takeuwithme

You are so right! Well I am very unhappy in my dispatcher job, so that's another reason I need my SLPA. Plus if I don't get into grad school, I can always have my SLPA. For me, associates online degree is cheaper than Post-Bac. In IL where I live, there are above average job opportunities as SLPA which is good. The thing for me is I don't want to waste time by being waitlisted or denied so many times and not have a speech type job to fall back on. If push comes to shove, I might have to work as SLPA for a few years to save money for it and to get experience. See, you have the luxury of being able to get a loan. That's the difference. I do not. My bachelor degree loan is still in deferment. Obama is working on forgiving all past student loans for those who want a new degree, but it's not finalized yet. That would SO help me right now. What is ABA therapist? You got accepted to three colleges, wow that is great. What do you think were your steps to a successful acceptance into a grad school? I am planning to work part time during grad school, as SLPA. For me, I did do Special Olympics once in high school, I worked with foster teenagers preparing for adulthood after I got my BA in Soc/HS. I also tutored ESL for adult spanish speaker student for almost 2 years. I am done volunteering. I start SLPA program in the fall, and working full time so I won't have any time for that. I would like to go back to tutoring ESL after I become a SLP(if that is). I'm wondering if I should include a variety of practicum sites during my SLPA internship though which might help grad school acceptance, such as working with kids one place, and adults another. I also plan to take two part time SLPA jobs one with kids and one with adults after I get my SLPA. My daughter will be 16 when I get my SLPA, and we might relocate to another area after she turns 18, if I can't find something in IL but it looks like there are lots of opportunities in IL according to the national statistics. Thank you for your input. I wish they had a Facebook group or something where people who got accepted into SLP grad school gave advice to those trying to get in. I am seeing horror stories of people not getting accepted after doing everything they could to get in.

Have you tried Tseng college? It's in CA but it's all online. It's through California State University. It is accredited too. I'm thinking of UW Eau Claire since (WI) I live in IL and it's online part time program after working as SLPA. Tseng would be my b/u plan even though it's 100 dollars more/credit. It's 725/credit at Tseng. Is there a GRE study guide or something people can use to prepare for the GRE? Wow physics and chemistry you have to take? I didn't know that. I took Chemistry at a community college, but the teacher sucked, I got a C in the class. Probably not good. Here is the link for Tseng: http://tsengcollege.csun.edu/programs/CDS/faq So are you volunteering or are you working in speech field to get experience? I plan on getting SLPA license and working for a year, and then try. I am worried about his GRE and other scores won't be good enough though. I am going to make sure my GPA is really good during SLPA because my GPA during college ( I have a BA in sociology/human services) was 3.11. However, I was taking Spanish classes in addition to my sociology and human services classes. Human Services classes were grad level. She is a good friend of mine but she was really tough on us. It looks like GPA of 3.0 is the minimum for this grad school, but obviously they mean 3.5 or better. I wish there was a Facebook group that could give people like us ideas on how to succeed in getting accepted into grad school. It seems like people work hard at everything they need and are still denied. I wonder why that is. UW Eau Claire says this about chem/physics: Some students may need to add other credits in order to meet credential and/or licensure standards. These additional courses may include human or animal biology, chemistry or physics, child/human development, statistics, neurology, sign language, assessment and treatment for voice, articulation/phonology, child language, fluency, hearing disorders, and guided clinical observation (during which you earn 25 observation hours). Hope this helps!

Yes I am aware of that. I am hoping to work as SLPA for a year and I hear grad schools want experience with kids and high GPAs and good GRE, etc. I might take two part time SLPA to get a variety of experience. This is why I am researching ahead of time to see what the people who got in grad school did to get accepted. Did you get accepted in grad school? If so, how is it going? If not, what are your plans? Thanks for your input

Well I got accepted into Lake Region State College Online SLPA program for Fall 2015. Tuition is 180/credit. However, you have to take two Special Ed classes through another university online which costs $700/class but you can take it with one other class that's 180/credit. That is the best that I found, maybe not cheap, but affordable I would say, yes. You also have to take two classes a semester at the least. I am doing the part time online option.

I am in IL too and am taking SLPA in the fall at an online school. Thank you for this information. I have a BA in Sociology/Human Services, but feel SLPA will prepare me for grad school better than Post-Bac.

