How to Become a Speech Pathologist

Most licensed speech pathologists possess a master's degree.  A lot of them majored in communication science and speech pathology when they were undergraduates.  Currently, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association accredits college-level speech pathology programs, and there are 240 universities in the United States that offer graduate degrees in both master's and doctoral level in this area. 

To successfully graduate, undergraduate speech pathology students must be familiar with both the physiological and psychological aspects of communication, and the development of body parts which are involved in speaking, swallowing, and speech.  Graduate students will have the opportunitiy to treat communication disorder in clinical trials. 

47 states in the United States require speech pathologists to be licensed.  That entails an accredited master's degree and a passing score on an national speech pathology examination.  Speech pathologists can also voluntarily choose to obtain a certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology.  To achieve this credential, the pathologist needs to be licensed, must have completed 400 hours of clinical practicum, 36 weeks of clinical fellowship, and pass the Praxis exam administered by the Educational Testing Service. 

A speech pathologist must be understanding and considerate as the job requires a lot of patience dealing with patients who have difficulty communicating through speech.  In addition, speech pathologists also need to be a good listener in order to understand the needs of the patients and their family members. 

Close to 50% of speech pathologists work in the education sector, while others work in hospitals, home care services, child care centers, and nursing care facilities.  It is predicted that the employment of speech pathologists will increase by 19 percent in the next ten years.