ladyinwaiting23

Hi there, I know there are a few hospitals around Boston that offer tuition reimbursement for courses that could lead to a degree relevant to a potentially obtainable hospital job. It doesn't count for things like GRE prep courses, but SLP pre-recs count. I took advantage of tuition assistance by working as a research assistant at Boston Children's Hospital. As long as I worked at BCH full-time I could get up to $5,000 in reimbursements for books + tuition, and if you were there part-time you could get up to $2,500. The only issue was that you had to pay the costs up front and could only get reimbursed at the end of the semester if you got a B or better in the class and remained an employee there for the entire length of the course. The $5,000 was the allowance for the year so some of the more expensive (i.e., in-person classes) probably would have put me over the reimbursement limit, but through USU it was always pretty cheap so I was able to have all of my classes paid for. It's a great deal if you can find it! Sorry I don't know more about the hospitals in California though.

I did get a chance to visit about a month ago and I was absolutely blown away by the facilities. The clinical training is a huge factor as well considering that it's one on one and it's not a student clinic like most schools. Plus, the city is amazing, I had so much fun and I could definitely picture myself there. I found this adorable coffee shop on Edgehill and I can't wait to go back! Haha. So California to Nashville is going to be a big move for you--much farther than my trip anyway. Have you started looking around for places yet?

Oh that's really cool. I wish I could say I had musical talents but, alas, I have none. If you like working with singers Nashville is definitely the way to go! And the voice tract is a lot of work from what I've heard but completely worth it. Did you get the chance to visit or tour the campus at all? I was a psychology major in undergrad and I specialized in human services. I have a really strong pediatric research background from my undergrad career and from the 2 years I took off from school. I'm excited to get back into it though!

Hi Matthew, I'll be attending Vanderbilt University this Fall as well. I'm really excited for the program and to move to Nashville I'm from the Boston area and I'm also from out of major, although I have some pre-recs completed already. Looking forward to meeting you! You mentioned that you're a musician--what do you play?

CONGRATS!!!

According to the results search: SDSU: 400 applicants for only 37 spots -9.2% East Bay: 281 applicants for 16 spots -5.6%

Sure! I had my stats up previously so I might as well share. I have a BA in Psychology with prerequisite courses from USU. Overall GPA: 4.99, GRE V: 167 Q154 W: 4.5, lots of pediatric research experience. Also, has anyone else made a decision yet? I chose Vanderbilt officially this week!!! I know @artsyrunnergirl did (congrats, by the way! UT Dallas sounds like it's where you wanted to be and I'm happy for you )

I finally got mine!!! Just randomly checked the portal and it was there. It was a "conditional acceptance" (and no mention of financial aid) but I'll take it! I hope you all get good news

Thanks so much @ballerina18 and @lgwslp!!! That's really helpful. So, from what I gather, being in a medically based program would give me a leg up but the more important thing is the CFY. The trouble with some of my local schools is that they don't have abundant/great resources for clinical placements in children's hospitals or a pediatric unit within a hospital. I'll have to find out more about how they can help me with the CFY though so I definitely have some researching to do.

@ballerina18, you mentioned you have volunteered with a mix of MA and MS SLPs in a hospital--do you know what programs they attended? Did they attend general SLP programs or programs specifically tailored for work in the medical setting? I'm struggling with my choice between a cheap school and couple of good medical SLP programs so I was just wondering if it really does make a difference in the job world for SLPs working in hospitals

That's a conclusion based on data from a relatively small sample size. Besides--do you like the people on this forum? Most of us are applying to speech path programs and I think we're a pretty cool and supportive community What is it you like about your audiology professors that you haven't found for your SLP professors? It may have something more to do with the material than personality.

Yes, I am leaning towards Vandy right now (or that's my opinion today at least, who knows what I'll be thinking tomorrow! I seem to keep changing my mind haha so maybe I'm not a good person to ask...). I'm looking for a program with a medical focus and they have connections with Vanderbilt Children's Hospital. The other school I'm considering is MGH because it's an amazing program near my home/friends/family and is where I want to be hired after I graduate. But MGH is more expensive even without tuition assistance. I do have the same concerns that you do about the competitive nature of the Vanderbilt's program though, so that's definitely something to consider as well. I want to be happy for the next two years even if I'm a little stressed! I think the best approach is to contact current students at Vanderbilt and see how they're doing in the program which might give you an idea if it would be a good match for you. I'm flying down to see the facilities this weekend though, and I've heard absolutely amazing things! Are you going to visit?

Oh my gosh that's awesome, congrats!!!! I'm still waiting anxiously for my letter . What was making you lean towards UT Dallas prior to getting financial aid from Vandy?

It's funny because I was having a hard time with the pro/con list too because of that same issue! Also some of my pros and cons were not of equal importance so it wasn't like I could look at the list and say that one was better because it had the best pro/con ratio. My solution was to make a weighted pro/con list so that each item also factors in the probability that it will occur and it's importance. Then the pros and cons can be compared to one another for each school. It seems complicated but it's in excel so I don't need to calculate out the math. If anyone wants one PM me and I can send you a copy of the file!

@shuca SAME I'm normally so good at making decisions! And now I'm flip flopping all over the place like I don't even know which way is up haha