lexical_gap

Here's the page on TN licensing from ASHA: http://www.asha.org/advocacy/state/info/TN/licensure/ Board of CSD from the TN Dept. of Health: http://health.state.tn.us/boards/cd/index.htm Actual application information for TN: http://health.state.tn.us/boards/CD/PDFs/PH1275.pdf

Each state has their own licensing requirements. ASHA grants the CCC, certifying you as clinically competent, however your actual license to practice is granted by the State or State's DPI. Check the license requirements for the states in which you want to work, Some states require a specific test for their state only. There may also be additional requirements based on the setting in which you work (school vs. medical).

I attended UW-Madison for undergrad, though in a completely different field. Wisconsin definitely has a medical school. http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-medical-schools/university-of-wisconsin-madison-04126 As far as the weather goes, there's a saying that in WI you can see all four seasons in one day. The winters can get cold with several days of subzero temperatures (that's 0 degrees F), but in the summers it can get quite hot with temps reaching over 100 for a few days. A good winter coat and a pair of sturdy boots will do the trick from December through March.

I think it also depends on your post-Master's plans. If you plan on pursuing a doctorate, a school with a "name" might be worth the investment; especially if you are working alongside highly respected professors in the profession. Or, if you plan on working with a specific disorder or a specific population group, going to the school with that focus may be worth it as you'll get experiences working with those groups. However, if you plan to work in a more general setting- such as in an elementary school, most programs will prepare you for that track.

badgerina, I made my decision and will be at UWM this fall as well.

I actually had a meeting with my department curriculum advisor about this very subject. I had taken a non-physics or chemistry physical science class and was told that it would not count; it MUST be physics or chemistry. As a result, I completed an accelerated online physics course over winter break to meet the requirement. My advisor assured me that course would count, despite it not having a lab component. The reason I was given was because ASHA wants you to have a knowledge base of complex processes and systems and how they work that isn't CSD based. Check with your advisor of both your current program and your grad program. Since they are the ones submitting your certification information to ASHA, they are the ones will ultimately decide what gets sent.

I completely agree. I didn't mean to come off as saying use only personal stories. Personal stories can be a hook to get the reader's attention, but you still need to show that you have the knowledge and experiences that would make you a successful grad student and therapist. Passion is good, but you also have to have the skills to back it up. If you know a professor on the committee hates the mushy-gushy touchy-feely sentiment; don't put it into your essay. On the other hand, if the event truly is life-altering, by all means, explain how your life changed. In short, know your target audience and package your message in a way that is appealing. Isn't that what communication is all about? Ultimately, the school is investing in you as a future clinician / professional. The school's name is forever tied to you after you graduate. The accomplishments you make in your future career will give your institution bragging rights, potential funding, and make that school more even favorable down the road. It's your job to convince them in your SOP that you are worth that investment and they'll get something in return by choosing you (other than your tuition money).

Yes, we do exist! From personal experience, I often find myself as the only one in a class of 30-40 students in my department. I thought this would be a good place to connect with other men in the profession to not feel as isolated or like the "token boy". For the ladies, we can help offer a male prospective on the profession, especially since so many young clients receiving speech therapy are boys. A funny anecdote: Last semester, I was given an assignment to create an articulation therapy activity. I was paired with the only other male in my class. We created a Buzz Lightyear themed articulation therapy activity, focusing on word final /z/ in a phrase. During our presentation, we got quite a few oohs and aahs: "Aww... Buzz Lightyear! That's adorable!" After our presentation, we were met with thunderous applause and audible cheers from a couple of my female classmates, "Hooray, boys! Yay! That was so much fun!" While it was flattering, I sometimes wonder if we weren't expected to be as creative or playful in the activity we designed because we're both men. I'm curious to know about others' experiences in the profession.

I apologize in advance for the lengthy post, but I hope what I have to say is helpful regarding SOPs. Several schools have specific questions you need to address in your SOP. Make sure you read the whole prompt (if there is one) and answer every question asked, giving supporting anecdotes from your educational, work, and life experiences that answer those questions. For example, I was asked to discuss my experience working with multi-age, multicultural, and socioeconomically diverse populations. In my essay, I specifically mentioned all three subcategories of diversity and the work I have done in each. I figured that if I didn't, I would automatically take myself out of contention due to not fully answering the question. I also had a variety of people read and edit my essay: Professors in the department, Professors outside the department, faculty, high school English teachers, friends, family, professionals currently working as SLPs or Audiologists, etc. They will help with not only content, but structure, grammar, spelling, and making sure it isn't full of SLP jargon. Follow page and word limits using standard fonts and margins if any are specified. One school to which I applied had a limit of 1 page, double spaced in a size 12 font with standard margins. I had the good fortune of attending a workshop at this school and was told that while they may not scrutinize each measurement, if it looks too far off the standard, they don't read it. (For example, using size 10 font with 1.75 spacing to fit more content on your 1 page limit.) Not following the guidelines tells the admission committee you either can't follow directions, didn't bother reading the prompt, or think that rules don't apply to you. Regardless, you don't leave a good impression. Make your opening statements interesting. The professor leading the previously mentioned workshop told us how she hates the cliche of "I knew I wanted to be a speech pathologist when my [insert relative here] suffered a stroke / Alzheimer's / dementia / TBI / cancer / other illness, injury, or birth defect when I was age [insert young age]. Watching my [relative] go through speech therapy and seeing how regaining speech improved my [relative]'s quality of life influenced my decision to become a speech-language pathologist." Every time she sees one, she rolls her eyes and thinks, "Here we go again." (Funnily, at that workshop, another professor walked into the room as the session leader was giving this very tip. The second professor literally cringed when she heard the cliche opening line, stating, "Oh my gosh, if I EVER see another one of those tragic sob stories of how I knew I wanted to be a speech pathologist at 2 years old when my grandfather had a stroke.... I just.... just don't write it! Please! I'm sorry about your family member, but we see enough of those!") Even if your inspiration actually is a family member going through therapy to recover from injury, illness, or trauma; phrase it in a way that makes it more interesting and more personal. What is it about that relative's struggle that stood out to you? What was it about that therapist's approach to treatment and care for your loved ones that appealed to you? Mention the illness / injury, but focus more on the therapy itself, not just the fact your family member received therapy. If you can, showcase some of your knowledge in your essay; citing specific examples. Obviously, don't mention client names or other identifying characteristics, but you can mention circumstances of their cases. Example: "In my volunteer work, I work with patients diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. One patient in particular was experiencing difficulty with motor planning with regard to speech and word recall due to demyelination in those areas of his brain." If you are going mention a case, make sure you protect patient privacy. Revealing patient information- including location, age, and gender, is a great way to automatically put your application in the reject pile. The physical appearance of what you send makes a big difference. The same workshop leader mentioned how students send her SOPs on thin paper, looseleaf, have ink splotches or faded ink, have torn edges, are crinkled, coffee stained, food-stained, etc. Get a good quality paper, quality ink, and make sure it's physically clean, with your name on each page. You can have the world's most brilliant essay, but if last night's spaghetti sauce landed on your paper, the professors will be too grossed out to even read it. Finally, make sure your personal information is correct. Having a typo in your own name or address is not only embarrassing, it tells the committee you are careless and don't proofread your work.

