2018 Speech Language Pathology Thread!

[_reeldeel]

It is time for a new thread! Old and new Canadian SLP applicants are welcome! I've seen harsh rejections here (long-time lurker) and in real life. Always looking out for tips from my #SLPtobe friends. It is a mystery how the admission committee chooses who is best suited in the field....*sigh*

Now that grad applications are fast approaching (5 months), I'm trying to remain strategic so I can achieve everything - marks, references (both academic and clinical), research experience... and it is driving me insane! Probably dealing with a bad case of spotlight effect (in a popular lab in my campus..my PI knows ALL the professors in psychology and linguistics department so I feel like he asks ALL of my profs about my academic performance/observations -____-) ANYWAY, stats.

- specialized honours in cognitive science (psych & ling focus); will end up on the dean's list
- subGPA: most likely 3.7 - 3.8 (Fast track ASL killed my mark!)
- Prerequisites: All As except Stats! ugh. Stats.
- volunteer: 6 placements, 450+ hours, children - older adults 
- experience in speech & voice therapy, hospital (swallowing disorders/stroke rehab unit), school board, aphasia centre
- lab: research assistant - paediatrics & cognitive neuroscience 

Focusing on quality VS quantity is HARD! We're humans...not robots. *Sigh* Just gotta push through until we get in! ahahahaha

Edited April 11, 2017 by _reeldeel
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[CristinaEscobedo]

Hello, 

I have a 3.36 GPA. What are my chances ? Which school should I apply for ?

 

 

[kayyyyy_]

54 minutes ago, CristinaEscobedo said:

Hello, 

I have a 3.36 GPA. What are my chances ? Which school should I apply for ?

 

 

Whats your experience? Where are you located? Are you able to move? What's your CSD GPA & overall GPA? last 6o units GPA? Gre scores?

[edardi1]

3 hours ago, CristinaEscobedo said:

Hello, 

I have a 3.36 GPA. What are my chances ? Which school should I apply for ?

 

 

If you look on EdFind you can research schools, and see what stats they accepted in the previous year.  

Also, note that sometimes a high GRE can offset a weak GPA.  

Edited April 12, 2017 by edardi1

[CristinaEscobedo]

I see! Thank you

 

[CristinaEscobedo]

I currently work as a SLPA in New Mexico. I am also currently taking one graduate level course in Speech Language Pathology.  I am taking AAC and have previously taken three graduate level courses in Special Education as well. Scored very low in the GRE & have a fairly low GPA as well. A little worried. My GPA is a 3.36 ( cumulative). Last 30 hours is a 3.5 GPA. 

* I have retaken a few C's that I've earned in my undergraduate degree.  Do schools look at the courses that I have retaken,  as well? My cumulative GPA does not include the initial retaken course . 

 

 

[edardi1]

2 hours ago, CristinaEscobedo said:

I currently work as a SLPA in New Mexico. I am also currently taking one graduate level course in Speech Language Pathology.  I am taking AAC and have previously taken three graduate level courses in Special Education as well. Scored very low in the GRE & have a fairly low GPA as well. A little worried. My GPA is a 3.36 ( cumulative). Last 30 hours is a 3.5 GPA. 

* I have retaken a few C's that I've earned in my undergraduate degree.  Do schools look at the courses that I have retaken,  as well? My cumulative GPA does not include the initial retaken course . 

 

 

In my experience grad schools look at everything. 

[kayyyyy_]

15 hours ago, CristinaEscobedo said:

I currently work as a SLPA in New Mexico. I am also currently taking one graduate level course in Speech Language Pathology.  I am taking AAC and have previously taken three graduate level courses in Special Education as well. Scored very low in the GRE & have a fairly low GPA as well. A little worried. My GPA is a 3.36 ( cumulative). Last 30 hours is a 3.5 GPA. 

* I have retaken a few C's that I've earned in my undergraduate degree.  Do schools look at the courses that I have retaken,  as well? My cumulative GPA does not include the initial retaken course . 

 

 

Schools look at it all, but you may be able to write in you SOP that you retook these classes and why. I am also a SLPA and you may want to focus on schools that look at the whole package initially. You don't want to apply to a school that looks at GPA & GRE to get you through the door and then looks at you. 

