ACPE Certified Educator Training Program:

For Certified Educator CPE training, applicants must have completed at least four (4) ACPE-accredited CPE units that document fulfillment of Level 2 CPE outcomes; hold a M.Div. degree or its equivalent; be ordained or commissioned to function as a clergyperson or spiritual leader by an appropriate authority in one’s faith group; and be endorsed or recognized in an official relationship of accountability with one’s faith group. Persons interested in Clinical Educator CPE must use the appropriate ACPE application form, available at https://acpe.edu/education/cpe-students/cpe-application, and submit that form directly to our center and the ACPE national office. Our Program advertises Certified Educator Student/Certified Educator Candidate openings on ACPE’s national website when we are accepting applications. For inquiries: cpe@ucsf.edu

Program Strengths

Some distinctive features of UCSF Medical Center and UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals and our CPE programs:

• Our CPE trainees learn to offer collaborative care in a fast-paced environment that prepares them for today’s complex spiritual care needs, including exposure to cutting edge medical technology, and ethical and existential concerns.
• The UCSF Division of Palliative Medicine has been named by the American Hospital Association as one of the top three programs nationwide for its innovative efforts in end-of-life care.  Year-long CPE residents participate in a curriculum that introduces them to topics related to palliative care and end-of-life issues, and offers them mentoring opportunities on these topics.
• Trauma-informed care and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Anti-Racism principles are integrated into the CPE curriculum.
• CPE learners at UCSF are trained in crisis debriefing and decompression skills, to help people mitigate the stressful effects of traumatic events that they have experienced.  
• UCSF is a teaching hospital, and chaplain trainees learn alongside students from the schools of medicine, nursing, and pharmacy, which are all part of the UCSF campus. Year-long residents participate in an Interprofessional Standardized Patient Exercise that supports excellence in collaboration.
• Our entire Spiritual Care staff is invested in and committed to our CPE program, providing ongoing clinical mentoring to our trainees. 
• A variety of resources at UCSF support student and staff diversity, such as the LGBTQ Resource Center, the Multicultural Resource Center, and the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Diversity.
• Sustainability and support matters to us! We offer a robust Student Health and Counseling Benefit for our year-long CPE residents, through UCSHIP: https://studenthealth.ucsf.edu/insurance as well as 15 paid personal leave days, in addition to 15 paid UCSF holidays, for our year-long residents.

Application Process

Application Requirements:

1)  Completed ACPE application with essay responses at https://acpe.edu/education/cpe-students/cpe-application
At the top of your ACPE, Inc. application face sheet, you must indicate which campus you are interested in applying for - Mission Bay or Parnassus. If you are interested in both campuses, please include both; however you must indicate a first preference.
2) No application/processing fee is required.
3) Once we receive your application and have reviewed your materials, we will notify you if we are moving forward with a Zoom interview, or not. Interviews are with two Faculty members. For our Residency, there is a second half hour interview with two Department Staff members as well.
4) Completed reference forms.  Regardless of the program for which you apply, these will be solicited by the Department from the persons you list as references on your application.

Due Dates: Our CPE programs operate on a rolling admissions basis. We switch to interviewing for Alternates for our programs when group space is filled.

UCSF CPE Admissions Policy 

PURPOSE

To provide a clear and effective admission process to any UCSF Medical Center CPE program that does not permit any discrimination against persons because of race, ethnicity, religious/spiritual tradition, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, or disability. 

POLICY

UCSF Medical Center, UCSF Health, and the Accredited CPE Center do not discriminate against persons because of race, ethnicity, religious/spiritual tradition, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, or disability. Equal access to educational opportunities is extended to all qualified persons. All members of the CPE faculty, professional advisory group, and consultants are expected to adhere to this policy.

CPE students at all levels are expected to sustain sufficient physical, emotional and spiritual health to deliver spiritual care. The students we seek will demonstrate an openness to clinical learning; a readiness to use the clinical setting for personal and professional learning; an ability to provide effective spiritual care in our clinical settings; and the potential to make a contribution to the field of spiritual care and ministry.

PROCEDURE

In order to be considered for admission into the CPE program at UCSF Medical Center, the following procedure is followed.

1. Applications are received throughout the year, and ideally should be submitted six to eight months before the unit in which an applicant wishes to enroll.  The standard ACPE application form is utilized, and no application fee is required.

2. When the CPE Center receives the application and has determined that the application materials are sufficient for consideration, the applicant will be notified to set up an appointment for an admissions interview.

3. An admissions interview will be held to determine the applicant’s readiness for clinical learning.  It is preferred that this interview is done by at least two members of the CPE faculty at a UCSF campus when circumstances permit.  For residency applicants, the interview process involves two separate sessions: the first with members of the CPE faculty, and a second with other members of the Spiritual Care Department staff. Department Staff only have access to applicant’s ACPE Cover Sheets and Resumes.

4. At the discretion of the faculty, applicants may be interviewed by means of a UCSF secure Zoom meeting. 

5. The applicant must have graduated from high school or earned a GED, hold a baccalaureate degree and present documentation of academic credentials (exceptions to this requirement will be considered on a case-by-case basis), and be in good standing with her/his/their faith affiliation, spiritual association or other ethical/philosophical association.

