A Bachelor’s Degree in Speech Therapy is a four-year degree that typically leads to licensure, certification, and ultimately the ability to work as a speech therapist or pathologist. Students who graduate with a Bachelor’s Degree in Speech Therapy typically have the skills to help patients who have been diagnosed with disorders like autism, stuttering, dyslexia, and other disorders that hinder their ability to speak or communicate.
Students who pursue this degree are required to take classes that address anatomy and physiology of the human body, including courses specific to the ears and mouth. They also learn about different types of communication disorders, as well as how to assist patients with those conditions.
A speech therapy degree is an undergraduate degree that prepares you to help people who have communication disorders or who are unable to speak. You’ll study the anatomy of the human voice, including how it works, how the brain controls it, and what can go wrong.
Speech-language pathologists specialize in diagnosing and treating people who have difficulty with communication. Some common disorders include autism spectrum disorder, hearing loss, laryngeal cancer, stuttering, traumatic brain injury, voice disorders, and more. This bachelor’s degree program will prepare you to address a variety of speech-related disorders.
The curriculum is designed to meet the educational requirements for state licensing exams in speech therapy. The coursework includes classes in physical sciences, natural sciences and math, humanities and fine arts, social and behavioral sciences and communications. During your junior year, you’ll start taking courses in your major that cover topics such as anatomy and physiology of the speech mechanism, introduction to audiology, professional issues in communication sciences and disorders and phonetics. In your senior year you’ll take courses that examine topics like articulation or phonological disorders, language disorders across the lifespan, augmentative or alternative communication strategies for persons with communicative disabilities, clinical practicum I-IV.
As a speech language pathologist, you will help individuals from children to adults who have difficulty communicating due to a disability or disorder. As a student in the Speech Therapy bachelor’s degree program, you will learn about the diverse communication needs of children and adults with varying speech, language, and swallowing disorders, and how to use different strategies to assess and treat these disorders. You will examine the role of speech pathology in medical settings and health care agencies. You will also learn how to work with individuals with disabilities across their lifespan by studying the impact of disabilities on family members, caregivers, and society.
Speech therapists treat people who have trouble speaking or swallowing due to many different causes, including developmental disorders and brain injuries. Speech therapists work with both children and adults. They can work in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, schools, or they can open their own private practices. In addition to helping patients learn to overcome their disabilities, they also offer support and information to the patient’s family members.
If you’re interested in this degree, you’ll want to look for a bachelor’s program that has been accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). While an undergraduate degree is sufficient for some paraprofessional roles in speech therapy and healthcare, most speech therapists continue their education after graduating and earn a master’s degree.
The typical bachelor’s program takes four years to complete and includes general education courses as well as coursework specific to speech pathology. If you’re interested in working with children or adolescents, you may want to consider majoring in child development instead of speech pathology.
This degree will help you develop the skills necessary for you to take on a position as a speech-language pathologist, who typically works with people of all ages who have communication and/or swallowing disorders. You will learn about how to assess and treat patients with speech, language, cognitive-communication, voice and swallowing impairments.
Earning a bachelor’s degree in speech therapy can prepare you to work directly with clients in treating their speech, language, voice, or hearing disorders. The program will prepare you to work as a speech therapist in public schools, private practices, home health care agencies, hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, rehabilitation centers, early intervention programs—and beyond.
Graduates of speech therapy programs are highly employable. They may choose to work with schools, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes, or private practices. Speech therapists may be responsible for diagnosing and treating patients with problems related to speech, language, communication, or swallowing. This may also include working with children on their reading skills and pronunciation.
Speech therapists must be able to effectively communicate with patients and their families. They must be able to determine the best course of action for helping individuals with their speech problems. Speech therapists must complete a license in order to practice.