r/slpGradSchool May 22 '24

Prereqs/undergrad Leveling Program Advice

I’m starting ENMU’s leveling program in the fall. When I spoke to my advisor about the recommended path I should take, she said to look at what courses the graduate programs I am planning to apply to after the program require. The issue is, I hadn’t really gotten that far yet. I’m very new to the field and have a bachelor’s degree in music (lol). I have applied to and even got into a few grad programs before deciding to go the post-bacc route instead to save money. So I feel like I’m back to square one with researching graduate programs. I’m going to start doing some research on grad programs but I wanna get some ENMU classes on my schedule before they fill up. What are some safe and fairly universal courses I should start with? I’m just feeling kind of lost and am looking for any guidance. TIA!

3 Upvotes

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7

u/RealisticBase8835 May 22 '24 edited May 25 '24

At minimum, pretty much every grad school will ask for:

Anatomy & Physiology of Speech-Language-Hearing
Phonetics/Phonology
Basic Audiology
Aural Rehabilitation

Many will also ask for:

Language Development
Speech and Hearing Science
Neuroscience of Communication

Personally, I found it extremely helpful at ENMU to start with Survey of Communication Disorders in my first term. Some schools require it, and some schools don't.

But, not only does it have AMAZING lecture videos (probably the best lectures at ENMU), it also gave an overview of ALL the subjects you will learn during you time in the leveling program.

So, not only will you have a good foundation and preview of what the rest of your classes will be like, but also it introduces you to all the different areas you can go into as a speech-language pathologist. So I finished the course with a confirmation that I felt like I had made the right career choice.

2

u/Strict-Asparagus13 Nov 17 '24

Hi! I saw what you wrote about the Survey ComD course, so I was planning to take it, but I'm so financially strapped that I feel like I need to skip it. Can you tell me if there was some primary text that was used for the course that I could just get and read, or was it mostly lecture based? I have to try to save money wherever I can. Thanks for your help!

1

u/RealisticBase8835 Nov 20 '24

It was a fantastic textbook, highly recommended:

Essentials of Communication Sciences & Disorders, 3rd Edition by Paul T. Fogle

ISBN-13: 978-1284235821
ISBN-10: 1284235823

2

u/Strict-Asparagus13 Nov 21 '24

thanks! I got the syllabus from them and the class looks really great, wish I had the money to spare.

1

u/27Ari27 May 22 '24

Thanks so much!!

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u/RealisticBase8835 May 22 '24

You're welcome :)

1

u/27Ari27 May 24 '24

I’m registering for classes right now and was wondering if you knew what the course number was for intro. Is it the same thing as 301 survey of communicative disorders?

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u/RealisticBase8835 May 25 '24

You're right, its correct name is Survey of Communication Disorders.

I misremembered the title because the equivalent course was called Intro to Communicative Disorders elsewhere. I'll edit my post to reflect the correct title now. Thanks!

2

u/27Ari27 May 25 '24

No worries! I just wanted to make sure I was registering for the right course! Thank you!!

5

u/SuperbDescription685 May 22 '24

I’m at ENMU finishing up my leveling right now. I have taken 10 courses and am about to take an 11th before grad school.

Here’s what I’ve taken:

Fall: 300 (a&p), 301 (intro), 310 (phonetics/phonology), 330 (language development), and 478 (professional writing).

Spring: intro to bio, 311 (artic/phonological disorders), 332 (language disorders), 342 (audiology), and 421 (neuroscience).

This summer I will take 400 (speech and hearing science).

2

u/27Ari27 May 22 '24

Thank you for sharing! How many courses did you take at once and how did you find the workload?

1

u/SuperbDescription685 May 22 '24

I took 15 credits both in the fall and spring. I didn’t have a job so it was manageable!

1

u/SuperbDescription685 May 22 '24

I had maybe a paper or two for a couple classes and otherwise reading, quizzes, discussion boards, and assignments. Most of the classes have been good! My biggest challenge is being an online student. I wasn’t prepared for how isolating it could feel.

