2022 Canada Admissions SLP thread

[2nd year Dal Student]

20 hours ago, Yasmine99 said:

I'm wanting to complete my masters at Dalhousie. Is there anyone out there who is currently studying or has studied at Dal and has advice on getting into the program

Hey! Im in my first year at Dal right now! I applied to both the SLP and Audio program. With my sGPA of 3.81 on a 4.0 scale (calculated by ORPAS, not sure if Dal's is different), 20 hours of SLP experience and the majority of my CV experience not being SLP related (Tutoring, research assistant, peer mentor, swim instructor etc.) I also didnt write a thesis. I got accepted to the Audio program and was waitlisted for SLP and eventually got in. 

From my experience, since most people are applying to the ontario schools, there is so much more info on what they are looking for. Tbh, even though I got accepted into both programs, idk exactly what they look for ? From what I gathered though, I was a stronger applicant than many others in my class. I dont know their exact stats since its a bit tacky to ask lol. But I know for a fact Dal dont care about what program we took (we have such a diverse crew, one of the may things I love about Dal) or care if youre not going straight from undergrad. We range from early 20s to early 30s. 

My advice is unfortunately pretty generic and basic: have diverse experiences (whether or not SLP and highlight how they can relate to SLP related skills), emphasize experiences that taught you diverse and inclusion, try to come off as a really well-rounded person by being both smart and good with people. Thats all I have from the top of my head! 

Edited January 12, 2022 by Quote_Actual

[Loki_Odinson]

20 hours ago, SpeechieWannaB said:

I can only speak to the U of A application, but I think as long as you have some sort of transcript uploaded and pay you can proceed. The key is that you must choose "in progress" for those schools that you wish to change at a later date (and not "completed"). To my knowledge, if you choose completed, it won't allow you to upload any changes. Perhaps double check with Vicki? 

Thank you! I will look into it!

[Loki_Odinson]

17 hours ago, 2022SLPhopefully said:

Hi

I can't speak to UBC but for UofA, I spoke to Vicky asking this exact question and she said it was fine so I uploaded my unofficial transcripts until I could get my officials.

Thank you!

[Yasmine99]

Thank you so much! The response really helped ease my anxiety!

[SLPwonder]

For UofA, the only requirement is to write 1-2 pages double spaced letter of career interests, and submit it as PDF. With a font size of 12, mine is a little bit over the limit of 2 pages. Do you guys think submitting it with 11.5 font size would be okay? 

[Wugs]

20 hours ago, SLPwonder said:

For UofA, the only requirement is to write 1-2 pages double spaced letter of career interests, and submit it as PDF. With a font size of 12, mine is a little bit over the limit of 2 pages. Do you guys think submitting it with 11.5 font size would be okay? 

Maybe play with the margins or choose a font like Times New Roman (smaller than Calibri)

[SpeechieGracie]

Hi all!

I'm applying to numerous S-LP programs for the second time in hopes of getting in this year!

Feeling discouraged because of the ORPAS calculation (considering, where they'll be taking an avg, I did better in my second semester than my first).

I've applied to Dal, UAlberta, UofT, Western and McMaster with a subGPA of 3.78 and CGPA of 3.0 at UofT (I know the CGPA is low, but I switched my program half-way through my degree) before ORPAS. My subGPA should be somewhere between 3.7-3.75 with ORPAS re-weighting.

In terms of experience, I worked as an RA in 2 UofT research labs (speech sounds and language development lab), worked with individuals with Aphasia and shadowed an S-LP within the school system. I have 100+ hrs working directly with S-LPs, 250+ hrs of research experience, and over 400 hrs working as an educational clinician remediating learning difficulties in children. My pre-req avg. is above 3.8 so I'm hoping this will help me with those schools that value grades over everything (*cough, cough* mac). Though, I'm doubtful I'll be accepted into Mac with my sub and CGPA.

I would really appreciate anyone that got in with similar stats to comment and let me know there's hope! I really want to get in this year as this is the only career path I'm passionate about!!! ? Or, you can just comment your stats for the upcoming Fall 2022 cohort and we can uplift each other♥️

[Dream_of_slp]

 

Hi everyone

I applied to Western and UofT for the second time, this year. 

Please take a look at my qualifications and let me know if you or anyone else got accepted with a similar resume. I have no sleep at night

1. 3.74 sub GPA 

2. almost 600 Hrs volunteer experience related to communication disorders under direct supervision of an SLP (Unfortunately, they waived it)

3. two research experiences. One related to Aphasia, another related to property of sounds

4. worked as a recreational therapy assistant for the municipal government

5. Currently, MA student doing Linguistics 

6. Fluent in 3 Languages other than English

 

Thank you so much for your time!

