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Are you on the Speech Pathologists At Large Facebook group? There may be one there you can reach out to directly. 
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2212002912/?fref=ts 

No need to retake it! I got a C in my intro math class, and another in Physics, and was admitted to 3/4 programs I applied to. Focus on your major-specific classes and your GRE. 

Don't forget about debt forgiveness programs, especially if your loans are Federal Direct Sub/Unsub Loans. After a consistent 120 payments (10 years) you can qualify to have the rest of your debt forgiven if you work in public service, which most SLPs do anyway. If you get an extended payment plan, you should have a decent chunk forgiven! There are other programs, like working on Native American reservations, that also do loan repayment. So many opportunities! 

Is there anything you can do to make your applications more personal? Can you email professors and express interest in their work, specifically? Have you met with deans? It sounds like the numbers are not necessarily working in your favor, so go for the personal element. Meet people in the field and make an impression. Make sure your letters of recommendation are strong, too. What does your personal statement look like? Have you addressed your low GPA in your personal statement?
Just ideas -- I would also study for the GRE and retake it. Consider programs with more relaxed GPA/GRE cutoffs. In the end, we are all SLPs, and its been my experience that people don't really care where you got your degree once you're in the workforce. Best of luck! 
 
 
 

Is there anything you can do to make your applications more personal? Can you email professors and express interest in their work, specifically? Have you met with deans? It sounds like the numbers are not necessarily working in your favor, so go for the personal element. Meet people in the field and make an impression. Make sure your letters of recommendation are strong, too. What does your personal statement look like? Have you addressed your low GPA in your personal statement?
Just ideas -- I would also study for the GRE and retake it. Consider programs with more relaxed GPA/GRE cutoffs. In the end, we are all SLPs, and its been my experience that people don't really care where you got your degree once you're in the workforce. Best of luck! 
 
 
 

Your stats are better than mine and I got in to UT Dallas, University of Arizona, and NMState. 

List it under its own heading as "volunteer" and/or "related experience." My resume has the headings - Education, Leadership (Residence Life, mentoring, etc.), Relevant experience (observation, undergrad practicum, research), volunteer, work experience (jobs that I was actually paid for), skills (other languages spoken, computer skills, familiarity with certain software programs, etc.). 

Might as well! It won't hurt to see what happens. You could always email the grad programs you're interested in and ask what their opinions are. 
Best of luck! 

I would say first thing is to ask in person. Second, yes you can absolutely ask a current professor. Be sure though to have worked with him/her long enough so that he or she can comment on your abilities as a student. I would recommend until after the first exam or major essay/project. 
Also, don't let your first visit to your professor's office be when you ask for the LOR. Be sure to have visited several times (ask for help, clarify things, discuss your plans, advising, etc). Not all LOR's are created equal - just getting one isn't the goal, you want one that will get you into school. 

Schatzie15, that would be awesome to hear from other teachers and career changers! I will email Dr Stillman and UNT - just never thought they would be friendly enough to advise a student calling or emailing them. UTD would be my top choice for the graduate program, of course! I can email them or message you with my email. I appreciate your help! (:

I am currently at UT Dallas and while I'm not in the same position as you, I know of at least 4 ladies in the program who are in similar positions! Former teachers, at least one with a couple kids, wanting to change their career. Would you like me to reach out to them and possibly connect y'all? 
Also, if you haven't already, email the UT Dallas COMD program director, Dr. Stillman, and get his advice. He is so kind and willing to help current and future students. I know nothing about Univ. of North TX, but it also couldn't hurt to email their program head and just see what they say. Maybe you don't have to do as much as you think! 
Best of luck! 

List it under its own heading as "volunteer" and/or "related experience." My resume has the headings - Education, Leadership (Residence Life, mentoring, etc.), Relevant experience (observation, undergrad practicum, research), volunteer, work experience (jobs that I was actually paid for), skills (other languages spoken, computer skills, familiarity with certain software programs, etc.). 

This is the SLP forum... My somewhat educated guess is that there would be a 75-90 (???) percent decrease in the number of SLP grad students if we all followed your advice. I think that what you're saying is appropriate for most grad students. But the reality for this field is that there's just not very much funding. On the flip side, we're all virtually guaranteed jobs once we're certified. Not sure if that's true for most graduate students. 