[CristinaEscobedo]

kayyyyy What state are you an SLPA in? I was a student athlete when I completed my undergraduate studies majoring in Communicative Disorders I also have a minor in Health and Human Services. Are you currently in a graduate program? 

[kayyyyy_]

54 minutes ago, CristinaEscobedo said:

kayyyyy What state are you an SLPA in? I was a student athlete when I completed my undergraduate studies majoring in Communicative Disorders I also have a minor in Health and Human Services. Are you currently in a graduate program? 

I am a SLPA in California. I was a student athlete as well and I have a degree in comm disorders but entered into a post bacc program to take more classes that I hadn't completed before. I just applied this year and I'll be going into a graduate program this fall. 

[CristinaEscobedo]

Congratulations! Which school have you been admitted to? 

Also is it true that an individual can be a SLPA in the state of California for up to 5 years? 

 

[tvl]

On 4/13/2017 at 10:30 AM, CristinaEscobedo said:

Congratulations! Which school have you been admitted to? 

Also is it true that an individual can be a SLPA in the state of California for up to 5 years? 

 

You can be a SLPA for as long as you want. I know someone who has been a SLPA for 10+ years! 

[bibliophile222]

Hi everyone! I was wondering if anyone had any advice regarding post-bacc programs--specifically, how transferable they are from one school to another, and if anyone has any experience with the UVM program. I applied really early because there are a few others I am applying to with earlier deadlines. They accepted me but said I had to respond within 14 days, before I've received any other replies. It is a 6 course certificate program, and I am a little worried that 6 courses may be considered too few, but they do offer a certificate of completion. Do you think some grad programs would make me take additional prerequisites? Would the certificate of completion help in this regard?

Any advice is helpful, since I only have 11 days left to decide! (I plan on calling financial services at the first opportunity to discuss financial aid, another concern of mine).

[bibliophile222]

whoops, I just realized I posted in the Canadian thread. So much for reading things. I'll chalk it up to it being my first post.

[kayyyyy_]

4 minutes ago, bibliophile222 said:

Hi everyone! I was wondering if anyone had any advice regarding post-bacc programs--specifically, how transferable they are from one school to another, and if anyone has any experience with the UVM program. I applied really early because there are a few others I am applying to with earlier deadlines. They accepted me but said I had to respond within 14 days, before I've received any other replies. It is a 6 course certificate program, and I am a little worried that 6 courses may be considered too few, but they do offer a certificate of completion. Do you think some grad programs would make me take additional prerequisites? Would the certificate of completion help in this regard?

Any advice is helpful, since I only have 11 days left to decide! (I plan on calling financial services at the first opportunity to discuss financial aid, another concern of mine).

6 is very little, I definitely think graduate programs would make you take additional courses. Also the 4 required ASHA prereqs, have you taken those? (chem/ bio, physics, social science and statistics?) They definitely want that before you're in the program. 

[ElKel87]

@bibliophile222 I only took 6 pre-reqs as an out-of-fielder/career changer and it was enough to get me into 3 of the 6 programs I applied to. One of them does have additional pre-reqs I would have needed to take as part of the program or the summer before the program if I decided to attend.

I think it really varies by school, they all have different requirements. You should be able to see their pre-reqs in advance and then compare them to the course descriptions of the post-bacc program you're looking at to see if they match. In my experience the certificate of completion doesn't matter. What programs want to see is your transcript and if the courses on your transcript match the courses on their pre-req list.

[SLPhopeful1]

Great idea, @_reeldeel. I told myself I didn't want to look at this site because it would make me nervous about my own application, but it's just so hard not to! Ha ha. May I ask where you're applying to? Your application sounds fierce! I honestly think you're on the right track!

[SLPhopeful1]

I figure I might as well post my stats as well, but I'm not sure how the subGPA is calculated. If anyone has any insight please let me know!

My last 60 credits have brought me to a GPA of 3.92, but my prerequisites are only at a 3.84. I'm wondering if I should retake one of them, since retaking a course I got a B+ in would probably bring my prereq GPA to a 3.94. But I guess I'll see.

I'm also worried about volunteer hours. I have lots of research experience doing research with a developmental psycholinguist (did my thesis and lots of volunteering, and now have a research assistant job), and have volunteered in various settings with individuals who have disabilities, but don't have a lot of experience in an SLP clinic itself. 

