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2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Lay Ministry for a Master’s

5 Ranked Colleges
188 Degrees Awarded
$25,100 Avg Cost*
Most Veteran Friendly for Lay Ministry for a Master's

Veterans have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual has developed its “Most Veteran Friendly for Lay Ministry for a Master’s” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Lay Ministry is the 630th most popular major in the country with 504 degrees awarded in 2020-2021.

For this year’s “Most Veteran Friendly for Lay Ministry for a Master’s” ranking, we looked at 5 colleges that offer a degree in lay ministry. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great lay ministry programs and a strong support system for veterans and active service members.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the lay ministry program at the school, veteran affordability, and veteran satisfaction. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Most Veteran Friendly for Lay Ministry for a Master’s” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Most Veteran Friendly for Lay Ministry for a Master’s

The colleges and universities below are the best for master’s degree vets studying lay ministry.

Top 5 Best Lay Ministry Master’s Degree Colleges for Veterans

1

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Grace College and Theological Seminary. The school came in at #1 for the Most Veteran Friendly for Lay Ministry for a Master’s. Located in Winona Lake, Indiana, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 3 diplomas to qualified masters’s lay ministry students in 2020-2021.

Grace College not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Lay Ministry Master’s Degree Schools” list.Of the 1,901 students enrolled at Grace College and Theological Seminary, 27 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 20 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $8,455. During this same period, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Full Grace College and Theological Seminary Veteran Student Life Report

2

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Northwestern - St Paul. The school came in at #2 for the Most Veteran Friendly for Lay Ministry for a Master’s. This small school is located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and it awarded 4 masters’s lay ministry degrees in 2020-2021.

Northwestern also made our “Best Lay Ministry Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #4.According to our most recent data, University of Northwestern - St Paul supports 3,506 students, and 53 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 37 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $14,408. In addition to receiving other benefits, 17 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

[Read full report on veteran student life at University of Northwestern - St Paul]](/colleges/northwestern-college-minnesota/student-life/veterans/)

3
Gordon - Conwell Seminary crest
Gordon - Conwell Theological Seminary
South Hamilton, Massachusetts

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Gordon - Conwell Theological Seminary. The school came in at #3 for the Most Veteran Friendly for Lay Ministry for a Master’s. Gordon - Conwell Seminary is a private not-for-profit institution located in South Hamilton, Massachusetts. The school has a small population, and it awarded 37 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Gordon - Conwell Seminary, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Lay Ministry Master’s Degree Schools” ranking.Among the 1,489 students enrolled at Gordon - Conwell Seminary, 6 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 4 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $6,506. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program.

The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Full Gordon - Conwell Theological Seminary Veteran Student Life Report

4
Westminster Theological Seminary crest
Westminster Theological Seminary
Glenside, Pennsylvania

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Westminster Theological Seminary. The school came in at #4 for the Most Veteran Friendly for Lay Ministry for a Master’s. Located in Glenside, Pennsylvania, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 58 diplomas to qualified masters’s lay ministry students in 2020-2021.

Westminster Theological Seminary not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Lay Ministry Master’s Degree Schools” list.Among the 854 students enrolled at Westminster Theological Seminary, 26 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 20 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $8,026. To help with additional expenses, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program.

The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Full Westminster Theological Seminary Veteran Student Life Report

5
Covenant Seminary crest
Covenant Theological Seminary
Saint Louis, Missouri

Out of the 5 schools in the Most Veteran Friendly for Lay Ministry for a Master’s that were part of this year’s ranking, Covenant Theological Seminary landed the #5 spot on the list. Covenant Theological Seminary is a private not-for-profit institution located in Saint Louis, Missouri. The school has a small population, and it awarded 9 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Covenant Seminary also made our “Best Lay Ministry Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #5.Our most recent data shows that 15 of the 593 students enrolled at Covenant Theological Seminary were GI Bill® students, of which 13 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $8,350. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

[Read full report on veteran student life at Covenant Theological Seminary]](/colleges/covenant-theological-seminary/student-life/veterans/)

Notes and References

References

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

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