Clinical pastoral education

Clinical Pastoral Education residency and fellowship program overview

Experience clinical spiritual care learning in an intercultural and interfaith setting at VA Puget Sound Health Care System, where Veteran care intersects with health care and research. 

Trainees in VA Puget Sound’s Clinical Pastoral Education program will benefit from the information shared among other trainees, residents, and clinical staff across care sites. This groundbreaking program also uses creative and innovative learning methods to provide hands-on experience in managing complex spiritual cases and a rich understanding of military and Veteran cultures. Trainees will also gain critical skills including listening skills, reflective responses and how to address patient concerns related to moral injury, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), substance abuse, gerontology and spinal cord injuries.

Trainees will experience all of this in an urban setting with the scenic backdrop of the Pacific Northwest. And they will also gain exposure to specialty care services and state-of-the-art technology including oncology, telemetry and cardiac care unit, medical and surgical units, intensive care unit, rehabilitation, and behavioral health.

VA Puget Sound’s Clinical Pastoral Education program is accredited by the Association of Clinical Pastoral Education for all levels of training — including intern, extern, resident, fellow, and certified educator. Staff preceptors will guide and work closely with trainees and their assigned supervisors to develop pastoral skill throughout this program.

Application for 2026-2027 cohort

VA Puget Sound’s Clinical Pastoral Education 2026-2027 cohort will run from Oct. 19, 2026, through Oct. 1, 2027.  Recruitment begins on Feb. 2, 2026, for a total of five openings:

• 3 residency positions that will rotate between Geriatrics, Critical Care, and Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) center
• 2 fellowship positions in Geriatrics, Substance Abuse Treatment, Mental Health and Palliative/Hospice Care

Program benefits

Trainees in VA Puget Sound’s Clinical Pastoral Education program receive:

• Stipend - $42,293.00 for residents and $45,255.00 for fellows*
• Health and life insurance - optional
• Time off - 10 days of vacation leave, 9 days of sick leave, and 11 paid holidays
• No application or tuition fees

*Stipends are paid out biweekly

Applicant requirements

To apply, you must:

• Be a U.S. citizen
• Be fully vaccinated (or provide an authorized waiver)
• Hold a Master of Divinity from an accredited seminary
• Have completed one unit of Clinical Pastoral Education

To apply or if you have any questions, contact the VA Puget Sound’s Director of Clinical Pastoral Education, Chaplain Joshua Sendawula, MDiv., PhD, BCC, at Joshua.Sendawula@va.gov or 206-768-5210.

VA Puget Sound is an accredited CPE center

The Association of Clinical Pastoral Education (ACPE) is the premier Department of Education (DOE) recognized organization that provides the highest quality Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) programs for spiritual care professionals of any faith and in any setting. We do this through a rigorous accreditation and certification process for centers and educators that provide CPE. The depth of our training enables students to realize their full potential to strengthen the spiritual health of people in their care as well as themselves. The mission of ACPE is to positively affect people’s lives by nurturing connections to the sacred through experiential education and spiritual care. The ACPE Vision is to create measurable and appreciable improvement in spiritual health that transforms people and communities in the US and across the globe.

The values of ACPE:

• Diversity and inclusion - demonstrated through cultural humility, attentiveness and collegiality.
• Integrity - demonstrated through trust, respect and excellence.
• Curiosity - demonstrated through listening, experiential models, innovation and creativity.
• Process - demonstrated through action/reflection, listening, experiential and relational models.
• Service - demonstrated through compassion, authenticity and growth.

ACPE is nationally recognized as an accrediting agency in the field of clinical pastoral education by the U.S. Secretary of Education through the U.S. Department of Education.

The VA Puget Sound Health Care System CPE Center is accredited to offer Level I, Level II, and Certified Educator ACPE CPE by the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education, Inc. (ACPE); Floor 4, 120 West Trinity Place, Decatur, GA 30030; 404-320-1472; www.acpe.edu.