Advice for career-changer?

[nikki.freetobeme@gmail.com]

Hi folks, I'm looking for advice. I'm a childcare provider in my thirties looking to change careers to become an SLP. I have worked a lot with nonverbal autistic children, which motivated me to research career paths for helping specifically with communication skills in this population. My dream job would be an AAC specialist. So I have a few questions, for folks more experienced in the CSD field:

~What programs have good offerings on AAC and autism, particularly nonverbal autistic young children?
~As someone from out of field, how should I prepare to make myself a good candidate? I know there are leveling programs like NYU and Emerson, but I hear they're really competitive, so I am wondering if I should get some further education/experience in CSD before I apply. I'm considering post bacc programs, just taking leveling courses as a non-matriculated student, or possibly starting out as an SLPA and working my way up from there. What are the pros/cons of these different options for someone in my position?
~I am also concerned about if my work history will translate well on my resume or if I should look to volunteer or intern in a more relevant position. If so, what positions are open to people without experience and would still look good on my application?
~Where on earth do older, career-changing students who have been out of school for awhile get academic references? Can I use an academic reference from 5 years ago or is that really frowned upon?
~Would it be worthwhile for me to look into AT certification? Is that at all marketable?

Edited August 18, 2018 by nikki.freetobeme@gmail.com

[Elska]

Hi! 

Off the top of my head, I know that San Francisco State has an AAC specialty track and an autism specialty track, but their specialty tracks add on an extra semester. Not sure if you could do both. Otherwise, I think your best bet would be to search up programs on ASHA's EdFind and take a look at individual programs' listed specialties on there. Whatever program you end up might have seminars in those two areas (like mine). You could also look into programs near clinics that specialize or are known for working with that population and see if those clinics have taken grad students during their externships. Or, see how the school districts set up preschool SDC/moderate-severe special education and find out if they have SLPs that specifically work in those classes. Perhaps you could shadow SLPs in either setting.  

You're right, the leveling classes are competitive, and not every grad school has a leveling option. Since you have quite a bit of experience, I don't think it would hurt to take a shot at those leveling programs, especially if you did some shadowing/volunteering with SLPs. But, if you want to be able to apply to any grad school and want more recent academic references, I think a post-bacc is a smart way to go. Plus, since a post-bacc is a program, you know you'll be able to take all the courses you need and a general time frame of when you will be done. Here in CA, I haven't heard of people taking courses as a non-matriculated student, but that might be because our undergrad programs are impacted. If you were to become a SLPA, you might still have to take additional courses on top of the SLPA program depending on the grad school you are applying to, so it could potentially take longer than if you went the post-bacc route. Where I am, a lot of SLPAs get their undergrad degree in SLP, and then are either certified as SLPAs through their undergrad programs or go on to a SLPA program. That way, they have all the courses they need should they decide to apply for grad school in the future. 

I think you have a lot of good experience that can be very relevant, especially since you say you've worked with non-verbal children with autism. I got a lot of experience working as an instructional assistant in special education for the public schools and was able to shadow and assist SLPs. I know a lot of students will do ABA to get experience as well. If anything, maybe try and shadow some SLPs and/or find a place that takes volunteers and gives you exposure to SLPs. 

I suggest emailing programs you might be interested in regarding your question about academic references, since each program is different. I've heard that some programs may be more lenient on career-changers and would accept letters of recommendation from your workplace in place of the academic ones, but I've also heard that some people will just email their old professors, explain the situation, and ask if they would be willing to write a letter of rec. Offering to provide a portfolio of your work and an academic resume isn't a bad idea either.   

I'm not quite sure what AT certification is, so I'm not sure if it'll help or not.

 

I hope this helps you out!

[Jordyn_M463]

I agree with the above poster that using ASHA EdFind would be your best bet looking for programs that match what you are looking for. It would be an easier way to find all the programs that are within distance you are willing to travel, cost you are willing to spend, specialities, scores/grades, etc. That would probably be the best place to start and then maybe you could contact those programs and see what exactly they may be looking for from an out-of-field applicant. It would probably be beneficial to also look for programs that allow you take prerequisites and graduate classes there (probably in a 3 year track). 