Edited January 14, 2022 by Dream_of_slp

[ZemoSLP]

On 1/7/2022 at 6:21 AM, slp2020ab said:

I had no clue about KINE2011 either, and I ended up including it as the prerequisite for McMaster. I just assumed it was accepted since every other school does. And I thought it was a good idea to include it in the prerequisites because it was fairly difficult and I got an A+.

I even took ANAT100 Online at Queens which is included in the approved courses, but that course was a joke compared to KINE2011. And in ANAT100 we barely covered any "areas relevant to SLP", it's  literally something that you can learn in a few hours or less (some superficial info on oral cavity structures and larynx as part of the digestive & respiratory system). It's just silly.

Oh well, it was a long shot for me anyway, I guess I just donated 100 bucks to McMaster ?

I did the same thing. I checked for only UofT and assumed the others would accept this course too, especially since the McMaster website says "Human Anatomy/Phsyiology requirement" and the KINE 2011 course is literally called "Human Physiology". It sucks because this is the program I wanted to get into, and I even got an A+ in it as well . I hope I can get into my other choices...

[Owl.on.a.Slide]

12 hours ago, ZemoSLP said:

I did the same thing. I checked for only UofT and assumed the others would accept this course too, especially since the McMaster website says "Human Anatomy/Phsyiology requirement" and the KINE 2011 course is literally called "Human Physiology". It sucks because this is the program I wanted to get into, and I even got an A+ in it as well . I hope I can get into my other choices...

It's very unfortunate, and there is no mention of this additional requirement on the ORPAS guide, which is where I reviewed the requirements this year. Still, I blame myself for not being thorough!

Do you have another course that might satisfy the requirement? For you and anyone else having the same issue with KINE 2011, I just contacted the department at McMaster and they told me that they will look at the applicant's transcript to see if there is a suitable substitution. So I might still have a chance ?

 

Edited January 14, 2022 by slp2020ab

[2022SLPhopefully]

Hey!

For those applying to Dal, I'm kind of confused about the due date. It says that it's due on the 15th but then also states that if the due date falls on a weekend then it is the following Monday. Does this mean that it would be fine for me to email my additional information form on Monday? 

Thanks in advance!

[AtBatts]

4 hours ago, 2022SLPhopefully said:

Hey!

For those applying to Dal, I'm kind of confused about the due date. It says that it's due on the 15th but then also states that if the due date falls on a weekend then it is the following Monday. Does this mean that it would be fine for me to email my additional information form on Monday? 

Thanks in advance!

Checked the admissions website and it says everything is due on the 17th of January so you should be good! 

[SLP--2021]

Hello! 

 

For UofA's application - I know people have mentioned that you can submit unofficial transcripts in order to submit and pay for the application. Does this apply to other documents such as CV and letter of intent also, as in making changes or replacing the document?

Thanks!

[ManitobaSLPStudent]

Hi everyone!

I hope application season is going well for everyone! I'm a first time applicant and although I have fingers crossed and am hoping I get in this year, I do want to prepare in case that doesn't happen. 

For those who are applying for the second+ time, what did you do after you found out you didn't get in? What have you been doing over the past year+ to improve your application? Working, additional course work, etc.? I like to be prepared and have no clue what will happen if I don't get in this year.

[yz123]

2 hours ago, ManitobaSLPStudent said:

Hi everyone!

I hope application season is going well for everyone! I'm a first time applicant and although I have fingers crossed and am hoping I get in this year, I do want to prepare in case that doesn't happen. 

For those who are applying for the second+ time, what did you do after you found out you didn't get in? What have you been doing over the past year+ to improve your application? Working, additional course work, etc.? I like to be prepared and have no clue what will happen if I don't get in this year.

Hello!

This year will be my second time applying. In the past year, I've focused on getting more volunteer experiences relevant to this field. Although for some schools they've waived the volunteering portion, I think it's still good for my own sake to gain some insight into the field I'm pursuing, and as a bonus I can still write about those experiences in my statement. I've also completed some extra courses as a non-degree student to bump up my GPA and I've gotten a new reference as well from one of my new placements. 

[AtBatts]

Agreed with the above from yz. Unfortunately GPA is a big part of the application so getting that number as high as possible can never hurt. What you'll find if you apply a second time (Although I hope you get in) is that the current winter semester is pretty important to increase that GPA.

Besides school, volunteering helps so much personally. I'm sure it looks good on your letter of intent, especially you have a diverse set of experiences. My first application cycle, all of my experience was on the geriatric care portion that an SLP may experience. This past year I added experience in research as well as pediatric SLP work and hopefully they see that it is a more holistic set of experiences that can translate to the workplace.

All the best

[SpeechieAlly]

9 hours ago, ManitobaSLPStudent said:

Hi everyone!

