Associate Degree in Youth Ministry Hesston College

Youth ministry is so much more than Frisbee football and pizza, more than programs and curriculum. It’s about nurturing vital relationships with others and most importantly, with Jesus Christ. At Hesston College, we nurture your leadership and theological thinking skills, enhancing your ability to do relational ministry.

Majoring in youth ministry

• Start taking applied courses right away rather than wait through two years of theory courses. At Hesston, you can accept leadership roles in your first semester and start field experience as part of your first youth ministry class.
• Academically, we connect the practical with the theoretical. We ask the question, “What will this youth ministry model mean theologically? Will this activity support or sabotage what we say we believe?”
• At Hesston, there is also an opportunity to practice ministry in a new context. You could spend two weeks in the summer in Philadelphia, Pa. Here you would develop intercultural competence, working with a variety of cultures in the city. Experiences may include helping with a Bib Lit class, interacting with a flag football ministry, or observing a Christian high school in the city.
• At Hesston, we believe that we minister out of who we are, so we intentionally work at spiritual formation. We pray together. We share our stories, our pain, and our joys with each other. We work at being a community together. We understand that the journey inward is what makes it possible to take the journey outward. As a Mission Director, you empower and lead youth in their missional journeys.

Hesston College combines solid academics and practical experience. Spiritual formation and step-by-step applications. Being and doing. At Hesston College, we believe that we minister out of who we are, so we give attention to the whole person. Head knowledge interacts with real-life stuff.

First Year Fall Program Courses

• Biblical Literature
• Faith and Discipleship

Recommended Courses

• First-Year Seminar
• College Algebra
• College Writing I
• Humanities Course

Spring Program Courses

• Intro to Youth Ministry

Recommended Courses

• College Writing II
• Speech Communication
• Second Humanities Course
• Natural Science Course

Second Year Fall Program Courses

• Programming for Youth Ministry
• Youth Ministry Seminar I
• Anabaptist History and Thought
• Jesus and the Gospels

Recommended Courses

• Lifetime Fitness and Wellness
• Intro to Sociology

Spring Program Courses

• Peacemaking and Justice
• Religion Electives

Recommended Courses

• General Psychology
• Second Natural Science Course

Do you like being with people? Are you up for an adventure, ready to try new things? Are you energized by deep theological discussions? Do you desire to nurture ever-deepening discipleship in yourself and others? Then Youth Ministry is for you.

With a two-year associate of arts degree, you will have completed 60 credit hours and be on your way for transfer to a baccalaureate degree course of study and further theological training. With an advanced degree, you might choose to work in one of many areas of ministry. Career opportunities include:

• As a youth pastor, you will do ministry with youth in a congregational setting.
• As a camp director, you provide leadership in outdoor ministry.
• As a mission director, you empower and lead youth in their missional journeys.