6. Participating in the CPE program at UCSF Medical Center can be a challenging experience because of the acuity of the illnesses of the patients being served. This ACPE Center seeks mature applicants who demonstrate self-assertiveness, a sense of personal and professional identity, exceptional communication skills, intra- and interpersonal awareness and an inner motivation to learn and serve, as evidenced in the admissions interview. 

7. The CPE program and almost all clinical communications at UCSF are conducted in the English language, and therefore it is important that the applicant fluently speaks, reads, and writes in English.

8. When a decision has been made whether or not the applicant has been selected to participate in the CPE program, a letter may be emailed and also will be sent via the U.S. Postal Service.  A decision will be made within thirty (30) days after the admission interview.

9. Once an admissions decision has been made and the applicant has been informed, the applicant’s written materials are disposed in the following manner:

a) If the applicant is not accepted to the program, or if an applicant is accepted, but later decides not to enroll in this center’s CPE program, that applicant’s materials will be destroyed in a confidential manner.

b) For policy regarding the records of accepted students, please see below in “Student Records Policy.”

10. It is this Center’s policy not to offer explanations or reasons to an applicant if they have not been admitted to the CPE program.

11. Any applicant who is invited to participate in a UCSF Health CPE program must successfully pass a background check and hold U.S. citizenship or a valid U.S. visa before she/he/they can enroll in the program. All offers of admission are contingent upon successful completion of background checks, health clearances, and all other on-boarding requirements.  If an applicant is an international student, it is that student’s responsibility to maintain proof of current lawful immigration status (and authorization to work, if the student is receiving a stipend) in the U.S., throughout the duration of her/his/their program.

12. In the unusual event that the Center cannot recruit at least three (3) students for a training unit, that unit will not begin, and the admitted persons will be invited to enroll in a future scheduled unit of training that matches their level (Level 1 or Level 2).  If they need to enroll in a CPE unit immediately, the Center will negotiate with ACPE certified educators at other accredited centers to assist the students in finding appropriate placements.

13. Applications will be accepted for Certified Educator CPE as openings become available. Normally a certified educator student’s contract is extended for successive years, if it is determined that the student has made adequate progress.

14. Certified Educator CPE applicants should refer to the Student Handbook Chapter Five regarding requirements for admission into the program.

Inquiries regarding UCSF Health’s equal opportunity policies may be directed to: UCSF Human Resources at https://hr.ucsf.edu/contact.  This policy notwithstanding, all students accepted in the program shall be able, with reasonable accommodation, to physically perform the essential duties contained in the position descriptions for CPE Students and Certified Educator Students, respectively, which can be found in chapters 4 and 5 of the Student Handbook.

Bay Area Housing Possibilities

UCSF On-Campus Housing

Chaplain Residents are eligible for Campus Housing as Allied Health Learners and under Campus Housing Policy, as listed under “Other Eligible Student & Trainee Groups – ‘Resident ministers’”” Housing Eligibility - UCSF Campus Life Services

This link below outlines prices for shared housing on-campus and for efficiencies (and 1-2 bedrooms, which are more expensive). There is NO Deposit for campus housing. Most of the efficiencies can be furnished too, at no cost, which helps if you are just here for the year. There is a FREE shuttle system connecting all UCSF’s campuses on Weekdays. Check out the link below for many options including single efficiencies or shared apartments with your own bedroom. Housing is primarily available near Mission Bay or Mount Zion.

Campus Life Services: New Applicants

Off Campus Housing

Many Chaplain Residents have found off campus Bay Area Housing through the following:

Craigslist online website, Housing tab, for renting a single room or studio apartment. These opportunities only come up the month before or the month of your move, as housing turns so quickly in the Bay Area. https://sfbay.craigslist.org/search/sfc/hhh

Networking through your spiritual, religious or organizational affiliations (on your own). Sometimes local spiritual communities you are affiliated with have some ideas or resources. Check with your connections.

UCSF Off Campus Website for open housing. This Off-Campus Rental listing service (hosted by UCSF Housing Services), called Places4Students, connects landlords and apartment seekers who are looking for long-term off-campus housing accommodations.  Many neighbors to the UCSF Campuses post their rentals here:

(Apartment seekers / sublets / shared living space)

Places4Students.com - Helping Students Find a Home Away from Home

Short-Term Lodging Guide - UCSF Campus Life Services

Off-Campus Housing - UCSF Campus Life Services

UCSF Off-Campus Housing | Facebook

Housing and Commuting | Graduate Division (ucsf.edu)

The Academe at 198 | World-Class Student Housing in SF (academe198sf.com)

Bay Area Public and UCSF Transportation

There is no free parking at UCSF Health for anyone except some patients/families via Social Work. Daily parking is $26. Please note that as a CPE learner you are not an enrolled student with the University, so you do not qualify for the Student Parking rate. You also are not an Employee receiving a check directly from UCSF, so you are not eligible for pre-tax deduction. You are Allied Health Learners with UCSF Medical Center and the ACPE Program – receiving 1099 student stipend weekly and full UCSHIP healthcare during your enrollment in the program.

Additional Transportation Resources:

Plan Your Shuttle Trip - UCSF Campus Life Services

Park with Us - UCSF Campus Life Services

bart.gov | Bay Area Rapid Transit | Bay Area Rapid Transit

Muni | SFMTA

AC Transit Bus Routes - SF Bay Transit

Bicycle Transit Resources: 

https://campuslifeserviceshome.ucsf.edu/transportation/bike