Best of luck with your applications, everyone!

[futureslpcan]

Hi everyone!

I've been waiting for October to start posting in this thread, and now that the time has come (and ORPAS opens soon), I decided it's time! I'm super nervous about applying this year but it's nice to have this community to lean on.

I'm in psych and linguistics and I've calculated my sGPA to be around 3.80-3.82. I'm finishing up my last prereq this term (research methods), and I'm currently volunteering with an SLP in the school board and with older adults who have dysphagia. Since I just started volunteering at both I'm worried about gaining enough experience but hopefully my tons of research experience will make up for it. I'm planning to apply to UofT, Western, and McMaster.

Anyone else freaking out about writing their personal statement??

[futureslpcan]

On 6/5/2017 at 5:19 PM, SLPhopeful1 said:

I figure I might as well post my stats as well, but I'm not sure how the subGPA is calculated. If anyone has any insight please let me know!

My last 60 credits have brought me to a GPA of 3.92, but my prerequisites are only at a 3.84. I'm wondering if I should retake one of them, since retaking a course I got a B+ in would probably bring my prereq GPA to a 3.94. But I guess I'll see.

I'm also worried about volunteer hours. I have lots of research experience doing research with a developmental psycholinguist (did my thesis and lots of volunteering, and now have a research assistant job), and have volunteered in various settings with individuals who have disabilities, but don't have a lot of experience in an SLP clinic itself. 

Best of luck with your applications, everyone!

Hey! I calculated my subGPA myself by using the OPRAS chart (https://www.ouac.on.ca/guide/orpas-conversion-table/) and just adding up all my grades according to the conversion table. Takes a while, but it should give you a nice estimate of what your gpa is.

[katherinexo]

On 4/13/2017 at 10:00 AM, kayyyyy_ said:

I am a SLPA in California. I was a student athlete as well and I have a degree in comm disorders but entered into a post bacc program to take more classes that I hadn't completed before. I just applied this year and I'll be going into a graduate program this fall. 

kayyyyy_ was it hard for you to find a job as a SLPA? I'm located in SoCal, specifically San Diego and I always look at job listing and rarely find any. I want to become a SLPA just in case I don't get in the first time around of applications!

[SLPhopeful1]

23 hours ago, futureslpcan said:

Hey! I calculated my subGPA myself by using the OPRAS chart (https://www.ouac.on.ca/guide/orpas-conversion-table/) and just adding up all my grades according to the conversion table. Takes a while, but it should give you a nice estimate of what your gpa is.

Oh wow! I hadn't seen that conversion chart before! Thanks so much for your help!

It's interesting how different schools have different GPAs for the same marks. I'm assuming it's a way to balance things, but it still seems a little peculiar.

I have decided that I am only going to be applying to the U of A and Dalhousie this year (ORPAS is so expensive!) so I suppose the ORPAS sGPA isn't so significant to consider for me. Still, for anyone wondering it's a 3.89. I know it's nice to look back on past years to see what GPAs are like, so I may as well share. lol

I agree that personal statements and letters are so nerve-racking! It's strange to write something about yourself after writing academically for so long. 

[NatRose]

First time applying — really nervous!  

Bilingual SLPA (Spanish)in FL

cGPA: 3.48   CSD/Last 60:  3.7

154Q/ 159V/ 4.0w

[CajunSLP18]

First time applying as well. 

Graduating May 2018, hopefully will start Grad School June 2018.

cGPA: 3.87 (I should graduate with a 3.9) CODI GPA: 4.0

retook GRE yesterday 10/3

Q: 147 V: 149 (and never taking it again)

I am only applying to UL-Lafayette (I am getting my undergrad here) and LSU.

Edited October 4, 2017 by CajunSLP18

[SLP advising]

wow- reading through this thread (and hearing the same questions from my own students) really makes me feel for all- the whole process induces too much anxiety as there are few answers out there and min guidance.  to help all those people out there and shed some light on the grad admission process, i started a website which offers guidance and advice on how to navigate the process. i've been on two different admissions committees so have a pretty good sense of whats out there-- check it out-- www.slpgradschool.com

good luck and be sure to take some time for yourselves-- its a huge thing but try not to let it overwhelm you.