Mentor Program

Mentoring Program for Board Certified Chaplain, Provisional Certified Chaplain and Associate Certified Applicants

The mentoring program provides support and guidance to individuals whose goal is to achieve certification through the Board of Chaplaincy Certification Inc. Participation in the program is encouraged but remains voluntary. All mentors are APC/BCCI board certified chaplains and are considered qualified as such. Mentors serve on a voluntary basis.

An applicant interested in working with a mentor should contact the APC state representative for your state.
Contact the APC office at bcci@apchaplains.org to find out whom to contact in your state. In this email, be sure to provide your name, contact information and the state in which you reside.

  • A mentor and an applicant are encouraged to set mutually agreed upon guidelines for their relationship, including frequency, length and place of meetings.
  • They are encouraged to keep a record of their meetings.
  • The content of what is to be shared between a mentor and an applicant is left to the determination of both parties, but clearly relates to preparation for meeting with a certification/review committee. It is the decision of an applicant whether or not to share written application materials (competency essays, autobiography, etc.).
  • All communications between a mentor and an applicant are confidential.
  • It is entirely up to an applicant if he/she wishes to share any of the mentoring process with the certification committee.
  • It is inappropriate for a mentor to have any conversation with a chair or any member of the committee about an applicant’s process of preparation, or his/her fitness for certification by BCCI.
  • A mentor may not serve on an applicant’s committee.
  • If an applicant is turned down for board certified chaplain, provisional certified chaplain or associate certified chaplain status and recommended for a second appearance, and if an applicant has not worked with a mentor, he/she is strongly encouraged to do so before meeting with another committee.

Becoming Certified