[Interested in Children (specifically Autism or Literacy)]

I’d say in general, most programs are going to give you a broad experience with disorders across the lifespan. They kinda have to for asha accreditation. But my suggestion would be when looking at schools, check their classes and also internship opportunities for ones with an emphasis on autism. 

[How much to reveal]

I agree. I don’t think it needs to be mentioned. Different application committees and universities may have different things they’re looking for so it may not be much of a boost. 

[Disfluent Speech and Tongue Thrust]

I had a grad prof who stuttered. And I met one at an open house for another school. Being able to demonstrate techniques is important so you’re fine if you can do that for your clients/students 

[Needing some advice on going into this field]

Just be aware you’ll have to do pediatric in grad school to get therapy hours. It’s not impossible to go medical but will be more difficult. Look at the SLP Reddit. Others have talked about this and the people there are more established in the field than here. 

[Gift for internship supervisors]

I gave them all a card. One also got cookies and another one a set of pens that she liked. I gave my CF mentor a card and cute decorative sign from hallmark. Whatever shows your gratitude will be appreciated. 

[Grad students: How do you take notes?]

I did computer and eventually my iPad. Helpful to put notes right on PowerPoints or PDFs. A handful of classmates took notes by hand but most were computer. 

[Taking the GRE multiple times]

I’d take it and find out your score. Then you really know where you’re at and where to improve. I don’t think you have to send them to schools if you aren’t happy with the score. Or if you haven’t registered yet, don’t waste the money until you’re ready. It’s expensive and stressful so make it count. 

[What to do?]

GRE is worth a shot. I used magoosh and raised my verbal quite a bit. 

[First Practicum Experience]

Whoa that is rough! Mine were much more laidback and never that many hours. Unfortunately you’re probably stuck with the agreement the school made. For our school placements we were explicitly told not to readjust hours, even those with long commutes. I will say I don’t think that’s at all typical of the field. Every setting is different but that seems overkill. Find a way to take breaths, relax, be calm, and push through. 

[Do SLP professors grade on a curve?]

Not curved in my grad program

[Certain Schools chances]

Clinical as in medical or research or as in anything but schools? My program was less about settings and more about disorders and treatment. We all had to do one medical and one school placement, plus another wherever. As long as you understand the disorders and treatment you can apply it to many job settings 

[What email should I use?]

I used my personal email. As long as it isn’t something unprofessional (ie not your name) you should be fine. 

[How long is too long of a commute?]

The one hour sounds doable. You can read study or plan sessions on the train. As long as they run early or late enough when you have to be on campus. It’ll get old but that’s a good chunk of money too. 

As for moving home, I did it last year for an internship. I did hate parts of it since I was 26 and literally had no friends at all for seven months. The internship kept me busy as did studying for the praxis and comps. Then I had to find other ways to keep busy when I had no job in between internship and starting my cfy. But it saved me a lot of money and is now a distant memory

[UW MedSLP Regrets?]

I can’t speak for that specific program (sorry) but I will say even an easier program will likely be demanding. My program wasn’t necessarily difficult, but we had to learn to manage our time well to be able study and also plan daily sessions. I’d consider what placements and externship opportunities you’ll have. Those often make the biggest difference when job hunting. And consider if the cost is worth it. We don’t make bank as SLPs and if tuition or cost of living is astronomical then you’ll be paying it off for years while having comparable job prospects as most other schools. 

[SLP vs AuD]

I’m not sure where you’re getting the short term part of SLP. Unless you’re working in acute care or rehab or a traveling SLP. In schools or private therapy you spend a lot of time with clients. 

[Do you email a program to decline an offer?]

For ones that had a decline button I just used that. The only one I sent an additional email to was to a professor I’d been in contact with about the program and had been nice enough to give me a tour. I don’t think it’s necessary to send an email unless that’s how they want your decision. 

[Clinical Fellowship Year Question]

Agree with above post. Generally CFY isn’t connected to your grad school state but some states are very particular with school licensure and NY is one. Look on Facebook or reddit for SLP related threads or groups. 

[what does this email mean?]

Do they have any sort of portal system or email? I wasn’t aware that one school had created an email upon application and my acceptance was sent there. 

[April 15th on a Sunday]

Obviously hard to say. But I got accepted a few years back a day or two before the 15th from a waitlisted school. And another school sent me its acceptance on a Sunday afternoon (not a waitlist school). Very surprised when I saw that email! But probably an exception. 

[Thank You Notes/Gifts for recommenders]

Email or thank you notes are just fine. Any thought of gratitude is good. 

[Should I interview even if I know I already want to go somewhere else?]

I almost didn’t interview with one because I had other offers. I ended up turning those down for the school I interviewed for! Might as well see what happens. 

[Surviving the waiting game]

I got off one waitlist on like April 14. And rejected in May by a couple others. No guarantee when they start!

[Can I connect experience from my current job to speech-language pathology?]

Agree with above. Think what general lessons you learned and skills you developed that will be relevant across the board

[What to wear to an open house for admitted students?]

I did jeans at mine a couple years ago. It was mainly a Q&A plus a tour so casual made sense. With a nice top is fine. 

[Rush vs. Northwestern for SLP Master's]

23 hours ago, CEFM said:

Thank you for your advice, jpiccolo!  How did you like Utah State, and how are you liking being an SLP?

Usu was surprisingly good! Haha mainly because it was far from my top choice. But the clinic was strong and my cohort amazing. 

Being an SLP so far is also good! Definitely confusing and tiring but I feel like I was pretty well prepared and I have supportive colleagues and mentor. Always more to learn but CFY is almost over!