Jobs and back up plans

[SLP0008]

Does anyone have any good backup plans or something to do with a year or two off school? I am about to graduate with a bachelors in Communication Disorders and at the moment it does not look like graduate school is going to work out for the upcoming year. Does anyone know of any jobs I could get with my undergrad or a back up plan where I could go back to graduate school in a year or two? I have been researching jobs and SLPA positions but I am not finding much. Any help is appreciate. 

[maurmaur]

14 minutes ago, SLP0008 said:

Does anyone have any good backup plans or something to do with a year or two off school? I am about to graduate with a bachelors in Communication Disorders and at the moment it does not look like graduate school is going to work out for the upcoming year. Does anyone know of any jobs I could get with my undergrad or a back up plan where I could go back to graduate school in a year or two? I have been researching jobs and SLPA positions but I am not finding much. Any help is appreciate. 

ABA therapist, what state are you in?

[SLP1719]

When I was looking to get SLP experience after quitting a job from out of field to pursue grad school pre-reqs, I found a private school in my area that provides services to children and adults with ASD. I interned there unpaid, and it turned into a paid position... HOWEVER, similar agencies are always looking for qualified direct support professionals. I went through the general orientation at the start of my employment and have been able to pick up shifts as a DSP for the agency on a per-diem basis. It gets me a ton of experience working directly with children with ASD with their respective communication needs. My work experience gave me a lot to talk about and reflect on in grad school interviews and SoPs on my grad school applications.

[maurmaur]

26 minutes ago, SLP1719 said:

When I was looking to get SLP experience after quitting a job from out of field to pursue grad school pre-reqs, I found a private school in my area that provides services to children and adults with ASD. I interned there unpaid, and it turned into a paid position... HOWEVER, similar agencies are always looking for qualified direct support professionals. I went through the general orientation at the start of my employment and have been able to pick up shifts as a DSP for the agency on a per-diem basis. It gets me a ton of experience working directly with children with ASD with their respective communication needs. My work experience gave me a lot to talk about and reflect on in grad school interviews and SoPs on my grad school applications.

Yeah I work with kids with ASD, I think I overall know how to do therapy which is a great thing to apply with experience

[pbandj]

Seconding ABA therapist! I'm working as a behavior interventionist and I feel like it has given me a lot of experience on how to do therapy and work with kids with ASD. It also got me a great LOR. Most agencies I've seen around my area are pretty flexible with schedules, too. If you still have more time and want something else to do, you could probably add in some shadowing in various settings as well.

[edardi1]

I do ABA therapy now, and I love it!  Great experience for anyone who plans to work with kids, special needs or not.  Highly recommend it.  However, where I live the pay is a little less than livable.  

[Elska]

4 hours ago, Murr57 said:

I got a job this past September as a Teacher's Aide in a school for children with developmental disabilities! I work in the kindergarten classroom (ages 4-7). I really believe having this job on my resume helped me a tremendous amount when applying. I'm getting a great deal of experience working with kids, and I get to shadow SLP's whenever I want during my 15 min break or lunch. 

Second this! I'm a part-time aide at a special needs preschool. I've developed good relationships with the SLPs who were assigned to my classrooms and have had opportunities during work and my own free time to observe them. The job also gave me exposure to several rare and unusual syndromes and disorders, and I think that also helped make my resume stand out too. 

[SpeechLaedy]

58 minutes ago, Elska said:

Second this! I'm a part-time aide at a special needs preschool. I've developed good relationships with the SLPs who were assigned to my classrooms and have had opportunities during work and my own free time to observe them. The job also gave me exposure to several rare and unusual syndromes and disorders, and I think that also helped make my resume stand out too. 

Yep! Same here! 16 SLPs on staff at my school. I have observed more than half of them and was a per diem floater teachers aide for about a year (got to see every behavior and syndrome in the entire school) then was placed as a full-time permanent teachers aide in a preschool ABA room and have LOVED IT. I don't think it's doing anything for me with adding any incentive for these programs, but who knows what's going on behind the scenes. I'd say if you can get yourself into a school or hospital setting or anywhere where SLPs are on staff, that it could add valuable experience you can speak about in your revised personal statements. And besides that, I say if you did not get competitive GRE scores, to retake it - because I think my scores are biting me in the butt with a lot of these colleges since many of the schools use them to weed out a percentage of the competition. All the best!  

