More U.S. Latin-rite dioceses gained seminarians than lost them between 2024 and 2025, but several dioceses are still struggling to attract priestly vocations, according to a recent analysis.
Conducted by the Catholic World Report (CWR), the analysis reviews the most recent diocesan seminary statistics, which are from the 2025 edition of The Official Catholic Directory and reflect data through Jan. 1, 2025. At that time, 3,035 diocesan seminarians were preparing for ordination — a nearly 2% increase from 2024.
The Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina, recorded 49 seminarians at the time, and has continued its growth, with a record number of 10 priestly ordinations set for next week, according to the Catholic News Herald.
The Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska, had one seminarian for every 2,007 Catholics, the highest ratio among U.S. dioceses. Rapid City, South Dakota, Salina, Kansas, Wichita, Kansas, and Steubenville, Ohio, followed.
Additionally, Lincoln saw a 23% increase in seminarians between 2024 and 2025, with the diocesan vocations director attributing the rise to the diocese’s “vibrant” St. Gregory the Great Seminary.
Among the nation’s 175 dioceses that ordain seminarians, 22 had 40 or more seminarians while 31 had no more than five. Two dioceses — Altoona-Johnstown in Pennsylvania and Fairbanks in Alaska — reported no seminarians. However, other dioceses reported significantly more, including Philadelphia (71), St. Paul and Minneapolis (64), New York (63), Boston (61), and Washington (60).
Several dioceses are struggling to attract priestly vocations, however. According to the 2025 report, 35 dioceses reported fewer than one seminarian per 40,000 Catholics, compared with 28 dioceses who said the same in 2024. Twenty-three reported fewer than one seminarian per 50,000 Catholics, 16 reported fewer than one per 75,000, and eight reported fewer than one per 100,000.
According to the report, larger Catholic populations do not necessarily correspond with increased priestly vocations. While some of the country’s biggest dioceses reported relatively low seminarian-to-Catholic ratios, several smaller dioceses continued to produce comparatively high numbers of seminarians per capita.
The latest edition of The Official Catholic Directory, which will contain data through Jan. 1, 2026, is expected to be released this summer.