badgerina, I personally enjoy the program thus far at UWM. The faculty have all been very helpful and approachable They have answer any and every question I have about coursework, grad school, future career path, and the profession in general. They have all responded very timely to emails and many have their doors open for walk-in appointments if needed (though many prefer scheduled appointments). I know there are some who feel a bit intimidated by some of the faculty, but that has not been my experience. The student workroom is a nice space full of assessment tools, therapy games, activities, etc. It is always buzzing with activity. The downside is that the grad students and undergrad students all share the space so it can get a bit crowded during peak hours (ie- lunch). The department has several labs which can be seen here: http://www4.uwm.edu/chs/research/facilities_labs_clinics_centers/labs/communication_sciences_disorders/ UWM also has a very active NSSHLA chapter with things to do every month. If you haven't already, I would highly recommend scheduling a tour of the facility The current graduate students have also been helpful to those of us in the undergrad program, answering questions about homework, guiding us through the grad school application process, and offering us words of encouragement / empathy as we try not to tear our hair out from anxiety. As far as living in Milwaukee, I'm in the suburbs and don't live in city borders. Popular neighborhoods for students, young couples, etc. are the East Side, Washington Heights, and Bayview. However, due to the popularity, prices can be a bit steep. Shorewood and Whitefish Bay are both near campus and within a 10 minute drive. There is also a student park and ride lot, which I use, free of charge to students. It's a 15 minute bus ride to campus from the Shorewood location. There is another location downtown. Places to avoid: Riverwest, north side near Silver Spring, or the former Northridge Mall area.

Unless I know with absolute certainty there is a PhD after the name, I usually go with Professor _______. At some universities, clinical professors / instructors are not required to have PhDs. My current clinical instructor does not have a doctorate, but is M.S., CCC-SLP. In my email correspondences with this instructor, I always address it: "Professor ______." In this case, addressing this instructor as, "Dr. ______" would be inappropriate. While you don't want to make the mistake of being too casual, calling someone Dr. _____ when he/she does not have a PhD can be just as insulting. Previous instructors I have had were very clear about NOT calling them Dr. if they hadn't earned that title.

Currently, I am leaning toward articulation and phonological disorders. However, I am also very curious about language development and literacy, specifically the impact technology (TV, text messaging, IM speak) has on linguistic development in pre-school and school aged children. The disregard for standard spelling, syntax, or grammar in IM Speak; in addition to the abbreviated style of conversation, might have an impact on sophistication of language, vocabulary, and MLUs. That in turn, may have implications down the road which affect a child's reading and writing.

Part of the problem, at least at my local university, is that in order to accommodate more students, the school needs to hire more Clinical Professors to supervise them. The Clinical Professors where I am supervise both the undergrad and grad students. On top of that, they also each teach 2-3 courses. Each graduate class is 25 students, or 50 grad students total. The two undergrad classes is another 50-60 students. To add more students without hiring additional staff compromises the quality of the supervision and training. With state budget cuts, coming up with an extra $60k for another professor can be difficult.

I completed a post-bacc at my local university. I came into SLP through an Education and Linguistics background. It took me a few years of substitute teaching for me to realize whole-classroom teaching wasn't the best fit for me. katie-bird, I would strongly recommend taking some courses before applying. As I mentioned, I came to SLP from Education and Linguistics. While there was some overlap, there was a lot of information I learned in my post-bacc that was not covered in my previous courses of study. At the very least, you will be familiar with at least one specific program, their faculty, and will be able to make professional contacts for those Letters of Recommendation.

I'm a fellow Wisconsinite. goldsti1, I attended UW-Madison for my first undergrad. My degree was in education, so I do not know much about the Com Dis department there, but I love the city and campus. The campus also has a children's center which is great. The city itself is your stereotypical "college town", especially the downtown area. The campus itself is quite large, but it feels much smaller once you get used to it. There are several distinct neighborhoods within the city that each have their own feel. badgerina, I was also accepted to UW-Milwaukee. I am leaning very strongly toward accepting. The greater Milwaukee area is a great place. Feel free to ask any questions you have about the campus and program.