Edit: Oh! And I just remembered the director of my program at QC, Prof. Ball telling me that during my year off I should try to gain experience in various populations so I have an idea which population I would like to work with. It would give your personal statement some focus and direction and show the schools that you have used your time wisely.

Edited April 5, 2017 by SpeechLaedy

[SLP0008]

Thank you all soon much for your help!!! I am in Alabama but willing to go just about anywhere so that I can have a job!

 

[SLP0008]

On 4/4/2017 at 5:08 PM, pbandj said:

Seconding ABA therapist! I'm working as a behavior interventionist and I feel like it has given me a lot of experience on how to do therapy and work with kids with ASD. It also got me a great LOR. Most agencies I've seen around my area are pretty flexible with schedules, too. If you still have more time and want something else to do, you could probably add in some shadowing in various settings as well.

Was is easy to find this position right out of school? I graduate in August and am looking for something to do for a year or two before going to grad school. I would LOVE to be a ABA therapist but most of the job postings I see say experience is a MUST.

[pbandj]

5 hours ago, SLP0008 said:

Was is easy to find this position right out of school? I graduate in August and am looking for something to do for a year or two before going to grad school. I would LOVE to be a ABA therapist but most of the job postings I see say experience is a MUST.

I'm so sorry to hear you're having difficulty finding a position. I was actually working part-time while in school! However, I assume you're looking for a full-time position after graduation. I was qualified enough for part-time, but I'm not sure I was qualified back then for full-time. ?  If you're interested, I would definitely encourage you to try going into it through part-time work if you're financially able and if you're unable to go straight into full-time. Where I currently live there is quite a shortage of ABA therapists/services, so it was easy to get a part-time position. There are lot of kids to serve here, and not many people to do it. A lot of part-time therapists in my area are people who came in with limited to no background in ABA, and they are then trained and supervised by BCBAs and graduate ABA students. Perhaps it's the same where you live? Maybe you can start part-time then move up to full-time after having gained some experience - a lot of my coworkers got their full-time positions that way. You can also try calling agencies you're interested in working for and explaining whatever experience you have with kids and/or ASD, your degree in communicative disorders, your interest in working with children with ASD, etc. and seeing if those experiences, despite not being ABA therapy, are solid enough to land you a position. 

I do hope you're able to provide ABA therapy! It can be really tough, but it is so rewarding! And our fields go together so nicely ? Good luck!

Edited April 15, 2017 by pbandj
Add information

[maurmaur]

12 hours ago, SLP0008 said:

Was is easy to find this position right out of school? I graduate in August and am looking for something to do for a year or two before going to grad school. I would LOVE to be a ABA therapist but most of the job postings I see say experience is a MUST.

It was for me! I work at a clinic that really needed people which made them take more than those who had done ABA before! I would contact clinics in small towns and not large companies, large companies tend to draw people with higher qualifications it seems. Most have to train you the way they track their data and handle different things so I would definitely just apply!

[WannabSLP124]

Have you tried cold calling clinics about  SLPA positions? Many are small businesses and don't want to pay to advertise for job postings. It's worth a shot. If you are willing to move it's not too difficult to find SLPA jobs AZ and TX. I have been consistently employed in both states. Otherwise there is also habilitation - you are basically a highly qualified baby sitter for special needs kids. You may work with 1 family or have a few families depending on what they need. You are there to give parents a much needed break and you may get some ABA training on top of that. 

[AlwaysaFalcon]

I volunteered at an integrated preschool and was able to get experience working with kids and also shadow an slp whenever I wanted. I know for me it solidified my desire to be an slp! It helped me strengthen my applications!

[AC300]

Have you tried looking for a rehabilitation technician position in a nursing home? This job entails being an assistant to speech, occupational, and physical therapists in a rehab setting. 

[hopefulslp1]

I'm in the same boat as you so this thread is great. What I plan on doing is finding an ABA job, I've found a good amount on the website indeed.com. I also plan on becoming a paraprofessional and working at an elementary school or wherever I can get a job tbh. I know in my state it's pretty easy to get your para license. All you have to do is have either your high school or 2-year degree and just need to pass a background check and pay the $100 for the license. It doesn't pay much but it's experience, just like the ABA. I also plan on retaking the GRE and shadowing as much as I can.