BLOG-068 | Writing Your First Verbatim: What CPE Supervisors Are Actually Looking For
Aug 24, 2026Every CPE learner writes a first verbatim, and almost every learner writes it wrong in the same way: they hand in a transcript that reads like a play script, then wait to find out what they missed. The verbatim is not a performance record. It is a formation tool, and supervisors read it looking for something specific that has nothing to do with how the visit "went."
Knowing what supervisors are actually looking for changes how a learner writes the whole document, not just how they feel handing it in.
What is a verbatim actually for?
A verbatim is a close, honest reconstruction of a pastoral encounter, written in dialogue form, alongside the chaplain's unspoken thoughts and feelings at each exchange. The dialogue matters, but the second column, the internal column, is where the real formation work happens. A supervisor is not grading whether the chaplain said the right thing. They are looking at whether the chaplain can see their own reactions clearly enough to name them on paper.
A learner who writes a clean, competent-sounding dialogue with an empty internal column has usually skipped the actual assignment.
What are supervisors actually looking for in a first verbatim?
Three things, consistently: honesty over polish, a moment of real self-awareness, and evidence the learner can tell the difference between what the patient needed and what the chaplain wanted to happen. A verbatim that shows a chaplain feeling anxious, going quiet, or missing an opening is more useful to a supervisor than one that shows a flawless exchange, because the anxious moment is the one with something to learn from.
Supervisors are also reading for theological and personal reflection: what did this encounter surface about the chaplain's own assumptions, faith, or unfinished business? A verbatim without that layer is a transcript, not formation.
Why does the internal column feel so hard to fill in honestly?
Because it requires admitting things a learner would rather not put in writing: I didn't know what to say. I wanted to fix it. I was relieved when the visit ended. Learners often edit these moments out, replacing them with a more composed-sounding internal monologue than what actually happened in the room.
That edit erases the exact material CPE exists to work with. Supervision groups cannot help a learner grow past a reaction the learner never named.
A note on formation
The Psalmist models the posture a verbatim asks of its writer: "Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; And see if there be any hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way" (Psalm 139:23-24, NASB1995). A verbatim asks a chaplain to do, in writing, what that prayer asks of the heart: an honest look, without editing out the anxious parts.
What should a learner actually do differently on the next one?
Write the internal column first, before shaping the dialogue into something readable. Capture the moment of hesitation, confusion, or relief exactly as it happened, then build the rest of the verbatim around that honest core. Bring the moment that feels most exposing to supervision, not the moment that shows the most skill. That is the moment the group can actually help with.
Takeaway: A verbatim is not a transcript to defend. It is an honest record of what happened inside the chaplain during the visit, and the more precisely a learner can name that, the more the supervision process has to work with.
Read more about CRN's training for learner chaplains at the Resource Hub, or explore the full course catalog at the CRN Store.
This article was drafted with AI assistance and reviewed under CRN editorial standards.
Psalm 139:23-24, NASB1995. Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
© 2026 Marsh Institute for Chaplains. Chaplain Resource Network is an initiative of the Marsh Institute for Chaplains. All rights reserved.
Faith-Based Organizations Launch Chaplain Resource Network to Strengthen Chaplains and Others' Training Worldwide
Stay connected with news and updates!
Join our mailing list to receive the latest news and updates from our team.
Don't worry, your information will not be shared.
We don't SPAM. We will never sell your information, for any reason.
