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

I love hearing from people who are in the same situation as I am! Makes me feel less alone. We all worked so hard to get here and we're in a great place to be with these choices but it's more difficult than I ever would have imagined to come to a decision, especially since a year ago I was certain that I'd be rejected everywhere and I'd be working at McDonalds (no offense if anyone works/worked there haha). I have a BA in psych too; my school didn't offer CSD and so my friends don't know about what we all have to go through to get to school in this field and how difficult it is to choose a school among such great options. (Sidenote--everyone seems to come from Linguistics and I'm jealous that my undergraduate university didn't offer that as a major either! Sounds like it would have been really interesting). Anyway, I love Boston as well. I can't say enough about this place and there is nowhere I'd rather be in terms of my future career as an SLP. I do have to say you guys are all making a strong case for MGH--I'm really going to have to take a closer look when the admitted students day comes around because it is going to be hard to say no to what this school has to offer. I hope I find you guys when I get to the info session so we can go out for drinks when it's over for a debrief! @Nala, first of all, you have a great attitude. I wish I was that calm and collected about this decision and I'm going to take a leaf from your book. I'm going through the same thing myself regarding the decision to choose a more expensive school over a cheaper option. I feel like I might regret it if I chose a school that doesn't have the resources that a more expensive and well-connected school can provide. I applied to Worcester State as my cheap local school and (even though I don't know if I've even been accepted yet), I don't think I can seriously consider it anymore given the resources at BU and MGH. Also, I really hope you come to Boston!!! If you regret anything, I promise it won't be your time spent in this amazing city

Honestly, I'm in total agreement with @LuxAurorae, if you're on the fence regarding Med-SLP vs. school Emerson is the easy choice. I'm a big fan of Emerson. It's a great program, everyone is incredibly supportive (it's like a family over there--I loved the atmosphere when I visited), it's more affordable, and best of all: it's balanced. While it's not heavily and solely focused on med SLP like MGH is, you CAN do a medical placement. Or, you can do a school placement--they will help you get what you want. Emerson does work with the hospitals in the area and I believe it when they say they can get you placed in a hospital if that's what you decide. Now, if you were sure you wanted to work with adult populations I would think twice, but even then I would still say Emerson is trying really hard to work on shaking off the "pediatric-only" focus so you would still probably be okay. Alternately, on the topic of MGH, I would not worry too much about jobs. I mean I've never had to find a job as an SLP (obviously!) but I couldn't imagine it, especially coming from MGH. On the website it advertises: "Our graduates are known as being broadly prepared to serve in both educational and health care settings. Some of our graduates ultimately do both. Graduates from a recent class had 100% job placement; more than 80% obtained their first job choice." Now that doesn't necessarily mean that your job placement will be in the highest paid hospital/school on your first try but, really and truly, MGH is highly regarded. God knows, the job market could change, but MGH really is one of the best around so if it's hard to get a job as an MGH grad, it would only be if the field suddenly turned into a really tough market for all SLP grads.

@LuxArorea WOW. You totally hit the nail(s) on the head with that list!!! You literally touched on everything I have been going back and forth over for the past week. I think I'm going to print this out and put it under my pillow to review the next time I have a panic attack over this!! (Jk about the panic attacks, I'm being dramatic, but but maybe not totally kidding about the pillow thing). Being in Boston is both a positive and a negative in that I'm so comfortable here--maybe I need to get away to shine? Or maybe I'll leave and be so homesick that I'm miserable and immediately fail out? Also, with regards to Boston Children's, I'm fairly sure I could get in there from any of the three schools. I say this not because I think I'm that great but I do currently work there..so I would hope that my current connections would prove useful if I want to come back. And, I do want to come back (at least I think I do right now, but what do I know? Maybe I'll find someplace amazing elsewhere). In other words, I do have some connections in the works but I'm not totally sure how these will pan out after 2 years of SLP grad school. I spoke to one of the tour guides who went to Emerson. She also said a drawback to MGH was the larger class size. She mentioned that she sat in on a course for Emerson, BU, and MGH and that the only school she could not see herself at was MGH because the class was huge and she felt like she was drowning in it and not absorbing enough information. I think she had the right idea to sit in on a class because that's the best way to really experience the program. I don't know if what she said is valid or not but I suppose that's also something that we could do to compare programs. @lisa19 could you sit in on a course at NYU? Maybe that would help.

