Clinical Pastoral Education

Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) is training designed to help develop the skills required to provide care which is centered around issues of faith, meaning, values and connection.  Learning occurs through direct clinical experience, use of reflective tools, didactic input, conversations around cases within a diverse group of peers, and individual supervision.  As a member of an inter-professional team each student’s educational experience involves providing care and support to staff as well as to clients, residents or patients and their families/intimate others.

The action/reflection/integration process is utilized to assist students to develop their identity as professional providers of spiritual and religious care, critique their styles of ministry, and enrich their relationship with the Holy whom they meet in the lived experience.

The CPE curriculum is designed to develop learning of the competencies identified by the Canadian Association for Spiritual Care (CASC) as core skills required for anyone who wishes to provide care in this field.

CPE units are available on a part-time basis (15 hours/week from September – April), or full-time (35-40 hours/week over a period of 12 weeks) at one of several hospitals in the Greater Vancouver Area.

Academic and Professional Credit:
All students earn credit with the Canadian Association for Spiritual Care (CASC) and each unit is registered and paid for through Vancouver School of Theology (VST).  Academic Credit may also be granted for a CPE unit, and is determined by the school in which a student is studying.  Vancouver School of Theology grants 3 credit hours plus a unit of theological field education to those who successfully complete a unit of CPE.

Tuition and Student Fees:
Tuition for CPE units is set by the Health Authority.  The cost is currently $2000/unit, plus a $250 CASC registration fee (Canadian Association of Spiritual Care).  All CPE students must also become student members of CASC for a yearly fee (sign-up and payment through CASC website).  Tuition and CASC registration fees are paid through VST.

Application and Admission:
Application and admission to a CPE unit must be made directly to the Supervisor of the CPE Unit, prior to registration through Vancouver School of Theology.

Requests for an Admission interview or for a more detailed discussion of the program please contact:

Arun Chatterjee
Vancouver Coastal Health 
arun.chatterjee@vch.ca | 604-209-2032

Philip Tse
Fraser Health and Island Health
philip.tse@fraserhealth.ca | 604-613-7829

Anne Tuppurainen
St. Paul’s Hospital
ATuppurainen@providencehealth.bc.ca | 604-806-3439