Is Vanderbilt worth the cost?

[Soon2BanSLP]

Hi all! I'm an out-of-field grad school applicant, and I recently found out that I got into both of the programs that I applied to: Appalachian State University and Vanderbilt University. I'm so excited to have been accepted into a program, but I would love some advice. I'm wondering if Vanderbilt is worth the extra cost? Appalachian State would run about $15,000/year for an out-of-state student, while Vanderbilt costs around $45,000. However, Vanderbilt holds a much higher rank and has access to some truly amazing research facilities. Living in Nashville would also allow for more accessible clinicals compared to Boone; but, Nashville is also a much more expensive city. 

I'm a first-generation college (and grad) student, and navigating the world of admissions is a bit intimidating for me. I'm still kind of in a state of shock and awe that I was even accepted int a program, so I would love and appreciate any advice. Thank you!

[Angela Q.]

You might want to wait a bit till Vanderbilt comes out with financial aid/scholarships; also if you do a hearing loss or autism track you do get a tuition reduction! 

[PineappleSea]

Hi. I can say unless you have the funds, get a scholarship/assistantship that covers a large part of tuition, or have a circumstance that will enable you to pay it off quickly, I’d say 100% no. 

You can see the range of salaries  you’ll likely be making if you do an internet search or go on any social media platform with an SLP group. Salaries range depending on cost of living, but even making 100k-112k in like LA or NYC won’t necessarily make paying off loan easy or doable depending on one’s situation.

Those ratings are based on surveys. I’m not sure how useful or real ranking are if they’re based on surveys.  You can get a great education at Vanderbilt, a state school, etc. and you can also get a terrible one. A lot of times it has more to do with you, the way you connect with professors, the way you connect with the clinical staff, their ability to get you in a setting that you want with a supportive supervisor, you connecting with your classmates, praxis pass rates, etc.

If you pass comps, graduate, and pass the praxis, you get the same licenses and certifications as everyone else. There may be an opportunities to make a connection with somebody if you go to a specific school, but that’s also the case with any school or opportunity. Often times you work with SLPs  from all around the country, and even the world from many schools/backgrounds. I don’t feel like I’ve ever once asked where they went to school, nor have I been asked. Like seriously no one‘s ever asked me.

what many SLPs do you talk about is how much debt they have, how they feel overwhelmed by the payments, how they don’t feel like they make enough money to pay off the loans, etc. So when we can clearly see so many people in this predicament, why would we want to pay that much for a degree we know we won’t earn the money to pay it off? Universities shouldn’t be charging that much, but they can and will so long as someone is willing to pay for it. 
 

Additionally, I feel like one is able to learn more after grad school. That’s when one takes courses in certain areas, goes to trainings, connects with mentors, learns about new things in the field. Grad school in many ways felt like a more of undergrad. The most helpful part was the clinical experience, and  Again if you go on any online forum, you see a lot of people reaching out to the SLP community for support and help learning things such as how to correct /r/, plan literacy therapy, implement cycles, conduct an assessment for a bilingual individual. Many times that’s  most graduates and SLPs early in our career as there’s just so much to learn and feel confident in.

So Vanderbilt (or any pricey school)  may be worth it, but it may not be. There are so many factors and things to think about. And just so people don’t think I’m biased trying to slam the “topped-ranked” schools, I was accepted into Vanderbilt, Columbia, NYU, etc.  I also applied to state schools as well. I ended up going out of state to one of the schools that is “high-ranked” based on the list you mentioned, but that was because I was lucky enough to get a scholarship that made it as affordable as a state school. If I hadn’t gotten that, I would’ve been giving the same advice to myself about the cost of that school as I am doing here now. It’s not because I don’t think that we all have dreams, think about going to that school/city or that school/city, or even talk down the experience if somebody does decide it’s worth it to them. I’m just sharing experiences and advice as somebody six years into the field and what I’ve seen, heard, and experienced.

You should be proud you got in, as it is so competitive and you’ve worked hard, but money should be a big factor from what I can see from SLPs in general, in selecting where to go for grad school. 

[Soon2BanSLP]

Thank you so much for all of the help! Vanderbilt did not end up offering me any funding - and App State offered me a full ride. That being said, I will be going with App State if Vanderbilt does not increase its offer. I feel I would definitely have more options after graduation having no debt compared to having debt and attending a "name-brand school." I'm very interested in non-profit work, so not having debt would make it a lot easier to accept those offers.

Edited April 5, 2022 by Soon2BanSLP

[thespeechblog.com]

You got a full-ride offer from an accredited program? DO IT.

Vanderbilt is not worth the money. In this field (and many others) that 'brand-name' and 'prestige' are only worth it to your ego and have very little impact on your career.