PURPOSE OF THE ROLE
The Student Outreach Pastor is a strategic role within the Students team focused on outreach and evangelism among undergraduate students in Oxford. The successful candidate will have a deep passion for sharing the Gospel and a clear calling to lead others in evangelism.
They will be someone who thrives in personal, one-to-one evangelism and is also confident in leading larger gatherings and events. Creative, relational, and spiritually mature, they will bring fresh energy and vision to reaching students across the city with the good news of Jesus.
Oxford is a unique place - tens of thousands of students come to study here every year. We believe this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for many to meet Jesus, and we are committed to meeting them with the message of hope and truth.
ABOUT ST ALDATES
Our vision is to invite people to encounter Jesus, equip people to follow Jesus in every area of their lives, and envision people to transform their communities. We are excited about what God is doing in our midst. We are seeing people come to faith in Jesus on a weekly basis, and we are pioneering new ways of discipling people to make a difference in every area of their lives. As a city-centre church with a congregation of 1600+, we have hundreds of volunteer leaders and teams across our ministries, leading Aldates Groups, Alpha, student ministry, Aldates Kids and Youth. We have four services every Sunday, one of which is broadcast live. Our staff team consists of 35+ Ministry and Operations leaders. In addition, the School of Ministry recruits 10-15 students annually who work alongside ministry leaders.
Key Responsibilities:
Vision and Leadership
- Partner with the Rector and Student Pastors in discerning God’s vision for student outreach
- Lead and contribute to weekly Student Nights, with a particular focus on evangelism
- Attend and serve at key student events including Sunday student lunches, student weekends away, and termly outreach gatherings
- Take an active role in building culture and momentum around evangelism within the wider student team
Outreach & Evangelism
- Design and implement a strategic outreach programme across the academic year
- Together with the Student Events Co-ordinator plan and lead at least one major outreach event each term (e.g. Beer & Carols, May Day Outreach)
- Develop smaller, regular touchpoints for students exploring faith
- Engage with university rhythms (e.g. Freshers’ Week) to maximise outreach
- Build and maintain connections with college communities and the wider university
- Maintain a visible and relational presence at both Oxford University and Oxford Brookes, including Freshers’ Fairs and campus-based events
- Speak at campus events and support Christian Union missions and follow-up efforts
- Serve on Alpha team, consistently leading student tables
Equipping & Discipleship
- Inspire and train students to grow in evangelism and outreach
- Equip small groups and individual students to lead missional initiatives in their colleges
- Regularly teach and facilitate evangelism training through Student Nights or dedicated workshops
- Build and deepen relationships with CU reps and student leaders across colleges
Community Building
- Create pathways for those new to faith to join community and grow in discipleship
- Be a key pastoral presence at Sunday services, with regular attendance at two or more services
- Help foster deep friendships and Christian community through social gatherings and informal connection
- Encourage student involvement in wider church life and ministry teams
Person Specification
Essential Criteria
- A personal and growing faith in Jesus, with a lifestyle that reflects Christian maturity
- A clear sense of calling to student ministry and evangelism
- Proven track record of leading others to Christ, both 1-to-1 and through events
- Experience in creatively designing and delivering outreach activities
- Strong leadership and communication skills - comfortable speaking to large groups
- Experience working with undergraduate students and understanding of student culture
- Ability to build teams and develop volunteers in ministry
- Strong interpersonal skills and pastoral sensitivity
- High emotional intelligence, humility, and servant-hearted leadership
- Demonstrates openness to giving and receiving constructive feedback as part of a continuous learning and improvement mindset
Desirable
- Theological training or formal ministry training (or willingness to pursue this)
- Experience leading Alpha or similar evangelistic courses
- Experience collaborating across churches and student ministries
- Familiarity with the university and college systems of Oxford and/or Brookes
- Strong administrative and organisational skills