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Certified Pastoral Counselor

Certified Pastoral Counselor
The standards for this membership category of time-limited certification include:

  • B.A. and a Master of Divinity or a Masters or Doctoral level degree
    in theological/spiritual or biblical studies, or a Masters or Doctoral
    level degree in Pastoral Counseling, from schools accredited by
    agencies recognized by the U.S. Department of Education
  • Religious body endorsement to ministry
  • Active relationship to a local religious community
  • Completion of a supervised self-reflective pastoral
    experience, the most common of which is one unit of clinical pastoral
    education
  • Three years in ministry
  • 375 hours of pastoral counseling together with 125 hours of
    supervision of that counseling with one-third of such supervision to
    have been with an AAPC Diplomate, an AAPC Fellow (who is under
    supervision of supervision), or in an AAPC approved Training Program in
    Pastoral Counseling