A degree in speech therapy can be a rewarding and lucrative career path. As a speech therapist, you can help people of all ages and backgrounds to overcome challenges with speaking, eating, and swallowing. Many who work in the field work with children or older adults, but the profession is diverse and offers plenty of room for specialization. You can choose to focus on motor skills difficulties, augmentative communication, swallowing disorders, or other areas.
If you are interested in pursuing this area of study, you may be wondering what you will have to do to get there. While each school has its own set of requirements for admission, typically as an undergraduate student you’ll need to take a certain number of courses in basic sciences and humanities. You may also be required to complete an internship before graduating from your program.
Finally, if you’re thinking about becoming a speech therapist but aren’t sure about taking on the time commitment of pursuing a bachelor’s degree—or if you already have one—consider becoming an assistant first! This is an excellent way to explore whether or not the field is right for you without committing too much time or money upfront.
If you’ve got a heart for working with children and adults who have trouble speaking clearly, then this is the degree for you. In as little as two years, you’ll be ready to begin working with people who need the kind of help that only a Speech Therapist can give them.
Speech therapists are experts in helping people who have speech impediments or disorders. They help stroke victims, children with developmental disorders, and the elderly who suffer from neurodegenerative diseases. Speech therapy provides patients with techniques to improve their speech and communication skills.
The Speech Therapy degree prepares students with the skills to help others overcome speech disorders. Graduates go on to become speech language pathologists, working with patients who have speech or language impairments. This can include children with developmental delays and adults who have had strokes.
This program is designed to move students through a sequence of courses and clinical experiences that will lead to certification as a speech-language pathology assistant by the State of Texas. Students must apply for admission into the program prior to beginning their clinical courses.
Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) work to prevent, assess, diagnose, and treat speech, language, social communication, cognitive-communication, and swallowing disorders in children and adults.
SLPs must be able to analyze a person’s speech and language skills based on their developmental level and the results of formal tests or informal assessments. They also must be able to devise a treatment plan that addresses the needs of a person with a speech or language disorder.
The School of Behavioral Health Sciences offers both a Master of Science degree in Speech-Language Pathology (MS-SLP) and an undergraduate minor in Speech-Language Pathology (SLP). The MS-SLP program is accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CAA).