I hope application season is going well for everyone! I'm a first time applicant and although I have fingers crossed and am hoping I get in this year, I do want to prepare in case that doesn't happen. 

For those who are applying for the second+ time, what did you do after you found out you didn't get in? What have you been doing over the past year+ to improve your application? Working, additional course work, etc.? I like to be prepared and have no clue what will happen if I don't get in this year.

Hi!

I agree with the other posters in that I believe increasing your GPA is the best move to make after rejection.

Depending on how high your GPA was initially and where you're applying, my advice for what to do secondly differs.

[somethingcleveraboutspeech]

Hi everyone! For those of you who applied to U of T through ORPAS... Have your transcripts been submitted yet? I know there's still 10 days until they're due, but I'm getting nervous!

[SoaringSLP]

11 minutes ago, somethingcleveraboutspeech said:

Hi everyone! For those of you who applied to U of T through ORPAS... Have your transcripts been submitted yet? I know there's still 10 days until they're due, but I'm getting nervous!

When I go to the transcripts section, it says that it's been "received." If you're seeing something similar, I don't think you need to worry. Not sure if it also depends on the University they're requesting from which could explain delays.

[speechiestudent]

Hey everyone,

I have a question regarding Dalhousie's app. Well over a week ago, I submitted my application, along with sending over my additional info form and CV, and requesting a transcript being sent to Dal's e-mail. Every day since applying, I've been going back to check my application summary. I reached out to my references, and they have yet to receive e-mails from Dal about completing reference letters. Nothing on the application summary has been received except for my payment. 

Has anyone had this problem? Any further steps I should be taking?

[speechiestudent]

On 1/17/2022 at 1:39 PM, ManitobaSLPStudent said:

Hi everyone!

I hope application season is going well for everyone! I'm a first time applicant and although I have fingers crossed and am hoping I get in this year, I do want to prepare in case that doesn't happen. 

For those who are applying for the second+ time, what did you do after you found out you didn't get in? What have you been doing over the past year+ to improve your application? Working, additional course work, etc.? I like to be prepared and have no clue what will happen if I don't get in this year.

Since COVID, schools are suggesting the best thing to do is to increase GPA for increasing your chances of being accepted. Specifically, increasing pre-requisite course grades. I think that is what's most important right now. 

I decided to complete an Honours Thesis to get research experience last year in case I didn't get into school (which I didn't). It could be a good way to contribute to the field and add to your statement of intent.

It never hurts to get more experience either, whether it be volunteer or paid. Although many schools are not looking at volunteer and/or work experience, it could still be good to have on your CV. 

Lastly, apply to as many schools as you can!

[2022slpplease]

I was wondering if anyone on the forum (either current students or applying) knows of any bridge program students (i.e. students who obtained a university degree by completing 2 years of college then 2 years of university) who have been accepted to SLP programs in Ontario? 

I was told by Western they have accepted students who have obtained a degree this way in the past, but I still fear that despite what I think is a competitive application, this will cause admissions to maybe look at my application differently? (especially for other Ontario schools)

[DreamingofSpeech]

3 hours ago, 2022slpplease said:

I was wondering if anyone on the forum (either current students or applying) knows of any bridge program students (i.e. students who obtained a university degree by completing 2 years of college then 2 years of university) who have been accepted to SLP programs in Ontario? 

I was told by Western they have accepted students who have obtained a degree this way in the past, but I still fear that despite what I think is a competitive application, this will cause admissions to maybe look at my application differently? (especially for other Ontario schools)

I don't have any experience with this so i can't give you a yes or no answer but as a current student I don't see any reason why you wouldn't still make a good fit for a program. If the school accepts your degree as equivalent to a 4-year degree then, in theory, they should be evaluating you at the same level as everyone else. Believe me when I say your prereqs are the most relevant to the coursework and that people come from all over the place in terms of degrees and experience (I go to UofT btw). Plus, they only count your last two years (which in your case would be university level) so I don't see any reason why a person who did two years of university-level courses would automatically be in a better place than you. A lot of people that you speak to (myself included) had a rough first couple of years in uni and only began to find their way and improve in the last few years of their degrees. 

Again, it would obviously be at the discretion of the specific program whether or not they accept it as an equivalent degree but if they do I would put your best foot forward and try! Best of luck to you if you applied this year  

[victoriaSLP]

Hey guys! I was wondering if anyone knows when our subGPA will be posted by ORPAS? I feel like I haven't calculated mine right so I'm waiting to see what it is! Thanks  

[SoaringSLP]

5 minutes ago, victoriaSLP said:

Hey guys! I was wondering if anyone knows when our subGPA will be posted by ORPAS? I feel like I haven't calculated mine right so I'm waiting to see what it is! Thanks  

They said the subGPA calculation should be available early February. They didn't give a specific date but I'm assuming it'll be within the first week or so of February.