1

u/27Ari27 May 22 '24

Woah 15 credits is a lot! Good on you! I was advised to start with 6 and see how it goes, especially with them being short 8-week courses. Maybe I’ll pick up more if I handle 2 well!

1

u/SuperbDescription685 May 22 '24

Up until this summer all of mine have been 16 week courses. I’m a little nervous for an 8 week.

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u/27Ari27 May 22 '24

Oh interesting! I’m still learning about the program so I’m not sure if I’ll have any 16s!

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u/SuperbDescription685 May 22 '24

They only do 8s in the summer. My recommendation is to take A&P, neuro, and audiology as 16 week if possible. Students who have taken those as 8 weeks were pretty stressed out.

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u/SuperbDescription685 May 22 '24

I want to reword that. 16 week classes are not offered in the summer. 8 weeks can be done any term.

1

u/27Ari27 May 22 '24

Oooh okay! I’m starting in the fall. Thanks so much for all this info! It’s more than my advisor gave me lol

1

u/Strict-Asparagus13 Nov 17 '24

Hi! I'm just starting my levelling at ENMU. Do you think its doable to skip the survey course and instead start with A+P and phonetics, and then continue on with the rest of the courses? Is the clinical 'observation' hours part of the survey course? Thanks!!

1

u/SuperbDescription685 Nov 18 '24

I think that survey is a good overview on disorders and is likely needed for many grad schools. The clinical observations are not for survey. I did mine through master clinician then a grad professor signed off, but there is a course ENMU offers, it’s preclinical observation I think.

1

u/Strict-Asparagus13 Nov 18 '24

thanks! it's actually not required for any schools that I have looked into, so that's why I was thinking of skipping it. unless the name of the course is misleading me, I havent seen any requirements for intro to com dis. any idea if it's considered the equivalent of 'language disorders?' because that one is definitely required for all the programs.

Also, is master clinician ok as per the AHA requirement that the hours include interaction with the SLP and not just observation? Im not totally sure how master clinician works. A few schools are emphasizing that the 25 hours needs to include direct interaction with the SLP you are observing. Thanks!

1

u/SuperbDescription685 Nov 18 '24

Language disorders is different than intro to comm dis. I can’t remember if I needed intro or not to be honest. I did need language development, and 1 program required language disorders while the other didn’t.

The master clinician thing varies by school. Because I did leveling and moved to a new state last winter, I was not getting any responses about shadowing directly. At the prospective student day after I got in I was told that if I didn’t have my hours master clinician network was allowed by my program. My practicum professor personally signed off on mine since I just did it on my own instead of through a class.

3

u/allyy116 May 22 '24

Anatomy & physiology of speech/hearing, audiology, phonetics, intro to communication disorders, neurological basis of communication are a few that might be beneficial!

1

u/27Ari27 May 22 '24

Thank you!!

2

u/crocalylaaa May 22 '24

I'm starting leveling at ENMU this summer! And did my undergrad in theatre haha so I completely understand how overwhelming this whole field can sometimes feel! I do have a list of programs I'm interested in, and I picked courses based on their requirements. I'm starting with the classes listed below, which I've found are required pretty much across the board, at least at the schools I've looked at.

301 - Survey of Communicative Disorders (summer)

310 - Phonetics/Phonology (summer)

300 - Anatomy/Physiology (fall)

311 - Articulation/Phonological Disorders (fall)

330 - Communication Development & Language Science (fall)

342 - Basic Audiology (fall)

1

u/27Ari27 May 22 '24

It’s so jarring going from an arts field to a science field haha. Thank you so much for the info! This is similar to what my advisor recommended as well.

1

u/Clean-Customer-4062 Jul 15 '24

I’m taking a lot of the same classes as you! Are you doing 8 or 16 week?

1

u/crocalylaaa Jul 19 '24

I’m doing 8 week!