Speech-Language Pathology M.A.

Speech-Language Pathology Major

The professional program in speech-language pathology is a program of both undergraduate and graduate courses leading to a Master of Arts degree. The program is designed to prepare students for careers as speech-language pathologists providing remedial services to the speech, language, and hearing disabled in a wide variety of settings including schools, hospitals, clinics, and care centers for the elderly.

Students interested in this program must submit a completed Application for Admission to Graduate Study and should refer to their MyUNIverse Student Center To-Do list or contact the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders for other application requirements.  Graduate information and application for graduate admission can be found at https://admissions.uni.edu/application.

Only graduate courses (course numbers 5000 or above) will apply to a graduate degree, even if the undergraduate course number (4999 or less) is listed.  No exceptions will be made.

This major is available on the thesis and non-thesis options. A minimum of 52 semester hours is required for both options. A minimum of 6 hours of CSD 6299 is required for the thesis option. A minimum of 47 semester hours of 6000-level course work is required.

Students may select the thesis or non-thesis option upon consultation with their graduate advisor. In the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, all students must have the approval of their advisor for registration for classes, including all adds and drops. Students who are suspended by the Graduate College may not enroll for major courses within this department.

All students must abide by the policies and procedures found in the Graduate Student Handbook, which is published by, and available in, the department. 

The student, in consultation with the advisor, must choose courses designed to meet the standards of the Council on Academic Accreditation of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association academic requirements for the Certificate of Clinical Competence. Recommendation for clinical certification will be given only upon successful completion of all academic and clinical requirements.

The student must complete a minimum of 400 clock hours of which 25 are observation and 375 are in direct patient contact in the supervised clinical practicum; at least 325 of the 400 clock hours must be at the graduate level. Students must complete a course covering communication modalities. This may be fulfilled at the undergraduate level with CSD 4100/5100 Augmentative and Alternative Communication or as an elective at the graduate level with CSD 5100.

Based on satisfactory completion of an undergraduate degree in Communication Disorders or the equivalent, course work, clinical assignments, and the internship experience will ordinarily take four semesters and one summer.

Students seeking endorsement #237 by the Iowa Department of Education typically complete course requirements as undergraduates, including SOCFOUND 2119 Social & Cultural Foundations of Education or SOCFOUND 4234/5234 Philosophy of Education or CSD 3200/5200 Language of School-aged Children, and TEACHING 4170/5170 Human Relations: Awareness and Application, as well as additional hours of specified major courses and course work in Educator Essentials. To complete the requirements for an endorsement, graduate students enroll in CSD 6580 Internship in Clinical Settings and/or CSD 6290 SLP Practicum in Education Setting during their internship semester. Graduate students who need to complete course requirements for endorsement #237 should consult with their major academic advisor.

Requirements for certification and licensure include both graduate and undergraduate courses considered essential to certification and the master's degree. Prerequisite (*) courses will normally have been completed at the undergraduate level; if not, the student and departmental graduate academic advisor will determine how such incomplete requirements will be met. Students must complete 25 clock hours of supervised clinical observation prior to beginning clinical practice.

Students are expected to earn grades of B- or better in CSD 6560 Diagnostics in Communication Disorders and CSD 6660 Advanced Diagnostics in Communication Disorders and each of the seven required credits of CSD 6500 Advanced Clinical Practice: Full Semester/CSD 6510 Advanced Clinical Practice: 8 Week. Students who do not earn a B- grade will be required to meet with the clinic director and department head for review and consultation. Students who demonstrate significant difficulties in the clinical courses, such as failing to meet the B- requirement, may be asked to take an additional semester of either CSD 6500 Advanced Clinical Practice: Full Semester  or CSD 6660 Advanced Diagnostics in Communication Disorders.

To meet the requirements for professional certification and licensure, students must attend professional issues lectures and demonstrations addressing topics such as professional ethics, medical and school practices, resumes/interviewing, the PRAXIS examination, professional certification and licensure, etc. Completion of this requirement will be tracked via the CALIPSO system.

Communication Disorders courses typically completed as an undergraduate:

Learning Outcomes

Speech-Language Pathology, M.A.

Critical Thinking Goal: Students will demonstrate critical thinking through appropriate clinical decision-making utilizing evidence.

• Critical Thinking Outcome #1: Students will demonstrate critical thinking appropriate for the field of speech-language pathology by creating and implementing effective clinical treatment plans.
• Critical Thinking Outcome #2: Students will demonstrate critical thinking by adapting evaluation procedures and interpreting the results to formulate a diagnosis as part of their clinical experience.

Communication Goal: Students will demonstrate effective oral and written communication skills consistent with the requirements of the field of speech-language pathology.

• Communication Outcome #1: Students will demonstrate effective written communication skills by completing administrative and reporting functions necessary to support evaluation and intervention.
• Communication Outcome #2: Students will display effective oral communication skills while recognizing the needs, values, preferred mode of communication, and cultural/linguistic background for patients, families, caregivers and others.

Program Content Knowledge & Specific Skills Goal: Students will synthesize discipline specific knowledge.

• Content Knowledge Outcome #1: Students will demonstrate discipline specific knowledge in evaluation and treatment of communication and swallowing disorders.
• Content Knowledge Outcome #2: Students will demonstrate discipline specific knowledge in foundational skills and professional practice.

Related Programs

• Communication Disorders B.A.