I think you are already a pretty good candidate. My program has a handful of individuals who changed careers and are back to pursue masters degrees in SLP. In your letter of intent, you could use your experience with nonverbal autistic children as your motivation and calling to the field and how it inspired you to become an AAC specialist. If the schools you apply to do research or have staff that work with AAC, it would be beneficial to include their names and their research as well in your letter of intent. "I strive to learn from Dr. ____ and work side-by-side in their research on _____". That is a terrible sentence but it would let the school know you are genuinely interested and have put forth the effort to research the program and learn more about it. 

I don't think it would hurt to apply to some leveling programs and post-bacc programs. It would probably be more beneficial to have those classes under your belt when applying to graduate programs. Some programs might even require it as prerequisites before you can apply to the actual graduate program. I would say your work experience would translate pretty well, especially when applying to these programs. This would also be a way to get to know professors who may be willing to write you letters of recommendation. If not, I would look for professionals who know you well (employers, SLPs you have shadowed, SLPs you have volunteered with). That being said, it also wouldn't hurt to work on getting some shadowing hours before applying. ASHA requires 25 before you can start working clinic in graduate school. Some schools even require you submit those forms when applying. Getting over 75hrs of observation (I think), you can start putting those hours towards your clinical hours you need for graduate school as well. You could also look for volunteer work that works with individuals who use AAC or camps/groups that SLPs run. This is also a way to get observation hours and it looks good on resumes. You could look for seminars/webinars that discuss topics in CSD/SLP fields and that provide you with a certificate. This would be a way to get "continuing education units" and show your dedication to the field. SLP Summit does it every year and it is free and totally online. You watch the seminars and take mini quizzes and receive certificates. This years was just at the beginning of August. Im not sure if you could still sign up to watch the prerecorded seminars or not. Working as an SLPA (even part time) would also not hurt. All of those ideas can only help in the end, but it is up to you on the money and time you are willing to spend. 

I would also say to perhaps start taking the GREs or at least studying for them some. Your scores have to be recents (within 5 years) to send them to graduate schools. Some schools do not require them, but those programs are few and far between. My advisor always told me to aim for 60th percentile on all scores or at least get into the 150s on Quantitative and Verbal and at least 4 on AWA. I am not sure how you are at standardized tests but it would be worth putting some effort forth to get pretty good scores. Again that depends on when you are planning on applying to graduate programs; you don't want to take them too early. 

I don't know what an AT certification is either, so I am not sure if it would help. I would say probably not, considering I haven't seen it being discussed on this forum and it was never brought up in my program. You could ask some SLP programs however, to be sure. I wouldn't waste time/money on it until you knew for sure though. 

Best of luck to you! 

 

[SpeechGal1234]

I would recommend looking at some of the Boston schools for AAC. The Boston Children's Hospital AAC Center is amazing and almost all the Boston schools have a placement there, so definitely look into those programs!  I think your background gave you a lot of experience that will be so helpful in a future career as an SLP. There are a lot of people in my graduate program who do not have a background in SLP. I think that your background will actually make you a stand out candidate! You could try to find some volunteer opportunities to work with children with disabilities, but in my opinion, as someone who had little experience in SLP and still got into top schools, I don't think actual volunteering with an SLP matters. If the rest of your application is strong, it doesn't matter what your background is. Definitely focus on GRE scores!!! And use that personal statement to talk about those students you worked with who were nonverbal and how that applies to your dream for an SLP career. 

