Hi ?
This is my first time posting on here. I have gotten a lot of useful information from here in the past so I figured I would give it a shot! I am currently finishing my Bachelor's degree in Sociology and will be graduating in December of this year. I had a lot of family issues when I was completing my Associate's degree at my community college, and this severely affected my GPA. It was far too low to apply to a Bachelor's program in Speech Pathology to start off. I decided to major in Sociology for my Bachelor's because it is a field that I am very passionate about and was easier to get into because I was part of the CAP program at my community college. I have gotten an A in every single course I have taken for my undergrad, besides 1 B, and have been able to raise my GPA tremendously. However, considering how competitive the very few programs are in California, I worry that I have slim chances in being accepted into grad school. My cummulative GPA is only a 3.1, and this will be the highest it can go, as I have calculated. My GPA at my cal-state University is a 3.9 and I am hoping that this will help me somewhat when being considered for grad schools. I'd like to stay in California and this is very important for me because I basically only have my sister for family and my 2 nephews who mean the world to me.
That being said, I plan on applying to Master's programs for SLP at Cal state Fullerton, University of Redlands, Loma Linda, Cal state Long-Beach, and Cal baptist. Because my Bachelor's degree is in Sociology and not Speech Pathology, I understand that it will take me longer than others to complete my Master's degree. I want to weigh my options in getting into programs in California and also see which programs I will have a chance in getting accepted to, and also enjoy in the sense of being able to be satisfactorily prepared for the career.
Do any of you have an undergrad degree in a different field and are currently in grad school for SLP or are soon applying? Any information/guidance would be greatly appreciated!
As of now, Redlands University sounds appealing due to what I have heard about there faculty/program and also considering that the program would only take me about 2 1/2 years as opposed to at least 3. Loma Linda University is another school that I am very interested in because I have heard great things about the program and also their medical facility. The only issue is how expensive these 2 programs will cost. I am a waitress and live on my own so I will have to take out loans to pay for school, and I get worried thinking about being in so much debt.
Sorry for the long post! Any feedback would be greatly appreciated! ?