A ton of girls live in the Village, so it's highly recommended. They have several complexes but are all under one management company, so prices range depending on whether or not you want gated, 1/2 bedroom, pets, etc.  It's about halfway in-between Richardson and Callier Dallas, so when you have a Richardson practicum it's easy to get to. I also know several who live off of Maple Ave, which is really close to Callier Dallas. My best advice is to come and visit Dallas if you can and choose an apartment based off of that. I made the mistake of finding a place I thought was good, cheap, and nice enough, and I got broken into after a couple months and had to move. I'm now paying double (literally) but I KNOW I'm safe and I'm much closer to Callier Dallas. Also check out Dallas PD's website - they have a feature where you can search address ranges and see what crime is in that area. 

One of the things I love about UTD is that every couple weeks, I make a new friend. That's one of the advantages of being in a large program! You definitely get to know the people you're in practicum with, and your first semester you'll likely have all the same core classes as the other first semester students. If you're willing to put the effort into making a close group of friends, you'll definitely find people who want that too! 

I can only speak for my experience, but it was all done through financial aid. There are very few, if any, assistantships available and I think they're competitive? This would be a better question for Dr. Stillman to answer. Funding was the make-or-break factor for me, and financial aid came through with grants and loans and work study. If you qualify for work study, you are pretty much guaranteed a job, but not the full hours it takes to earn all of the money (20 hrs). There are also emails sent out ALL the time about babysitting opportunities and that's how I make most of my money. It's manageable to babysit or work part time - I know a couple girls bartend on the side - and manage your coursework and practicums. 

I'm in my last semester at UT Dallas and thought I'd chime in.  BamaBelle, I think UTD has a very helpful and kind student body.  While it is impossible to create one big 50 person family, I think people form groups of friends based on their practicums and classmates.  The way things are graded in the program does not create an atmosphere of competition (no curves) so people are generally helpful with one another.  Like someone said earlier, the department is quite small and you will most likely be lectured by the some of your practicum supervisors.  On campus practicum supervisors want you to succeed and understand that this can all be new and scary.  I have always felt supported.  In my opinion, the first semester is the hardest semester in terms of workload but it is more than doable with time management.  
CGB321, the first semester, you will generally be placed in an adult/pediatric core; students don't usually give their input.  However, if you had a specific interest, you might be able to talk to someone and ask that you are placed in the pediatric core that focuses on (autism, receptive/expressive delays, etc).  There is not really a big difference with adult cores.  But, then with the other non-core on-campus practicums, you can add on experiences if they are available and fit into your schedule.  These are generally one day opportunities like the accent reduction, swallow studies, and dementia programs.  My advice for the first semester is to just stick with your core practicum as the workload will keep you busy.  Most of the pediatric cores are 4 mornings a week, which means you will earn a lot of hours but will be incredibly busy with mornings and afternoons full from M-Th.  The only way I'd recommend adding a second practicum is if you are assigned the adult core, as that is 2 days/week. 
 
 
 

Hey all! I am a current student at UTD - in my 2nd semester. I absolutely love it and am SO excited for everyone who's gotten accepted! And for those who haven't yet, no worries, acceptances are sent out on a rolling basis.
As for the questions about class size... It is one of the largest programs, so the classes are larger. The 6 core classes (Neuro 1, Motor Speech, Voice, Stuttering, Assessment and Intervention, and Dysphagia)  will be the biggest, and for the most part, they are in a lecture hall that seats probably 150 people. It has cushioned chairs with those little desk tops that flip up from the side of the chair, and a powerpoint screen and stage at the front of the room.  Assessment and Intervention was in a different, smaller room that seats maybe 80 comfortably, and it has chairs attached to long, skinny tables (this room is actually a favorite of mine, because there are outlets in the tables so you can charge your laptop without stretching a cord across the floor). Most electives have smaller class sizes, as people's interests begin to diverge. One of my electives has more people and it's in the lecture hall, and one is smaller and in a conference room. So it really just depends. 
There are not multiple sections offered - certain core classes are only offered in the Fall, others in the Spring, and Dysphagia in the Summer. Because there are only 6 core classes, though, you still get to take a TON of electives once you've gotten them out of the way. 
That being said - don't be intimidated by the large classes! The professors are still very accessible, especially for the core classes, and there's a good chance they'll be your practicum supervisor, clinical advisor, academic advisor, etc. so you'll get to know them really well. They're also accessible before and after class. The larger classes all have TAs who pitch in, too. The professors all encourage asking questions and class participation, so even in a large class, you're discussing things with peers, asking questions, answering questions, etc. 
I really encourage you to come visit and see the program for yourself! Let me know if I can do anything more to help! 