Thanks for validating my confusion! Lol. It's hard because when I try to talk this through with other people they don't know about speech path schools and job placement for this field so they don't really have any advice for me. I asked to visit San Diego and they said they don't do an accepted students day. But, I was invited to Skype with the program director so I'll probably do that. And I could potentially take a trip down to sit in on a class--and that's something I'm considering doing, especially because its a chance to get some sun . But I'm definitely visiting BU, MGH, and Vanderbilt so I can have something to compare it to. If it's nothing like those programs then I'll probably choose Vandy, just because of cost. Gahh Idk!!! Hi Erica, wow, thank you for this. I did apply to competitive schools with the thought that I would most likely be rejected so I was surprised by some of these options. You make a very good point. I did contact MGH about funding (I did not mentioin my other acceptances though) and they basically said "well we have loans for you!" (haha...thanks but I'm still broke for the next 20 years?). But maybe BU could offer something, I haven't asked yet. That would take a lot of courage to leverage myself! I could do it though and I think I will take your advice. it's not like it could hurt at this point since I've pretty much decided that MGH and BU are too expensive when I have Vandy as a somewhat cheaper option. I have to do something because, knowing me, I'd just spend a month worrying about it without actually making any headway in terms of choosing a school or getting financial aid. I'm just going to keep repeating to myself "asking is free!" haha. Thanks for the advice!!! MGH is a great school and you will be so successful there, I have no doubt

Aww, I'm sorry to hear that If it makes you feel any better, I was rejected almost immediately after my interview and it didn't feel great either haha. Especially because that meant that it wasn't my stats that were the problem--it was just me that they didn't like lol. Safe to say that they messed up by passing us up @argslp! Your stats are great and I think you'll have a great offer come along soon that will make Emerson look like a school for ants (Totally joking for all those accepted to Emerson--I'm just bitter! lol)

Hi all, I'm pretty much in the same boat here with a twist--I'm really interested in working in a medical setting but it would actually be cheaper for me to move! Ideally, I want to work with children in a hospital but I know this is a specialized interest. So, I focused on applying to schools where I would have the opportunity to have some great medical placements. I was accepted into BU and MGH, and LOVE both programs especially because they have great opportunities to work in the medical field in a city with some of the best hospitals in the country. I haven’t seen MGH in person yet but I know for a fact that it has an outstanding reputation here (my mother is a nurse who works at a Boston hospital and speaks highly of it, and she’s hard to impress). I’ll be at the open house, so I hope I’ll see you guys there @LuxAurorae, @lisa19 !. But, even though I'm from Boston, if I go to either of these schools I will still have to get a place to stay as my parent's will not be an option (too long of a commute). Which means that these will be expensive. Like, $100,000-in-debt-after-two-years expensive. My other option is Vanderbilt, which I know has amazing placements at Vanderbilt Children’s hospital. And, this would be somewhat less expensive as Nashville is a much cheaper place to live. Again, great program, great placements but is it really necessary to spend all that money? What's really making my choice so difficult to just bite the bullet and choose one of these amazing med-speech programs is my acceptance into a school I have wanted to go to for a long time--San Diego State. Even though the school is not medically focused per say, it is a great program and has the opportunity to work with bilingual speakers as there are many in the area. So far I’ve heard positive things about the program and the faculty (and the city!) and I’m confident that I would do well there. Plus, there is also a lot of opportunity to get involved in research, my other passion. There is a hospital in San Diego but the chance of a placement in pediatrics is slim, according to the program director. But, the best thing about this option, for me at least, is that it's really cheap! I could actually save myself 80,000 dollars worth of debt by moving across the country. Sounds crazy but I'm considering it... Anyway, can you tell that I’m conflicted?? I have so many great options! Which, is a great thing--don’t get me wrong I am so incredibly grateful. BUT this is causing me a lot of stress. I can’t sleep at night and every time I think I’ve decided what my #1 choice would be I panic and start reconsidering my options. I almost want to just pick a school out of a hat or something so I have chance to blame if I make the wrong choice. Any thoughts? Any one else as confused as I am?

You could try contacting the school to request an extension of the deadline just until you hear back from your top choice. Have you asked if that is a possibility? They might be flexible if you express your interest in the program but just need a little bit more time to consider all offers.

Yay!!!!! I was so hoping that was the case. This is coming from looking at BU's tuition and cringing ($44,000). Jokes

Hi @SoonToBeSLP congrats on the acceptance!!! I received a call from Ignatius Nip today and he was super nice, he talked to me all about the program and answered my questions. I highly recommend you contact him if you need details about the program. Otherwise he might just call you anyway. Also, I was wondering about that myself and I found this page on the website: http://arweb.sdsu.edu/es/admissions/costs.html . It looks like 20,440 for Cal residents (...not sure if that's per year or per semester? Looks like per year. But I don't know for sure as many of the Boston schools have a semester rates like that). I'm not sure what the deal is for the summer session is. Sorry that I'm not much of a help--basically I'm confused as well. But if you talk to Ignatius or email the department could you let me know?

Oh yay it is updated now! Thanks