The mission of the Centre acadien is to collect, preserve and organize the documentary cultural resources relating to Acadian culture, language, and history, particularly within Nova Scotia; to make these cultural resources available to the academic community and the public; and to promote the Center, and its archives throughout the Atlantic provinces, across Canada, and internationally.

The Centre acadien is the main archival repository for Nova Scotia's Acadian community. It is also the repository for the institutional archives of Université Sainte-Anne, the only French-speaking university in Nova Scotia.