Hey all! I am a current student at UTD - in my 2nd semester. I absolutely love it and am SO excited for everyone who's gotten accepted! And for those who haven't yet, no worries, acceptances are sent out on a rolling basis.
As for the questions about class size... It is one of the largest programs, so the classes are larger. The 6 core classes (Neuro 1, Motor Speech, Voice, Stuttering, Assessment and Intervention, and Dysphagia)  will be the biggest, and for the most part, they are in a lecture hall that seats probably 150 people. It has cushioned chairs with those little desk tops that flip up from the side of the chair, and a powerpoint screen and stage at the front of the room.  Assessment and Intervention was in a different, smaller room that seats maybe 80 comfortably, and it has chairs attached to long, skinny tables (this room is actually a favorite of mine, because there are outlets in the tables so you can charge your laptop without stretching a cord across the floor). Most electives have smaller class sizes, as people's interests begin to diverge. One of my electives has more people and it's in the lecture hall, and one is smaller and in a conference room. So it really just depends. 
There are not multiple sections offered - certain core classes are only offered in the Fall, others in the Spring, and Dysphagia in the Summer. Because there are only 6 core classes, though, you still get to take a TON of electives once you've gotten them out of the way. 
That being said - don't be intimidated by the large classes! The professors are still very accessible, especially for the core classes, and there's a good chance they'll be your practicum supervisor, clinical advisor, academic advisor, etc. so you'll get to know them really well. They're also accessible before and after class. The larger classes all have TAs who pitch in, too. The professors all encourage asking questions and class participation, so even in a large class, you're discussing things with peers, asking questions, answering questions, etc. 
I really encourage you to come visit and see the program for yourself! Let me know if I can do anything more to help! 

Hey all! I am a current student at UTD - in my 2nd semester. I absolutely love it and am SO excited for everyone who's gotten accepted! And for those who haven't yet, no worries, acceptances are sent out on a rolling basis.
As for the questions about class size... It is one of the largest programs, so the classes are larger. The 6 core classes (Neuro 1, Motor Speech, Voice, Stuttering, Assessment and Intervention, and Dysphagia)  will be the biggest, and for the most part, they are in a lecture hall that seats probably 150 people. It has cushioned chairs with those little desk tops that flip up from the side of the chair, and a powerpoint screen and stage at the front of the room.  Assessment and Intervention was in a different, smaller room that seats maybe 80 comfortably, and it has chairs attached to long, skinny tables (this room is actually a favorite of mine, because there are outlets in the tables so you can charge your laptop without stretching a cord across the floor). Most electives have smaller class sizes, as people's interests begin to diverge. One of my electives has more people and it's in the lecture hall, and one is smaller and in a conference room. So it really just depends. 
There are not multiple sections offered - certain core classes are only offered in the Fall, others in the Spring, and Dysphagia in the Summer. Because there are only 6 core classes, though, you still get to take a TON of electives once you've gotten them out of the way. 
That being said - don't be intimidated by the large classes! The professors are still very accessible, especially for the core classes, and there's a good chance they'll be your practicum supervisor, clinical advisor, academic advisor, etc. so you'll get to know them really well. They're also accessible before and after class. The larger classes all have TAs who pitch in, too. The professors all encourage asking questions and class participation, so even in a large class, you're discussing things with peers, asking questions, answering questions, etc. 
I really encourage you to come visit and see the program for yourself! Let me know if I can do anything more to help! 

Hi I don't know much about class size but do have contact info for a current student so if I manage to get the info i'll come back here and post it for everyone.
I have visited the clinic which is what our "campus" will be.  I did not however get any insight on what our classroom space looks like, Idk why/how that slipped my mind but the program is really neat so i'll use that in my defense!  
Compared to my current school's clinic theirs' is AMAZING, not only do they have multiple treatment rooms that are all kind of interconnected with a U-shape of rooms and doors but also a mock-preschool classroom that looks and functions like a real preschool as far as I could tell.  I witnessed some group therapy in session where each child had a student sitting next to them in the "classroom."  Very cool and something I think most programs do not have.  My school has small rooms that are very stark with a table in the center.  
Also they have an indoor playground space that is really cool, not sure the therapy correlation because it was awhile ago but still another unique resource.
And people wise all the students were EXTREMELY friendly and all very happy to be there.  They were smiling, in grad school...that is something I have not witnessed from many programs so I weigh that pretty heavily  
 

