PLEASE HELP: 3.2 GPA, Biology BS undergrad, lots of volunteer hours, ~30 observation hours..what are my chances?

[skeibb97]

Hi everyone, 

I am changing career paths from dental to speech pathology. I applied to GA State and unsurprisingly, didn't get in. 

I have a 3.2 undergraduate GPA from Salem College (private women's college-rigorous) and my degree is a BS in Biology. I graduated in 2019.

I have a lot of volunteer work under my belt, including: crisis center pharmacy tech, advanced genetics lab TA in college, Salvation Army donation collector, research and writing volunteer for a domestic violence shelter, "big buddy" at child bereavement camp. 

I have about 30 hours of observation hours at SLP clinics. I also have been a child caretaker (nanny) for over 2 years. 

 

What advice would you have for someone like me to increase my chances at getting into a grad program? I really do not wish to take CSD undergrad pre-reqs outside of the masters program itself (mostly for financial reasons). 

**Also, if you do highly recommend taking the CSD courses, do you know any online programs? 

Thank you SO much!! 

Edited August 3, 2021 by skeibb97

[tennesseespeechie]

I had similar stats but in the major. I think you have a great chance if you write a great essay, good gre scores and recs. I would recommend looking into taking prereqs before somewhere cheaper though. I got in and had to take mine again because its been so long, but these schools that add prereqs have way higher costs. Id take them somewhere cheap (ENMU is where i was looking and its insanely cheap) and get them out of the way and then you also have a good GPA for the degree. 

[meadymalarkey]

Hi @skeibb97!

The biggest determinant is almost always the pre-reqs when you're coming from out of field. Sometimes people find programs that explicitly state that it doesn't matter and allow you to complete them as you go, but after being a grad student for over a year now, I wouldn't recommend this. It will likely be more expensive and stressful if you're a graduate student (especially if you end up going out of state). All of the other things you've listed are good and show your interests/character well (I had a very similar volunteer/work background), but in my experience coming from out of field, wait-lists and rejections are a lot more likely when you don't have the academic experience sorted.

Completing pre-reqs will also allow you to boost your GPA in a relevant way. Most programs really only look at your last ~60-90 units and speech credits to determine readiness. 

As @tennesseespeechiementioned, ENMU has a lot of options. Their classes were the lowest in cost that I took, with the exception of those I was able to take in community colleges in my area. Utah State University also has a good reputation for pre-reqs. Speech pathology classes at the CC level can be hard to come by, but if that's a possibility for you definitely go that route as much as possible.

If you already know of a grad program you are really interested in, taking a few of their pre-reqs can be a great way to get to know the professors you'll most likely be working with as a graduate student. It will also give you the opportunity to be a part of any labs/research projects they currently have open to student involvement.

[skeibb97]

@meadymalarkey and @tennesseespeechie Thank you SO much! When taking classes at ENMU, did you take part or full time and if part time, did it really talk 3-4 years? 

[meadymalarkey]

1 hour ago, skeibb97 said:

@meadymalarkey and @tennesseespeechie Thank you SO much! When taking classes at ENMU, did you take part or full time and if part time, did it really talk 3-4 years? 

I took pre-reqs in both full and part-time capacities for just under 2 years while working full-time. I also did way more than I had to in retrospect because I wasn't sure where I wanted to end up. Were I to have cut out the classes that weren't completely necessary, it would have taken 4-5 quarters max. I also took classes at multiple institutions simultaneously, which made knocking out those credits faster and on my own terms. So, for instance, one summer I took 2 eight week classes at ENMU, 1 ten week class at CSUSM, and 1 ten week class at UCLA extension. Then for fall I took another 2 eight week courses at ENMU in the first part of the term, 2 more for the second part of the term, and 2 at a CC for the full 16 weeks, etc. That said, I busted ass the entire time and was basically a hermit outside of my job . I would never suggest anybody go ham in the way that I did, but I'm not sure where that 3-4 years number is coming from. Unless you're planning on getting a 2nd bachelors, that doesn't make sense to me. 

Grad programs usually list what classes/topics they want you to have completed/be familiar with. For example, here's what the University of Washington expects (see section 3). Here's Portland State's, and here's UT Austin's. The barriers of entry described are somewhat different, but the underlying expectations for what incoming students have formal exposure to are similar. Some schools may have strict cut-offs and specifically want to see classes like Aural Rehab before you start, while others are more flexible and will let you take those classes as a grad student. It's just better to get most of them out of the way. I recommend doing your research based on the programs you're interested in and building your course-load based on that information. If you don't already know, start with basic speech and hearing classes that every program will expect (intro to SLP, speech science, anatomy of speech and hearing, or phonetics) and go from there. 

[Juliab123]

Hi 

I believe I am in a similar boat when applying to graduate School. I have an undergraduate gpa of 3.4 and a major gpa of 3.6 in the field of communication science disorders. However, I switched from a pre-med track and that is the reason for my gpa not being higher. I also took the gre and scored pretty averagely. I am worried I am not going to be admitted to any programs as I am applying to all Philadelphia schools. Im looking for any advice or similar stories of people who have gotten in. Additionally, I have plenty of work experience and hours on my resume with strong letters of recommendation. thank you!