Overview

Youth Ministry Major

The Youth Ministry major seeks to equip students for effective youth ministry within the adolescent subculture by introducing students to developmental characteristics, cultural and sociological influences, ministry philosophies and strategies, teaching methodologies and program planning approaches that are essential to youth ministry. Students graduating from this program will have entry-level knowledge and skills appropriate for service in full-time church and parachurch positions in a variety of organizational and ministry settings.

Program Objectives

The student who successfully completes the requirements for the Youth Ministry major should

• Be able to devise, discuss and defend a personal philosophy of youth ministry that is both biblically formulated and developmentally appropriate
• Be able to develop a ministry to youth in a church or parachurch organization in diverse sociocultural settings
• Possess basic people-helping skills necessary to assist adolescents and their families in problem-solving and decision-making
• Have gained interpersonal skills for leadership in small- and large-group settings and be able to analyze the dynamics at work in human relationships
• Be able to teach the Scriptures effectively to adolescents, making use of sound exegetical and hermeneutical principles