I talked about bilingual specialization! It's something I want to pursue, no doubt, and I had mentioned it to Dr. Stillman. He set up an informal meeting for me with Dr. Rojas, the main bilingual researcher and bilingual course faculty member. Dr. Rojas was very nice and extremely knowledgeable, and loved to talk about his research. I listened to it in detail for about 20 minutes, haha. It seemed relatively easy to get involved in his lab and projects. He also said that the Dallas Independent School District (DISD) has parts with predominantly bilingual (English/Spanish) children, so a practicum in that setting would be very useful to those interested in bilingualism. 
My impression of the program was that it's really what you make of it - you can be as specialized or as general as you want. I don't think it would be difficult to incorporate bilingual emphasis into the degree plan, as long as you (and I!) are willing to just run with it. 

Hi guys - so I visited the UTD Communication Disorders program in March and totally haven't had time to write my impressions of the program (which I think some of you wanted to know!) so here goes: 
The Callier Center is its own building in the Southwestern Medical District of Dallas, about a half hour from the Richardson campus. The building is really unimposing and unimpressive, with plenty of parking in the lots and parking decks, but decently nice inside. 
Dr. Stillman is a wonderful human being - he was so welcoming! This goes for every faculty member I interacted with. Everyone was relaxed, kind, and helpful... faculty and administrative doors were open and people were very accessible, which surprised me considering what a large program UTD is. One of the students remarked to me that she had never needed to make an appointment to interact with Dr. Stillman or the clinical advisor. 
Most of the students I spoke with work part time either out in the community or in the department or with work-study, and said that it was easy to balance practicums, class work, and a job. Paid positions included research, if anyone is interested in that, as well as more administrative positions. There are several research programs going on and the lab facilities seemed very nice, and there is a new center for studying Autism that is being built (might be almost done/near opening!). 
The degree program itself is very flexible, with only 6 (I believe) core classes and a huge number of electives. If you know what you want to specialize in, this is the place to do it! If you want to explore, this is also a great place. Related to that - there are practicum placements all over Dallas, with public and private schools, medical centers, the Callier Center, as well as opportunities on the Richardson campus. Students said that they usually got the practicum placement that they wanted because the students all have such broad interests, no one is studying on the exact same track as someone else. This creates an environment that isn't very competitive, but rather, supportive. The two required practicum experiences are child and adult based, but from there you can follow your interests. 
 
Overall, if you couldn't tell, I really enjoyed my visit to the program and am seriously considering attending. Let me know if you have any other questions or comments or whatever. I asked about 8000 questions while I was there and everyone was so patient with me, as well as knowledgeable. Yay! 

Hi guys - so I visited the UTD Communication Disorders program in March and totally haven't had time to write my impressions of the program (which I think some of you wanted to know!) so here goes: 
The Callier Center is its own building in the Southwestern Medical District of Dallas, about a half hour from the Richardson campus. The building is really unimposing and unimpressive, with plenty of parking in the lots and parking decks, but decently nice inside. 
Dr. Stillman is a wonderful human being - he was so welcoming! This goes for every faculty member I interacted with. Everyone was relaxed, kind, and helpful... faculty and administrative doors were open and people were very accessible, which surprised me considering what a large program UTD is. One of the students remarked to me that she had never needed to make an appointment to interact with Dr. Stillman or the clinical advisor. 
Most of the students I spoke with work part time either out in the community or in the department or with work-study, and said that it was easy to balance practicums, class work, and a job. Paid positions included research, if anyone is interested in that, as well as more administrative positions. There are several research programs going on and the lab facilities seemed very nice, and there is a new center for studying Autism that is being built (might be almost done/near opening!). 
The degree program itself is very flexible, with only 6 (I believe) core classes and a huge number of electives. If you know what you want to specialize in, this is the place to do it! If you want to explore, this is also a great place. Related to that - there are practicum placements all over Dallas, with public and private schools, medical centers, the Callier Center, as well as opportunities on the Richardson campus. Students said that they usually got the practicum placement that they wanted because the students all have such broad interests, no one is studying on the exact same track as someone else. This creates an environment that isn't very competitive, but rather, supportive. The two required practicum experiences are child and adult based, but from there you can follow your interests. 
 
Overall, if you couldn't tell, I really enjoyed my visit to the program and am seriously considering attending. Let me know if you have any other questions or comments or whatever. I asked about 8000 questions while I was there and everyone was so patient with me, as well as knowledgeable. Yay! 

My advisor told me that each graduate school decided which courses count and which courses don´t - not ASHA itself. So you should check with any grad schools you´re interested in.