I have a bachelor's degree in Sociology/Human Services with minor in Spanish. I am taking SLPA to get intro and intermediate knowledge on the subject to better prepare me for grad school, plus the SLPA program is half the cost of the post-Bac certificate. I am just starting out, but I would vote that SLPA is a much better route to go to prepare for SLP grad school. I am doing an online SLPA program, and I have an online grad school in mind for after that. After SLPA, I might work two part time jobs for more experience as SLPA Then when accepted, drop one. Am hoping for scholarships too. Good luck!

I have a BA in Sociology/Human Services with minor in Spanish. I volunteered for almost two years tutoring English as a Second Language. My GPA in college was 3.11. I am hoping to improve that during my SLPA online program. Some people are saying get Post-Bac certificate, but I disagree, as SLPA program is much cheaper and it will give me a lot more knowledge and experience than going into grad school with limited knowledge. I believe I would set myself up to fail by going into advanced grad classes with minimal knowledge, whereas SLPA program would give me intro and intermediate classes on the subject. Plus, volunteering has no monetary gain whereas getting a part time job as SLPA will help me save for grad school in the long run. Thank you for encouraging SLPA! I agree!

Wow finally something good that I have read about SLPA. I am so happy to hear that. Speech Language Pathology was voted on top ten list of least stressful careers. Then I've seen forum discussions where people say it's horrible. Did you get into grad school? I have a bachelor's degree in Sociology/Human Services and minor in Spanish. I'm not fluent, but I can have a basic conversation in Spanish. I've been hearing horror stories on how hard it is to get into grad school. Some people say get a Post-Bac certificate, but I just looked it up and it's TWICE the amount of money as getting my SLPA. Plus SLPA will give me introductory knowledge on the topic which will better prepare me for grad school. Are you working part time as SLPA or full time? Thanks for your encouragement!!!

I do speak Spanish, but it's kind of lacking. I taught ESL as a tutor for almost 2 years. My current job we get some calls where people speak Spanish and I can usually get by, but sometimes people (who speak spanish) have a hard time understanding me. I would say I am not fluent in spanish by any means. I can have a basic conversation though, like what is your name and phone number and address. Grad school am looking at online program in WI, I'm in IL.

Well SLPA degree will help me make more money than I am now to afford (hopefully) grad school. Not only that, the SLPA knowledge will better prepare me for grad school. I don't want to set myself up to fail. I have heard getting SLPA is cheaper and quicker than getting Bachelor's degree in SLP. I highly doubt I'll get accepted into grad school with a BA in Sociology/Human services, GPA of 3.11. No experience in Speech AT ALL. There is no way I could afford 625/credit on my current job right now. What would you do if you were me lol

I am in the same situation. I'm not confident taking prerequisites and going to grad school are going to work for me. I have a BA in Sociology/Human Services with minor in Spanish. Haven't worked in the field since 2007 for many reasons. Wouldn't SLPA experience help get me in the Master's program, because if I don't get my SLPA, then I have no speech language experience at all on my resume. I am mainly going to SLPA for experience and finances. I am making crap pay compared to a SLPA. SLPA salary would help me finance grad school, might take 2 years but not as long as if I don't have SLPA. Obviously I'll apply to scholarships, but who knows. I have a student loan that I have on deferment from my BA. So all I can get are scholarships. I found an online SLPA program that will be affordable with the pay I'm making. Another reason SLPA degree will help me with is the Grad program studies. SLPA should give me a lot of knowledge to make sure I succeed in the grad program. I have an online Masters program in SLP in mind but am worried about final semester of doing 40 hours a week in a 9 week span while working part time as a SLPA. I'm hoping the SLPA job will count towards some of those hours and work other places to complete the rest. Thank you for listening.

Not sure if anyone will respond to this. I have my Bachelor degree in Sociology/Human Services and minor in Spanish, but haven't been working in the field since 2007 due to many many reasons. Too many to list here. I am going to get associates in SLPA because that will get me a better paying job to afford graduate school or hoping that it will. Right now I don't make enough at all to afford it. SLPA job would be more realistic. My goal was to work part time as SLPA and go to grad school, if I can find a way to finance the grad school that is. I wouldn't want to work full time and do grad school. That would be a failure I'm pretty sure. Are you all against me doing SLPA then do pre-requisites to get into Masters of SLP? I'm starting SLPA program in the fall. If I get associates in SLPA, what are my options if I have a BA in Sociology/Human services? Thank you to all who reply.

