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15 Best Online Christian Counseling Courses In 2024

January 26, 2024 | Admin

Online Christian Counseling
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The desire to help people in their darkest hour can be a challenging yet noble calling. Whether you aspire to take up a position of faith in a career as a church leader, or if making a difference in the community through government agencies, schools, or hospitals, is your desire, an online Christian counseling course may be ideal. Find out how the mind works through a Christian worldview.

Top 5 Online Christian Counseling Courses

Rank School Location
1Fawkner UniversityMontgomery, Alabama
2The Baptist College of FloridaGraceville, Florida
3World Mission UniversityLos Angeles, California
4Toccoa Falls CollegeToccoa, Georgia
5Lee UniversityCleveland, Tennessee

Online learning has proved to be hugely successful with students often scoring higher grades than those who attend courses on campus. In fact, students who participate in online courses generally find they develop essential life-skills such as independence, self-reliance, time management, and goal setting in addition to their course work.

So, if you are an aspiring church leader or counselor, and want the flexibility of learning online, we have developed a list of the best 15 online Christian Counseling courses.

What are the top Online Christian Counseling Courses?

1

Fawkner University

  • Montgomery, Alabama
  • Graduation Rate: 57%

Pursuing a career in counseling through Falkner University’s Bachelor of Science in Counseling Psychology will allow students to merge an interest in the human mind and the science of psychology while learning the value of counseling. Students will learn a multitude of facets including Christian and cultural literacy, science, mathematics, and psychology aspects over the length of 121 credits.

Career paths offered following this course can range from counseling positions in schools, hospitals, government agencies to clinics for professional athletes or corporate offices.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $325 per credit
University graduation rate: 57%
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2

The Baptist College of Florida

  • Graceville, Florida
  • Graduation Rate: 65%

The Baptist College of Florida (BCF) offers a Bachelor’s program in Psychology through its online learning environment. The course consists of 120 hours specializing in counseling and psychology theory through a Christian viewpoint. Subjects consist of a balanced mix of general subjects, biblical theory, and a wide array of psychology. The course has a good mix of research, theory, and practical classwork.

Founded in 1943, the BCF is a private institution, run from Graceville, Florida in cooperation with the Florida Baptist Convention. Facilities available to online students include a comprehensive online library catalog and an online bookstore.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $360 per credit
University graduation rate: 65%
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3

World Mission University

  • Los Angeles, California
  • Graduation Rate: 44%

World Mission University provides a Bachelor of Arts in Christian Counseling over a 4-year period, consisting of 126 credits. The objective of this course is to either prepare students for graduate studies or counseling ministry within the church.

If you are contemplating utilizing transfer credits for entry into this course, it allows you to use up to 84 credits. As part of the curriculum, the students must complete 6 semesters of student ministry and 8 semesters of student worship. The final semester will involve completing a worship plan.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $260 per credit
University graduation rate: 44%
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4

Toccoa Falls College

  • Toccoa, Georgia
  • Graduation Rate: 50%
Students sitting indoors

Bachelor’s degree in Counseling Psychology through Toccoa Falls College could be the gateway you are looking for into a career in service within the church or community. This degree combines psychology concepts with the principles of scriptures. This course is 126 credits, taking about 4 years to complete, with an internship element required to be completed before graduation. The degree offers online major and minor choices such as counseling, marriage and family counseling, psychology, ministry, and social work.

Several tuition discounts are available for some full-time online students. They include those living in certain counties, and a 50% tuition discount for full-time emergency first responders. See the website for details.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $345 per credit
University graduation rate: 50%
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5

Lee University

  • Cleveland, Tennessee
  • Graduation Rate: 50%

The Lee University, located in Cleveland Tennessee, offers students the opportunity to participate in their Ministry Leadership undergraduate degree. This degree focuses on preparing students for participation within a ministry environment and teaches facets including church administration, counseling, discipleship, music and worship, children’s ministry,  pastoral ministry, and youth ministry.

The University caters its teaching methodology to students who have had at least 3 years of experience since high school, however, they may waive this if requested.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $393 per credit
University graduation rate: 56%
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6

California University of Pennsylvania

  • California, Pennsylvania
  • Graduation Rate: 48%

The California University of Pennsylvania offers students the opportunity to add to their existing bachelor’s degree or professional counseling background. The Graduate Certificate of Spiritual, Ethical, and Religious Counseling is a 9-credit online course, intended to equip adults who wish to specialize in social work,  counseling, ministry, or a related field. The course can be completed in 15 weeks.

To apply you need to show your bachelor’s degree with a GPA of over 2.90, a one-page resume of work and studies, and you may be required to attend an interview. The certificate program starts in the summer or winter terms and it is important to note that courses will not certify you as a Professional Counselor or Pastoral Counselor. However, it may be utilized for LPC, NCC, and Act 48 credits.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $328 per credit
University graduating rate: 48%
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7

Bob Jones University

  • Greenville, South Carolina
  • Graduation Rate: 60%

If you are looking for a shorter course to strengthen your service to your ministry, Bob Jones University offers a Graduate Certificate in Biblical Counseling. This 18-credit course will take up to a year to complete with 12 core credits and 6 electives, allowing you the ability to shape the qualification as you wish.

Following the completion of your certificate, you can also use the credits towards a Master’s when you have the time to further your studies.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $450 per credit
University graduation rate: 60%
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8

Liberty University

  • Lynchburg, Virginia
  • Graduation Rate: 34%

At Liberty University, you can study a Bachelor of Science in Psychology – Christian Counseling in just 3.5 years, being 120 credits. You can transfer in up to 75% of the degree total credits to reduce this time frame even further. This university has been specializing in distance education since 1985 and therefore has streamlined the process.

