening
  • Social Perceptiveness
  • Service Orientation
  • Instructing
  • Writing

Who this career fits

May suit you if

  • You get energy from helping other people move forward.
  • You like taking the lead and making the call.
  • You are prepared for graduate-level study and a long training path.
  • You are comfortable relying on speaking and active listening.

May not suit you if

  • You find a full day of dealing with people draining.
  • You want to work with your hands for most of the day. Realistic rates 2.1 out of 7 here.
  • You want to be working in the field within the next few years.

Interest profile

O*NET rates each occupation from 1 to 7 on six interest types. The code SEA takes the three highest, and Social comes first here.

Preparation

Extensive preparation. Many jobs here need graduate study, and people often spend five years or more building specialist experience.

Most-reported requirement in the O*NET survey: Master's Degree. This reflects what workers reported most often and is not a legal minimum. Licensing rules can differ by state or industry, so confirm what applies where you plan to work.

Also called

  • Bishop
  • Chaplain
  • Children's Minister
  • Imam
  • Minister

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This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.