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Speech Pathology and Audiology students smile while attending class in a lecture hall.

Speech Pathology and Audiology - B.S.

The Speech Pathology and Audiology B.S. program at Kent State University offers a dynamic and innovative learning experience for students passionate about helping individuals with communication disorders. With state-of-the-art facilities, expert faculty, and a curriculum that emphasizes hands-on clinical experience, this program provides students with the skills and knowledge necessary to succeed in this rewarding field.

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Program Information

Program Description

Full Description

The Bachelor of Science degree in Speech Pathology and Audiology is a pre-professional program focusing on the basic sciences of human communication, as well as the evaluation and treatment of communication disorders. This program provides a firm foundation for continuing to the master's degree in speech-language pathology or the doctorate in audiology.

The curriculum integrates a sequence of coursework designed to provide a strong liberal arts background and an understanding of normal and disordered aspects of the human communication process. Specific coursework includes anatomy and physiology of the speech and hearing mechanisms, hearing and speech science, neurology, phonetics, normal speech and language development, speech and language disorders, audiometry and aural rehabilitation.

Speech-language pathologists are required to hold a master’s degree, while audiologists hold a doctorate in audiology. Both are employed in a variety of settings, including rehabilitation centers, hospitals, schools, community clinics, private practice, research laboratories and colleges and universities.

Student may apply early to the Master of Arts degree in Speech Language Pathology and double count 9 credit hours of graduate courses toward both degree programs. See the Combined Bachelor's/Master's Degree Program Policy in the University Catalog for more information.

Admissions

Admission Requirements

Admission to this major is selective. A minimum 3.000 GPA is required to be admitted to the major. Students who do not meet the GPA requirement at the time of admission for this major will be admitted to the EHHS General non-degree program until which time they have established a Kent State GPA of 3.000. They may then submit a change of program to declare this major.

Current Kent State and Transfer Students: Active Kent State students who wish to change their major must have attempted a minimum 12 credit hours at Kent State and meet all admission criteria listed above to be admitted. Students who have not attempted 12 credit hours at Kent State will be evaluated for admission based on their high school GPA for new students or transfer GPA for transfer students. Transfer students who have not attempted 12 credit hours of college-level coursework at Kent State and/or other institutions will be evaluated based on both their high school GPA and college GPA.

Admission to the combined bachelor's/master's degree program: Minimum 3.000 GPA (after 90 earned credit hours) and three letters of recommendation.

International Students: All international students must provide proof of English language proficiency unless they meet specific exceptions. For more information, visit the admissions website for international students.

Learning Outcomes

Program Learning Outcomes

Graduates of this program will be able to:

  1. Demonstrate knowledge of the nature of speech, language and hearing processes and disorders in children and adults.
  2. Demonstrate the skills necessary to be successful speech-language pathologists, audiologists, or other health and human service professionals.
  3. Gain entry into graduate programs in speech pathology, audiology and/or related fields, or obtain positions in health and human services related professions.
Coursework
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Program Requirements

Major Requirements (courses count in major GPA)
ENG 31003LINGUISTICS 3
MATH 10041INTRODUCTORY STATISTICS (KMCR) 3-4
or PSYC 21621 QUANTITATIVE METHODS IN PSYCHOLOGY I
PSYC 41043BASIC LEARNING PROCESSES 3
SPA 10002INTRODUCTION TO COMMUNICATION DISORDERS AND DIFFERENCES 3
SPA 33101HEARING AND SPEECH SCIENCE 3
SPA 34102APPLIED PHONETICS 3
SPA 34103ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH AND HEARING 3
SPA 34104SPEECH AND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION 3
SPA 34106ARTICULATORY AND PHONOLOGICAL DISORDERS 3
SPA 34107LANGUAGE DISORDERS IN CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS 3
SPA 43402AUDIOMETRY 3
SPA 43404AURAL REHABILITATION 3
SPA 43405CLINICAL PREPARATION IN AUDIOLOGY (ELR) 2
SPA 44111NEURAL PROCESSES 3
SPA 44112AGE-RELATED CHANGES IN COMMUNICATION 3
SPA 44310CLINICAL PROCEDURES IN SPEECH PATHOLOGY 3
SPA 44311CLINICAL PREPARATION IN SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY (ELR) (WIC) 12
Additional Requirements (courses do not count in major GPA)
PSYC 11762GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY (DIVD) (KSS) 3
PSYC 20651CHILD PSYCHOLOGY (DIVD) (KSS) 3
UC 10001FLASHES 101 1
Biology (BSCI) Course from Kent Core 23-4
Chemistry (CHEM) or Physics (PHY) Course from Kent Core (except PHY 11030) 23-4
Kent Core Composition6
Kent Core Mathematics and Critical Reasoning3
Kent Core Humanities and Fine Arts (minimum one course from each)9
Kent Core Social Sciences (must be from two disciplines)3
Kent Core Additional3
General Electives (total credit hours depends on earning 120 credits hour, including 39 upper-division credit hours) 334
Minimum Total Credit Hours:120
1

A minimum C grade must be earned to fulfill writing-intensive requirement.

2

Students must complete a laboratory from the Kent Core Basic Sciences category.