During your studies, you will be taught methods to apply biblical knowledge to your counseling techniques, providing biblically sound guidance to those in need. Following the completion of this degree, you will be prepared to pursue further post-graduate studies.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $390 per credit
University graduation rate: 34%
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9

Clarks Summit University

  • Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania
  • Graduation Rate: 55%

At Clarks Summit University in Pennsylvania, their Bachelor of Science – Counseling Ministries will help you meet the needs of your ministry through counseling. If you are looking to make a difference in a faith-based organization, this degree will suit you well and set you up for post-graduate studies you may want to pursue. Theology classes are interwoven with arts, science, and counseling classes to give you a well-rounded perspective.

The course is a total of 122 credit hours and gives you a wide choice of electives.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $405 per credit
University graduation rate: 55%
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10

Oral Roberts University

  • Tulsa, Oklahoma
  • Graduation Rate: 44%

The Bachelor of Arts in Christian Caregiving and Counseling course at Oral Roberts University is 100% online and tailored towards students who endeavor to pursue careers in a pastoral capacity, teaching, researching, or counseling. While there are no concentration options, there are specialization options you can choose from.

If you are struggling to search for scholarship opportunities, the ORU advises that a majority of their students are eligible to receive grants and scholarships through academic achievement. Check their website for details.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $399 per credit
University graduation rate: 44%
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11

Johnson University

  • Knoxville, Tennessee
  • Graduation Rate: 54%

Johnson University, based in Knoxville Tennessee, offers aspiring church leaders a well-rounded course in 2 variations. Their Bachelor in Pastoral Care and Counseling can be taken either via the arts or science concentration. As the BA includes a language element, this requires some on-campus tuition, however, the BS is entirely online. The core units involved with each course vary and offer students general as well as biblical knowledge.

The course takes 4 years to complete and is 120 credits, however, if you utilize transfer credits you can shorten the length substantially. Up to 90 transfer credits can be used.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $450 per credit
University graduation rate: 54%
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12

Regents University

  • Virginia Beach, Virginia
  • Graduation Rate: 28%

A Bachelor of Science in Psychology at Regent University will ready you for a career in counseling, Ministry, social work, or even high-level management. You will learn about how the mind works through a Christian worldview. This course is available both online and on-campus, with up to 86% of students obtaining financial aid to attend. The University allows students to transfer up to 90 credits towards this course.

Regents University recognizes the need for flexibility when learning online and offers both 8- and 15-week course sessions.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $395 per credit
University graduation rate: 28%
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13

Concordia University Wisconsin

  • Mequon, Wisconsin
  • Graduation Rate: 50%

If you have aspirations of helping people in need as a social work teacher, child social worker, or a Health Social Worker, maybe a Bachelor of Social Work from Concordia University in Wisconsin will be your path. The degree is 120 credits and uses Christian guidelines to teach students how to grow as a competent professional.

The course offers many complimentary major and minor options and involves 450 hours of practical fieldwork in your chosen specialty.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $526 per credit
University graduation rate: 50%
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14

Hope International University

  • Fullerton, California
  • Graduation Rate: 42%

If you are looking for a course that has more emphasis on clinical counseling and psychology with just a touch of Christian theology, this may be the course for you. Hope International University is offering a Bachelor of Science in Human Development – Psychology. Studies include topics about behavioral psychology, mental health counseling, family studies, and addiction studies leading to a career in professional counseling environments or family ministry.

If you want to specialize following the completion of this degree, they provide an accelerated path to several master’s programs.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $450 per credit
University graduation rate: 42%
Visit School Website
15

The Kings University

  • Southlake, Texas
  • Graduation Rate: 42%
The Kings University logo

The Bachelor of Biblical Counseling degree offered at The Kings University provides students with studies that integrate psychological theories with biblical truths. The course gives the option of 2 concentrations depending on your career aspirations. The Church and Community Care concentration prepares students for ministry or pastoral work, and the Pre-professional Counseling concentration is for those with aspirations of perusing a professional counseling career outside the church.

Support is offered by way of one-on-one tutoring and coaching for all online students and students have the option to accelerate their studies from 15 weeks to 7 weeks. The course length will vary depending on your transfer credits and life experience.

School Overview

Tuition cost: $485 per credit
University graduating rate: 42%
Visit School Website

Still not sure you have found the perfect Christian Counseling degree program? Use our custom Degree Finder tool to take a deeper look.

Our Ranking Methodology

To produce this ranked list of colleges, we sourced tuition data from each university’s website and the graduation rates from Google. The tuition rates are all quoted in USD per credit for the respective courses, however, course lengths tend to vary depending on the university. To calculate an approximate costing per semester, you can presume a semester consists of 12 credits and therefore multiply the credit amount quoted in our summary by 12. The school year consists of 2 semesters.

After sorting each course’s tuition cost (cheapest) and graduation rate (highest), we assigned each category a weighted points allocation and added these together to create a ranking. The Tuition Cost received a 2/3 weighting whilst the Graduation Rate received a weighting of 1/3.

Whether you are a faculty member or a student at one of the aforementioned universities, we invite feedback and reviews for the programs we mentioned. Likewise, if you find any of the information needing to be edited, we welcome your input. Should you have any questions regarding the courses we have analyzed, feel free to contact us.

Find the program that’s right for you

Whether you’re trying to start your career or make a big change, we can help you find the perfect school to help you reach your goals.

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