Not sure about the school option, except for during my practicum. I would need to work all year round, I love nights, but I would settle for afternoon and evenings. 11-7, 10-6, 12-8. However, I would be willing to work school if it was all year round and I couldn't find anything else. Are you going to the SLPA program part time or full time? Is it online or on campus? I'm going to do part time online program. I'm a little nervous though because it says they are waiting for IL to authorize online program, but yet I just got my acceptance letter. Good luck to you.

Thank you for your reply so quickly! I followed the topic, but it never sent me a notification on your reply. Strange. Well my bachelor's degree is in Sociology/Human Services, and it's BA, not BS. I was informed I just need to do the SLPA associates degree, then do pre-requisites for SLP Master's program. Well I believe Eau Claire has a special deal with MN, not IL. I don't quite understand that, but ok. Tseng College is 100 dollars more per credit. It's all online though. So, are you saying I can get a SLPA job with my bachelor's degree? Wish you luck as well. How did you get accepted? I'm reading horror stories on the internet on getting into grad school. Other forums are saying SLPA degree is dying, and national statistics aren't saying that. In fact, it's saying it's growing, and that IL has above average job opportunities for SLPA. What is a sabbatical? Another question I wonder if I could do part of the 40 hours/week requirement for 9 weeks at my future SLPA job. I was planning on working 20-25 hrs a week as SLPA which should more money than I'm making now working 40 hours. Could 20 hours of my future SLPA job count towards SLP practicum? Then 20 more hours at various other locations. One more thing: How are you going to finance your grad school if you don't mind me asking? I'm kind of worried about it myself. My SLPA degree program will be affordable. I can pay payment plan, it's only 250/month. However, grad school sounds so expensive. I don't think working at a school will work for me, because I need to make money all year round. I'm thinking of nursing home, hospital or therapy agency, or contract agency where I go where I'm needed. Thanks again.

Actually, I did find a job that was in AZ where SLPA worked evenings, afternoons and weekends. That would be me. It looks like nursing home might be an option for me too which might include some afternoons and evenings. I got accepted into the SLPA online program, but now I saw on their website that IL (where I live) hasn't responded to an authorization on if IL students can do the online program. Not sure if there's a way to get around this or not. I've been researching SLP programs online of course, I found one in WI but am a little worried about working 20 hours a week as a SLPA and doing 40 hours a week in addition for the practicum, plus I have to do 1 one week a year for 3 years residency on site which is 4 hrs from me, which I could just use a week of vacation from my SLPA job. Otherwise, there's an online program Tseng College where I could do online masters SLP program and I don't have to do this residency, only 400 hours in my community of practicum. Any advice would be great. Thanks.

I am not to the grad program stage yet. I just got accepted into online SLPA program which I'll start in the fall. UW Eau Claire looks like the best option for SLP, I like the online program they offer. However, I have to do 1 one week residency per year for 3 years. I will take a week vacation for that, which is no problem I am in IL, so I will have to stay in a hotel the whole week, which will be pricey. It's a 4 hr drive. I am a little worried about the practicum which says you need to do 40 hours a week but if I am working 20 hours a week as a SLPA that is gonna suck, and now it looks like 40 hours a week for 10 weeks, possibly more, because the 400 hours have to be not observing or something. Has anyone else worked part time during their practicum? So that would mean I would work 60 hours a week or could I possibly implement 20 hours of my SLPA into the practicum so I'd only have to do 20 hours elsewhere? Another option is Tseng online College where there's no residency needed. Just 400 hours in my community at a variety of places, however it's a little more expensive than Eau Claire. Any advice? Thanks. P.S. I got accepted into an online SLPA program but it says they're waiting for IL to authorize approval of using an online school. Not sure how I got accepted if they're still waiting for approval. Any advice on this too would be helpful.

Are you looking to become a SLP also? Even if it was 12-8p I'd take that over 8a-5p.

Thinking about going back to college to get Speech Pathology/Therapy degree. I'm a night person and would hate a day shift. Do they have 2nd shift Speech Pathologists/Therapists in a hospital setting? I've searched online but the job positions don't give a shift most of the time. I know I've seen self-employed workers but I doubt I'll be doing that. Also on a side note, I have a Bachelor's degree in sociology/human services. Unfortunately I'm done with that field/career for many reasons. I won't be accepted to get another loan. Do you know of any federal grants for speech pathologists/therapists? Thank you!