The Association for Clinical Pastoral Education came into being in 1967 when four different groups of its kind merged into one. Through the certification and accreditation of schools the hope of the accreditation commission is to advance clinical pastoral education to a new level. Today, the ACPE consistently gets national and international recognition for setting standards which are both attainable, and highly ambitious.

Most pastors hold powerful positions within their communities and within society, so it is the association's goal to enforce the moral rights a pastor has before he or she is placed in a professional role. The field of religion is a general gray area compared to many other academic fields, so another major goal of the association is to set the standards pastors use to decipher and teach information. The accreditation commission of the Association of Clinical Pastoral Education is focused on programmatic accreditation only, though some entire schools may be dedicated to pastoral education. These schools could also be eligible for accreditation by ACPE.