(ZENIT News / Washignton, 04.20.2025).- The Secretariat for Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), together with the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), has released the results of a national survey conducted among seminarians scheduled for priestly ordination in 2025. The purpose of this report is to gather information about the men being ordained as priests in the United States within a given year. The survey was conducted between January 10 and March 20, 2025. Of the 405 ordinands invited to participate, 309 responded to the survey, yielding a response rate of 76%. Below are the main findings:
Type of Priesthood
- Four in five responding ordinands (80%) are preparing for ordination to a diocese or eparchy. Responding ordinands in religious institutes comprise 20%. The largest group of responding ordinands (37%) is completing studies at one of the seminaries in the Midwest. Relatively few (5%) are completing studies at a seminary abroad.
- On average, responding diocesan ordinands lived in the diocese or eparchy for which they will be ordained for 17 years before they entered the seminary. Responding ordinands in religious institutes knew the members of their religious institute for 6 years, on average, before entering.
Age
- On average, responding ordinands first considered priesthood when they were 16 years old. Responding ordinands were scheduled for ordination, on average, 18 years later (at the age of 34).
Race/Ethnicity and Culture
- Seven in ten responding ordinands (69%) are Caucasian. One in ten (12%) is Hispanic/Latino. One in ten (12%) is Asian/Pacific Islander/Native Hawaiian. One in twenty (6%) is African/African American/Black.
- One-quarter of responding ordinands (26%) is foreign-born. The three most common countries of birth among the foreign-born are Mexico (5% of all responding ordinands), Vietnam (4%), and Philippines (3%). On average, foreign-born responding ordinands came to live in the United States 15 years ago, at the age of 21.
Education
- More than one in ten responding ordinands (15%) reported being home schooled. Among those who were home schooled, the average length of home schooling was 9 years.
- Between 36% and 46% of all responding ordinands attended a Catholic school at the K-12 and/or college level. Three in five responding ordinands (58%) participated in a religious education program in their parish, for 6 years on average.
- Three in five responding ordinands (63%) completed an undergraduate degree or a graduate degree before entering the seminary.
- Among those who attended an undergraduate or graduate college before entering the seminary, the most common fields of study included philosophy, engineering, business, and science or math.
- About a quarter of responding ordinands (27%) carried educational debt at the time they entered the seminary (or religious institute), which was $37,092 on average. Between entering seminary and ordination, the average amount of debt carried by responding ordinands in religious institutes decreased by 58% and the average amount of debt carried by responding diocesan ordinands decreased by 3% since entering the seminary (unadjusted for inflation).
Work
- Two in three in ten responding ordinands (66%) reported having full-time work experience prior to entering the seminary.
- One in twenty (6%) served in the U.S. Armed Forces.
Family Background
- Nine in ten responding ordinands (92%) reported being baptized Catholic as an infant. Among those who became Catholic later in life, the average age of conversion was 22.
- Nearly nine in ten responding ordinands (85%) reported that both their parents were Catholic when they were children. The vast majority of responding ordinands (95%) were raised during the most formative part of their childhood by their biological parents.
- Three in ten responding ordinands (31%) have or had a relative who is a priest or religious.
Vocational Discernment
- In regard to prayer practices, three-quarters of responding ordinands participated in Eucharistic Adoration (78%) on a regular basis before entering the seminary, as compared to 72% who prayed rosary, 48% who participated in a prayer/Bible group, and 41% who engaged in Lectio Divina.
- In regard to group activities, half of responding ordinands (51%) participated in a parish youth group before entering the seminary, as compared to 35% who participated in Catholic campus ministry, 23% who participated in Knights of Columbus/ Knights of Peter Claver, 22% who participated in a parish young adult group, and 21% who participated in Boy Scouts.
- In regard to participation in parish ministries, nearly three in four responding ordinands (73%) served as altar servers before entering the seminary, as compared to 46% who served as lectors, 34% who served as EMHC, and 32% who served as catechists.
- Nine in ten responding ordinands (89%) reported being encouraged to consider the priesthood by someone in their life [most frequently by parish priest (60%), friend (52%), or parishioner (42%)).
- Two in five responding ordinands (43%) indicated that they were discouraged from considering the priesthood by one or more persons. Most often, this person was a friend or school classmate, mother, father, or other family member.
Formation
- In regard to participation in formation activities in seminary, seven in ten responding ordinands (68%) reported that pastoral year internship contributed at least “somewhat” to their vocation.
- More than half say these formation activities contributed to their vocations: clinical pastoral education (56%), a thirty-day retreat (56%), spirituality year (52%), and a priestly fraternity group (51%).
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