Nebraska19

Glad to see that everyone is doing well! I have mostly undergrad courses this semester, but each course has tons of required observation hours, so I am getting PLENTY of chances to watch grad clinicians/SLPs do some fabulous work. It is hard to believe that I will be a clinician this time next year.

I'm doing great, I am officially living in Omaha right now and I love it! I hope everyone else that had to move for grad school is doing well and are enjoying their new homes.

The only school I can think of is University of Nebraska at Omaha, but you are not automatically given state tuition. They have a scholarship program where you can earn in-state tuition for a number of credits. I applied for it and I got approved for all of my fall, spring and summer credits to be reduced for in-state tuition and it was pretty easy. They also have a Midwest student exchange program, but I don't remember if Michigan is included or not. You may check out other schools to see if they have a Midwest student exchange program as well, since they also reduce tuition. Other than that, private schools offer the same tuition to all applicants, but they are usually very expensive. However, if you can get a grant or scholarship (which most private schools seem to be generous with funding) you may be able to make it doable.

The best thing about getting a CSD degree is that applying to schools will be so much easier because you do not have to worry about applying to only schools that offer admissions to those without a CSD degree. However, if you ever decide that slp is not for you, you do not have many options with that degree. Also, you will need to be taking your slp re-reqs while also taking other classes unrelated to your major, which in my opinion is a pain. Since I was still contemplating on the school psychology and occupational therapy fields, I decided to major in psychology instead since I would not be prepared for those fields if a majored in slp. After researching the fields I realized that slp was right for me, and honestly I personally would not change a thing about my decision because I think it helped me stand out when it was time to apply to grad school. I have also heard that people without a csd undergrad background perform better in grad school because they take all the required courses in 3 years instead of stretching them out in 6 years. But, it is at least 3 years in grad school instead of 2, which means if you get your undergrad degree in 4 years you will need to be in school for a total of at least 7 years instead of 5 and a half or 6. Both have their pros and cons, you just need to decide which decision is best for you.

I think if you could get your GPA up to a 3.5 that you would be competitive,I have seen people this year with that GPA get accepted. As long as you write a really good SOP and get good numbers on the GRE I think you will be fine. Just be smart with the programs that you do apply to because there are some programs that are more competitive than others and may be harder to get into. If you apply to a good range of schools I think you will have a good shot at getting accepted!

WCU and App State both have three year programs and I know a few people who got accepted to their 3 year programs. Radford University in Virginia also has a three year program that I and several others who applied to got in to as well.

I had only 2 pre-reqs completed and I got into two programs, one on the first round and the other on a waitlist. I may have gotten off other wait lists but I told many of them to take my name off once I got my first acceptance. So it definitely is doable! Get good letters of rec, write a strong personal statement and be smart with the schools you apply to and you should have a good shot.

Congrats slpdream!

I agree with katieliz that the extra debt just is not worth it. You will get the same experience no matter where you go and will be well prepared at any ASHA certified program. I say go with the cheaper option, you'll be just as prepared for your slp career with much less financial stress.

I came from a psychology background too and got accepted to 2 schools this year without doing a post-bac. My GRE scores were only average compared to a lot of scores I saw here, but my GPA was pretty strong. I would say you have a good chance if you really work hard to get a good GPA in your post-bac, write a good SOP and explain your low undergrad GPA and get great LOR's and GRE scores.

Yay! I am so happy for you, congrats!

152 for both quant. and verbal and 4.0 on the writing. I shadowed an slp and concentrated on that the most since I am an out of field candidate. I volunteered at my local food pantry and homeless shelters with my Honors College organization, although it is not slp related it was probably a nice thing to have on a resume anyway.

The End

My thoughts are with all those in Boston right now, I hope everyone who lives in Boston and everyone's friends/family stays safe as this all unfolds.