Chaplain
Snapshot
Chaplains perform religious activities in secular institutions. They perform counselling services and provide spiritual and emotional support to the people in the institution, as well as cooperate with priests or other religious officials to support religious activities in the community.
Chaplains work within secular institutions like hospitals, prisons, universities, and the military, providing religious and spiritual care. Your days might involve individual counselling sessions, leading prayers or services, collaborating with other healthcare or institutional professionals, and offering emotional support during difficult times. You act as a bridge between the individual's spiritual needs and the broader institutional environment, ensuring respect for diverse beliefs and backgrounds.
- • Providing confidential counselling and spiritual guidance to individuals facing personal crises.
- • Conducting religious services, rituals, and ceremonies appropriate to the institution and its community.
- • Collaborating with medical staff, educators, or correctional officers to address the holistic needs of individuals.
Where this occupation is in demand
Reported labour shortages and surpluses, by year. Published for occupation groups, not for individual job titles.
Figures cover Legal, social and cultural professionals — 186 jobs including this one.
In shortage: Spain.
Select a place on the map to see its figures.
About this source›
Source: ELA/EURES labour shortages and surpluses. Readings are published at occupation-group level, and cover Europe. Editions differ in annex layout and country coverage, so a change between years does not always mean the labour market changed. Countries in grey were not reported, which is not the same as being in balance.
What these words mean
The four things this section reports
- Reported demand
- Whether employers report needing people in this job — a judgement published by a national or EU body, not a count.
- Where it is heading
- Which way employment in this job is expected to move over the coming years, from an official projection.
- Openings
- Roughly how many openings arise — from growth and from people leaving the job.
- Typical pay
- What people in this job typically earn where the source publishes it. Blank does not mean unpaid; it means nobody publishes it for that place.
A measure is left out when nobody publishes it for that place, rather than shown as zero.
Which way the market leans for you
- In your favour
- More openings than people looking — employers are competing for candidates.
- Balanced
- Openings and candidates are roughly matched.
- Competitive
- More people looking than openings — expect to compete.
- Mixed evidence
- Sources disagree, or the same occupation group is short in one part and oversupplied in another.
Every source resolves to one of these four, so there is a single vocabulary to learn. What differs is the evidence behind it, which is printed underneath each verdict — a measured ratio of openings to jobseekers, or an assessment published by a national body.
How this job compares with other jobs in the same country
- Strong
- Among the strongest in that country
- Good
- Stronger than most jobs in that country
- Mixed
- About typical for that country
- Weak
- Weaker than most jobs in that country
This is a rank within one country, not a score you can carry across borders — the registers behind two countries count different people, so the same number means different things in each. It is also why a job can be among the strongest in a country and still show as Competitive: it leads the field in a market that is crowded overall.
Where these come from
Every figure is published by a national statistics office, a public employment service or an EU body, and each card names its source and the period it covers. Some places are counted monthly, others assessed once or twice a year, so two places on the same map can be describing different moments — the date is always shown.
None of this predicts one person’s chances. It describes a market.
Reported demand · Typical pay · Where it is heading (United States, Ireland, Australia, Malta, United Kingdom)
| Reported demand | Typical pay | Where it is heading | |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | Not reported | $60,810 2025-05 | +1% 2024–2034 · BLS 2024-2034 |
| Ireland | Not reported | — | +15.9% 2023–2035 · Cedefop 2026 * |
| Australia | Assessed as balanced Jobs and Skills Australia 2025 * | — | — |
| Malta | Surplus reported ELA/EURES 2024 * | — | — |
| United Kingdom | Not reported | £30,655 2025-provisional | — |
* Published for occupation groups, not for individual job titles.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS)
Source: Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Open Government Licence v3.0
Do you guide students, clients or employees? Use this occupation data in your organisation.
Future Outlook for chaplain
The outlook for chaplain is exceptionally stable. While AI tools will assist with daily tasks, the core of this role relies on human judgment, resulting in a high resilience score of 83%.
How are these scores calculated?
The Resilience Score (0–100) estimates how structurally protected this occupation is from automation and AI disruption, based on task-level analysis. Higher scores mean more human-judgment-intensive tasks. AI Exposure shows the estimated percentage of task hours that current AI capabilities could affect. These are model-derived structural indicators, not predictions about individual job security.
How could chaplain change as AI adoption grows?
Human judgement, trust, and context remain strong protectors for this role.
Illustrative scenario based on task automatability — not a forecast. Values are rounded the further ahead you look.
Human judgement, trust, and context remain strong protectors for this role.
Illustrative scenario based on task automatability — not a forecast. Values are rounded the further ahead you look.
Model-based estimate. Use it as a planning signal, not a guarantee.
