I really can’t stress enough LOR’s! I think at the end of the day, my letter of recommendations are actually what got me into a notoriously competitive program! I had a relatively low overall gpa and a below average CSD gpa. My GRE scores were also probably around the average- below average range. However I had strong letter of recs from 3 professors, and 2 SLPs that I had volunteered/did observation hours with and I’m convinced this is what got me accepted into my top program.
I think at the end of the day, my advice to anyone applying for next years cycle is to volunteer and get as much exposure with SLP’s as POSSIBLE!! (I know this is harder with COVID ). But I really think that programs take into consideration what SLP’s have to say about you, especially your ability to be a good clinician! It’s sometimes scary to reach out to them, (especially if you don’t know them), but most SLP’s are awesome and willing to let you volunteer and then write letters to help you out- after all they were once in your shoes too!