Small in state school vs. Teachers College vs. Northeastern

[slpct2022]

I am not sure if I should choose a smaller in state school with the cheapest tuition or a school in the Boston or NYC area that seems to have a lot more connections. Is the huge cost difference worth it? 

[Cece93]

Are you planning on moving to the Boston or NYC area after school? Is the reach of those schools broad? I know my undergrad holds some prestige where I live so maybe it’s beneficial if you move to those areas after school.

[nwslp]

It comes down to what your long term plans are. I'm supportive on a small in state school because once you have your c's it doesn't matter. But if you want to work with a super specific population it's worth considering going elsewhere. For example, if you're passionate about PPA but your school is in a rural town there might not be opportunities to work with that population. There's hospitals and school's everywhere! I think in state is the move overall. 

[citygirl0018]

I think it depends on your long term as well. A friend of mine was accepted into TC and Northeastern, but he was holding out to get into state school due to the ability to graduate debt-free. Northeastern is great if you are interested in medical SLP because you are in Boston, where there are many hospitals and opportunities to get experience in that aspect of SLP. A friend of mine that went to TC did her hospital externship in Jersey City because of how competitive it is to secure a hospital externship in NYC.

[ab3]

I completely agree with the above response. I was also deciding between TC, Northeastern, and another *cheaper* Boston school, but am committing to Northeastern because of my long term goals. I want to conduct research and eventually pursue a PhD – TC doesn't offer the option to do a master's thesis whereas Northeastern is research-driven and offers a thesis option. Further, I am interested in medical SLP and it seems like TC students have a hard time getting one medical placement whereas Northeastern students typically get two if they express their interest in that area. I chose Northeastern over the other Boston school because their research and placement connections are aligned more with my interests. I hope that sharing my decision-making process helps you with yours! Good luck. ? 

[slpct2022]

3 hours ago, citygirl0018 said:

I think it depends on your long term as well. A friend of mine was accepted into TC and Northeastern, but he was holding out to get into state school due to the ability to graduate debt-free. Northeastern is great if you are interested in medical SLP because you are in Boston, where there are many hospitals and opportunities to get experience in that aspect of SLP. A friend of mine that went to TC did her hospital externship in Jersey City because of how competitive it is to secure a hospital externship in NYC.

I'm not sure if I want to focus on medical or school. How did your friend like TC overall?

[citygirl0018]

1 hour ago, slpct2022 said:

I'm not sure if I want to focus on medical or school. How did your friend like TC overall?

Overall, she thoroughly enjoyed the program. She is bilingual, and this a major focus at TC alongside multiculturalism. She loved all of her classes. However, she did seem bogged down by student loans and is working two jobs as a CF

[slpct2022]

12 hours ago, citygirl0018 said:

Overall, she thoroughly enjoyed the program. She is bilingual, and this a major focus at TC alongside multiculturalism. She loved all of her classes. However, she did seem bogged down by student loans and is working two jobs as a CF

Do you think as someone who is not bilingual this would be a con if it is a major focus? Would you friend be willing to message me about her experiences? 

[citygirl0018]

8 hours ago, slpct2022 said:

Do you think as someone who is not bilingual this would be a con if it is a major focus? Would you friend be willing to message me about her experiences? 

I don't think it is a con to be a monolingual in this program, but I do think if you were bilingual this is the best program for bilingual SLP. My friend is actually super swamped with adjusting to teletherapy at the moment so I don't want to bother. The program has changed a bit since she graduated this past year as now you start in clinic right away. I think it would be better to talk to a current student. On TC's admitted student site I saw that there are certain hours where you can text with a student ambassador in your program. I would check that out!