Compare this to your profile
How AI may change this role
Deterministic, model-based interpretation of current role signals — not a guarantee of replacement.
What still depends on people
- provide social counselling
- provide spiritual counselling
- respond to enquiries
Where AI may become a co-pilot
Limited AI co-pilot overlap right now.
Tasks most exposed to automation
No single task here is highly automatable yet.
Vital Signs & AI Vectors
AI Exposure Vectors
0-100%Exposure to content generation, creative augmentation, and large language model tools
Exposure to workflow automation, decision-support software, and process digitisation
Exposure to AI-assisted analysis, pattern recognition, and predictive modelling tasks
Exposure to physical automation, robotics, and sensor-driven task displacement
Technical Details
NexFuture v3.0 estimates automation exposure natively from ESCO essential-skill groups, weighted by skill mass and calibrated against expert anchors. Scores are probabilistic estimates, not guarantees. See the NexFuture Methodology White Paper for full details.
Measures automation exposure. It does not measure pay, demand, or how many jobs exist near you.
What people in this role usually do
Healthcare & Human Services
A typical day as a chaplain
09 09:00 · Morning provide charity services
10 10:30 · Mid-morning interpret religious texts
12 12:00 · Midday observe confidentiality
14 14:00 · Afternoon perform religious ceremonies
15 15:30 · Late afternoon promote religious activities
17 17:00 · Wrap-up provide social counselling
Task order is illustrative. Individual days vary.
What you need to do this work
The skills, knowledge and tools this role calls for — and the traits and rewards that come with it.
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provide social counselling
Assist and guide social service users to resolve personal, social or psychological problems and difficulties.
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provide spiritual counselling
Assist individuals and groups seeking guidance in their religious convictions, or support in their spiritual experience, so that they are affirmed and confident in their faith.
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interpret religious texts
Interpret the contents and messages of religious texts in order to develop spiritually and help others in their spiritual development, to apply the appropriate passages and messages during services and ceremonies, or for theological learning.
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provide charity services
Provide services for charity causes, or perform an independent activity related to community service, such as providing food and shelter, performing fundraising activities for charitable causes, gathering support for charity, and other charitable services.
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perform religious ceremonies
Perform the ritual acts and apply the traditional religious texts during ceremonial events, such as funerals, confirmation, baptism, birth rites and other religious ceremonies.
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respond to enquiries
Respond to enquiries and requests for information from other organisations and members of the public.
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observe confidentiality
Observe the set of rules establishing the nondisclosure of information except to another authorised person.
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reinforce positive behaviour
Reinforce positive behaviour in people during rehabilitation and counseling activities, to ensure that the person takes the necessary actions for positive results in a positive manner, so that they remain encouraged to continue their efforts and reach goals.
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promote religious activities
Promote events, attendance to religious services and ceremonies, and the participation in religious traditions and festivities in a community in order to enhance the role religion plays in that community.
Bible texts
The content and interpretations of the bible texts, its different components, the different types of Bibles, and its history.
quran
The content and interpretations of the religious book of Islam.
- psychological counselling methods
- vocal techniques
Path to become a chaplain
What it typically takes to qualify: education level, where it is a regulated profession, and where to study.
Bachelor's or equivalent level
69 programmes in 9 countries teach the core skills of this job. Plus 27 short courses that build single skills.
A few examples, taught in the language of this page:
Master of Arts in Applied Spirituality
South East Technological University · Ireland
MLitt in Religious Studies
Trinity College Dublin, University of Dublin · Ireland
Diploma in Scripture (Mnr) L7
Technological University Dublin · Ireland
Counselling Psychology
Trinity College Dublin, University of Dublin · Ireland
These are 6 of 96.
Sources
- 1. Source: Europass Qualification Dataset Register (European Commission)
- 2. Bron: DUO open onderwijsdata
- 3. Source: Study with New Zealand (studywithnewzealand.govt.nz), Education New Zealand. Copyright in the material is owned by Education New Zealand (All content (c) Education New Zealand). Listings are provided by the education providers, are for information and promotional purposes only, and are not endorsed by Education New Zealand; each provider is responsible for its own content.
Growth Pathways & Similar Roles
Explore typical career progression paths, adjacent skills, and similar roles to plan your next transition.
Where does chaplain fit?
Similarity scores based on skill overlap from ESCO data.
For organisations
The data on this page, working for your students, clients and staff.
Frequently asked questions
What types of institutions typically employ chaplains?
Do I need to be affiliated with a specific religious denomination to become a chaplain?
What skills are particularly important for a successful chaplain?
Is there a shortage of Chaplain in Europe?
How much does Chaplain pay in the United States?
Sources: ESCO O*NET ELA/EURES Cedefop BLS Data updated October 3, 2026 About our data