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Hi, I am in U of A's undergraduate program currently, so I can only speak in very general terms. In terms of reputation, the U of A carries a lot of prestige for its SLP program. We are ranked in the top 5 programs in the country, which is the most competitive ranking of any graduate degree at our school. I started in a different major, and once I changed to my SLHS major, I was so pleasantly surprised. It is a completely different experience from the last department I was in. The faculty are all so friendly and willing to help, and there are people who represent just about any interest you might have (seriously...I am currently involved in research for language acquisition in those with language disabilities vs. those without, will be interning at our onsite preschool with toddlers with language delays, and was recently presented an opportunity to study the neurology behind bird communication as it relates to human communication). I have not gotten the impression that we lean medical or education, but there are lots of opportunities for both tracks. In terms of education, we have a speech-based preschool onsite (as I previously mentioned), I can think of several professors who do research geared for education, and we see all sorts of kiddos at our onsite clinics. My undergraduate experience has been wonderful here, and most everyone in the major wants to stay, but bear in mind that our graduate program is HIGHLY competitive. We all have that looming over our heads and many have accepted that they'll have to go elsewhere. I'm not sure where you live, but the reputation for the SLP programs in our state is UA>ASU>NAU. U of A is great, ASU is still pretty good, and NAU is more like the budget program (although there is absolutely nothing wrong with that - I know a successful bilingual SLP in town who worked on her MS SLP at NAU over summers because that was the cheapest instate option). Unfortunately I can't offer a huge amount of insight for the nitty gritty of the graduate program at U of A, and little to nothing about NAU, but let me know if there's anything you think I can answer for you.

Thank you all - I so appreciate your responses! Very insightful on how to tie things together in general. And CrimsonWife, those sound like great programs! Trust me, I've scoured my area for anything directly related to no avail. My city's Read to a Dog program takes place via volunteers with their personally trained therapy animals at our libraries, and to my knowledge neither our town's speech preschool nor school for the deaf and blind have specific therapy animals. Volunteering to raise a puppy myself for Guide Dogs for the Blind was the best way I found to get my foot in the door in the world of therapy animals - they taught me how to do all the training for free, and I am in love with the puppy raising community and the puppies, of course. It is knowledge I hope to transfer into training a therapy animal to work with me in a SLP practice.

It may seem like a silly question, but I am looking for thoughts/opinions on how to make an interest in therapy animals sound respectable in my personal statement. I do know that this should just be part of m statement, not the majority of the text. Additionally, it is not just an interest on a whim: I began my undergraduate career as a biology major, so I have interned with the Audubon Society, the Bureau of Land Management, a local world-renowned zoological museum, and a therapeutic ranch for children with disabilities in my area. I am also currently raising a puppy for Guide Dogs for the Blind, so I know how to train a dog for a service/therapeutic setting. I am trying to pinpoint how to use this interest in my statement to set me apart without appearing juvenile. Thank you!