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In light of questions that have been raised about education for professional healthcare chaplaincy, we examined the skills and knowledge Clinical Pastoral Educators believe students need to perform the essential tasks and responsibilities of a chaplain. At 19 recently re-accredited ACPE centers across the country, we asked educators about the knowledge chaplains need to be effective, the specific content areas they teach, and how didactic education is planned and organized within their programs. Beyond a focus on religious diversity, we found little consensus among educators regarding a core knowledge base that should be taught during CPE. While most respondents in our study recognize the importance of didactic education in preparing students to become chaplains, there is a lack of consistency in didactic curricula across programs. Our findings suggest the need for broader conversation and collaboration among educators, national chaplaincy organizations, and theological schools regarding the goals, priorities, and outcomes of CPE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the history of chaplaincy programs in theological education, the content of their curricula, the goals of the programs as described by faculty, and the programs' approaches to issues of spiritual and religious diversity. It is based on a sample of 21 schools that offer specific chaplaincy education through masters of divinity or masters of arts degrees. We conducted semi-structured interviews with faculty at these schools and reviewed materials from course catalogues and other sources. We found substantial growth in chaplaincy-focused programs in theological schools in the last 20 years as well as the lack of standardization across them that one might expect in a rapidly growing field. The programs mostly developed independent of one another. They have not come to consensus about the skills and competencies chaplains need to do their work and have only engaged in that question across institutions in limited ways. As a group, these programs are also not well connected to clinical chaplaincy training or the day-to-day employment requirements of paid chaplaincy positions. We describe opportunities for collaboration that might strengthen this emerging field and better position it in the changing religious landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]