I came from a different background and I did not do post bacc. I took the required undergrad classes online and it wasn't too hard to "catch up". I did well in the courses and they accepted them just fine. Getting an academic reference was a challenge. You can certainly get to know your professors for the pre-requisite courses and see if they can write you a reference. My references from undergrad were about 3-4 years old, and my professors were still happy to send them. I think they have done this many times before. It's part of their job! However, I did worry that they weren't as personalized because it was so long ago. The professors had meetings/phone calls with me to ask what I had been doing and I gave them my transcript from undergrad, resume, samples of grades I got in their classes, etc. I got into most of the programs I applied to, so I would guess the academic references weren't a problem. I would highly recommend that you get strong references from your boss or someone who has seen you working with children with nonverbal autism. I felt like my academic references were ok, but my boss wrote me a fantastic reference that showed my work ethic and was more recent. I think programs know that someone in their 30s hasn't been in undergrad for a long time so their academic references may not be as strong, and they take that into consideration. But I am obviously not on the admissions committee so this is all speculation based on my experiences! 

[thespeechblog.com]

On 8/18/2018 at 5:34 PM, nikki.freetobeme@gmail.com said:

Hi folks, I'm looking for advice. I'm a childcare provider in my thirties looking to change careers to become an SLP. I have worked a lot with nonverbal autistic children, which motivated me to research career paths for helping specifically with communication skills in this population. My dream job would be an AAC specialist. So I have a few questions, for folks more experienced in the CSD field:

~What programs have good offerings on AAC and autism, particularly nonverbal autistic young children?

There's some really awesome research going on at UNM with AAC in general with Cathy Binger (NIH funded stuff!) that has huge clinical relevance 

~As someone from out of field, how should I prepare to make myself a good candidate? I know there are leveling programs like NYU and Emerson, but I hear they're really competitive, so I am wondering if I should get some further education/experience in CSD before I apply. I'm considering post bacc programs, just taking leveling courses as a non-matriculated student, or possibly starting out as an SLPA and working my way up from there. What are the pros/cons of these different options for someone in my position?

GPA and GRE are good first steps; put the time in if you can to rock the GRE. On my blog, I talk about why I used Magoosh in more detail, especially for the Math portion it literally starts at re-teaching addition all the way up to calc and trig. I used it for 6 months everyday to prep are got a good score. 

As for classes / post-bacc options: Find what is most affordable and best fit for you. I'm assuming your bachelor's is not in CSD/SHS/etc, so you'll need the classes anyway. Work hard to get good grades, learn your material, and earn solid recommendations (I think in-person classes make this easier if you can make it work with your schedule). 

Don't forget to take the time to craft an amazing personal statement. That will make a big difference, and because you're an out-of-fielder with lots of experience, you have more and unique things to write about which will help your essay stand out. 
~I am also concerned about if my work history will translate well on my resume or if I should look to volunteer or intern in a more relevant position. If so, what positions are open to people without experience and would still look good on my application?

I was a middle school English teacher before, and my experience helped me get in (at least I think it helped - I got in first try). I have classmates coming from the beer industry, other health care, education, publishing, etc. I don't think "more relevant" experience is a must if you know how to market yourself. Definitely spend time on a creating a killer letter of intent - your narrative will be very important to piece together everything. 

~Where on earth do older, career-changing students who have been out of school for awhile get academic references? Can I use an academic reference from 5 years ago or is that really frowned upon?

Obviously the more recent the better, but I applied in 2015 to start 2016 and used a reference from a class back in 2010 when I was an undergrad (granted, the professor remembered me really well and liked me a lot). The other LORs came from the professor for an online leveling course (whose class I worked REALLY hard to stand out in), and the last was from my departmental supervisor, who though wasn't a professor, had been a public school teacher for 45+ years, had an MA, and was generally a great writer. So, mix and match - just make sure they're people who know/like you and can write well 
~Would it be worthwhile for me to look into AT certification? Is that at all marketable?

AT Certification can be great, but if you want to be an SLP you need your CCC. And you'll learn more in AAC about different low/no tech solutions to communication difficulties. Also, my personal 2-cents is that you need to be an expert in language development to be good at AAC, not necessarily tech. A lot of people with AAC just think about "the device" and forget about the importance of language/communication being the primary goal. 

I hope all that helps! Feel free to reach out in a direct message if you're still not sure what to do or need more advice