Formation for plural pathways: another story told by ATS alum/workforce data

DESCRIPTION: Theological education has often imagined vocational formation around movement toward a single primary position, yet many graduates build working lives across multiple roles and settings. Drawing on the 2022–23 ATS Alum/Mapping the Workforce Study, which included 3,556 alumni from 129 ATS member schools, this article examines the prevalence and persistence of multiple-position work among theological school graduates. Nearly three in 10 employed alumni reported holding more than one position, and graduates who held multiple positions at graduation were substantially more likely to report doing so years later. Multiple-position work was also more common among alumni whose initial professional work included educational or faith-based nonprofit settings, while certain credential expectations differed between graduates holding single and multiple positions. Although the data cannot determine whether these arrangements are chosen, financially necessary, temporary, or sustainable, the findings suggest that plural vocational pathways are a meaningful feature of alumni employment. The article proposes that theological schools broaden vocational formation by helping students integrate multiple roles, cultivate transferable capacities, understand adjacent professional pathways, and imagine coherent careers that extend beyond a single job or ministry setting.

KEYWORDS: alumni; bivocational ministry; career pathways; multipositional work; multivocational ministry; portfolio careers; theological education; theological formation; transferable skills; vocation; vocational discernment; vocational formation; workforce; employment; career advising; field education; ATS Alum/Mapping the Workforce Study

CITATION: The, Christopher M. 2026. “Formation for Plural Pathways: Another Story Told by ATS Alum/Workforce Data.” The Association of Theological Schools.