During my early years of cantorial school, I noticed a significant gap in my studies. While the coursework included extensive classes on biblical grammar, liturgy and text study, I received only surface-level training in providing pastoral care, and little attention was given to my character development, spiritual formation, or to learning to tend to my own well-being as I prepared for a career in religious leadership.

I was being taught, sure. But was I being formed? That question would later inform my understanding of clergy burnout as structural — rooted not in individual weakness, but in how seminaries are training clergy long before they enter the field.

As a future cantor aspiring to guide community members through meaningful rituals and lifecycle transitions, I felt unprepared both for how to best support congregants on their Jewish journeys and how to protect myself from burnout while doing so. I kept hoping that training would come, but by the end of my second year, I realized I would need to seek additional education outside of the seminary walls.

I decided to apply to a part-time Master of Social Work program at New York University, which I completed at night and on the weekends, alongside my cantorial studies. My seminary pushed back, saying it was unnecessary, but I felt strongly that if I was going to thrive in the role, I would need both an expansive education and an experience that would tend to my growth.

My experience is part of a wider problem. Atra’s recent report showing widespread burnout in the rabbinate and articles highlighting similar trends among cantors showcase the seriousness of the issue. Meanwhile, seminaries have long expressed confusion over why prospective students are becoming increasingly hesitant to enroll in their training programs.

Burnout is, of course, not unique to clergy. Research comparing clergy burnout with other vocations shows that rabbis and cantors experience burnout at levels........

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