Mar 28, 2024  
2023-2024 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
2023-2024 Undergraduate Catalog

Youth, Children, and Family Ministries, BA


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College Ministry
Academic Award Bachelor of Arts
Credits Required 122 semester credits
Faculty Lead Steve Mills
CIP Code 39.0702

The Youth, Children, and Family Ministries major is designed to prepare students for vocational ministry with children, adolescents, and their families by developing the basic knowledge and skills to lead, organize, and effectively minister. This course of study will enable the student to develop and express the biblical concepts of fulfilling the Great Commission in the church and as pastors in local churches. 

The curriculum is focused upon seeing the Great Commission fulfilled in the lives of young people from birth through adolescence and into mature Christian adulthood. An emphasis is placed on investing in young peoples’ lives and partnering with and ministering to families as well as the continued growth of the pastor as a person and minister of the Gospel.

Recognizing that effective ministry depends upon competent understanding and skillful use of the Scriptures, this major requires a strong component of Bible and theology. This program exceeds educational requirements for Assemblies of God ministry credentials. 

Graduates with a degree in Youth,Children, and Family Ministries will be able to:

  1. Apply Scripture using proper hermeneutical principles in the ministry context.
  2. Assess distinct viewpoints on theological topics.
  3. Articulate a biblical philosophy of ministry.
  4. Exhibit effective communication skills for pastoral ministry.
  5. Demonstrate core pastoral competencies in an applied ministry setting.
  6. Formulate strategies necessary for ministry to children, adolescents and, their families.
  7. Correlate practical theological reflection with ministry to those in unique developmental stages of childhood and adolescence.

Core Curriculum Requirements: 57


Humanities: 9


6 credits in this area must be from Writing Practice courses* (see Course Descriptions    for applicability)

  • ENGL xxx3 Any Literature course 3 credits
  • HIST   xxx3 Any Course in History 3 credits
  • 3 additional credits selected from the following 3 credits
    • Art (ARTE), Bible (BIBL), Drama (DRAM), English (ENGL), History (HIST), Language (LANG), Music (MUSI), or Theology (THEO)

Social Sciences: 9


6 credits in this area must be from Writing Practice courses* (see Course Descriptions  for applicability)

  • Select a minimum of two disciplines from the following: 9 credits
    • Business Administration (BUSM), Communication (except COMM 1213), Economics, Education (EDUC), Exercise Science (EXSC), Geography (GEOG), Information Technology (INTC), Management (BMGT), Marketing (BMKT), Philosophy (PHIL), Political Science (PSCI), Psychology (PSYC), Sociology/Anthropology (SOCI), or User Experience Design (UXDE)

Science and Mathematics: 7


  • MATH xxxx - College-level Mathematics 3 credits
  • SCIE xxxx - Science course with Lab 4 credits

Formation and Calling: 3


Professional Readiness: 2


Two Core Curriculum elective credits are required to be Career Readiness credits. These credits can be earned by taking a combination of Career Readiness Courses and introductory internship and/or job shadowing experiences. 

  • This two-credit requirement is waived for students who transfer 57 or more credits to NU
  • Students with 44-56 transfer credits are required to take one Career Readiness credit

Core Electives: 6


Select any college-level courses

Major Requirements: 54


General Electives: 11


Any college-level courses

Total: 122 Semester Credits


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