3

Maximum 9 credit hours may be used toward the major from courses in the M.A. degree for students admitted into the combined bachelor's/master's degree program. Any student interested in the combined program will be required to complete a total of 111 (undergraduate) credit hours prior to entry into the master's degree program.

Progression Requirements

  • Minimum 3.000 overall GPA1 (after 60 credit hours) is required to be admitted into the professional phase of the major.
  • Students will not be able to register for professional phase courses until they meet the required GPA1. Professional phase are all SPA courses required in the major with the exception of SPA 10002, SPA 34102, SPA 34103, SPA 34104, SPA 34107 and SPA 44111.
1

Undergraduate students who have not completed a minimum of 12 Kent State University credit hours will be evaluated for advanced study and professional phase based on their high school GPA for new freshmen or transfer GPA for transfer students.

Graduation Requirements

Minimum Major GPA Minimum Overall GPA
2.250 2.000
Roadmap
 

Roadmap

This roadmap is a recommended semester-by-semester plan of study for this major. However, courses designated as critical (!) must be completed in the semester listed to ensure a timely graduation.

Plan of Study Grid
Semester OneCredits
UC 10001 FLASHES 101 1
Biology (BSCI) Course from Kent Core 3-4
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
 Credit Hours16
Semester Two
!PSYC 11762 GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY (DIVD) (KSS) 3
SPA 10002 INTRODUCTION TO COMMUNICATION DISORDERS AND DIFFERENCES 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
 Credit Hours15
Semester Three
PSYC 20651 CHILD PSYCHOLOGY (DIVD) (KSS) 3
!SPA 34102 APPLIED PHONETICS 3
SPA 34104 SPEECH AND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
General Elective 3
 Credit Hours15
Semester Four
ENG 31003 LINGUISTICS 3
MATH 10041
or PSYC 21621
 INTRODUCTORY STATISTICS (KMCR)
or QUANTITATIVE METHODS IN PSYCHOLOGY I
3-4
SPA 34103 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH AND HEARING 3
SPA 34107 LANGUAGE DISORDERS IN CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS 3
Chemistry (CHEM) or Physics (PHY) Course from Kent Core (except PHY 11030) 3-4
 Credit Hours15
Semester Five
Minimum 3.000 overall GPA to be admitted into the professional phase of the major; apply after 60 credit hours are completed or in progress.  
PSYC 41043 BASIC LEARNING PROCESSES 3
!SPA 33101 HEARING AND SPEECH SCIENCE 3
SPA 44111 NEURAL PROCESSES 3
General Electives 6
 Credit Hours15
Semester Six
!SPA 34106 ARTICULATORY AND PHONOLOGICAL DISORDERS 3
!SPA 43402 AUDIOMETRY 3
!SPA 43405 CLINICAL PREPARATION IN AUDIOLOGY (ELR) 2
!SPA 44112 AGE-RELATED CHANGES IN COMMUNICATION 3
General Electives 4
 Credit Hours15
Semester Seven
!SPA 43404 AURAL REHABILITATION 3
!SPA 44310 CLINICAL PROCEDURES IN SPEECH PATHOLOGY 3
!SPA 44311 CLINICAL PREPARATION IN SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY (ELR) (WIC) 2
General Electives 7
 Credit Hours15
Semester Eight
General Electives 14
 Credit Hours14
 Minimum Total Credit Hours:120
Program Delivery
  • Delivery:
    • In person
  • Location:
    • Kent Campus
Professional Phase

All students in the speech pathology and audiology undergraduate program must be admitted to the professional phase prior to being able to register for most upper-division SPA courses. The application cycle for the professional phase is open three times per year:

  • December 1 - 2nd week of Spring semester
  • May 1 - June 1
  • August 1 - 2nd week of Fall semester

Applications for the professional phase are submitted through the EHHS Student Portal. 

Visit SPA Program

Speech Pathology and Audiology (SPA) Program visitation days involve a 45-minute visit, during which you will meet with a faculty member, and take a tour of the program. Click here to find out more information and schedule a visit.

Combined Bachelor's-Master's Program (CBMP)

Undergraduate students at KSU can apply to our Master of Arts (M.A.) program after graduating with their B.S. degree or through the CBMP, as long as they have completed 90 or more credit hours. Admission criteria to the M.A. program are the same for both of these paths. 

The CBMP has two advantages:

  1. Students can begin to take graduate classes prior to completing all of their undergraduate classes. This makes more efficient use of their time.
  2. Students can count up to 9 hours of graduate coursework toward the electives section of their undergraduate degree. This saves up to 9 hours worth of tuition costs at the undergraduate level.

Students in the CBMP graduate with their B.S. degree as soon as those requirements are completed (often after their first semester in graduate school).  

APPLICATION PROCESS

Kent State Speech Pathology and Audiology (SPA) majors who are current undergraduates anticipating December or May graduation, post-baccalaureate students, or Kent State SPA students who have graduated in good standing within 12 months of the application deadline, are permitted to apply for Spring admission to our M.A. Program in Speech-Language Pathology. Applications are to be completed through the CSDCAS by October 1st, choosing the Spring start option. Finalists will be invited to complete an interview as part of the application process.  The university online application is required only if accepted and attending the program. PLEASE NOTE THE GRE IS NO LONGER REQUIRED. 

Kent State SPA students accepted for Spring admission (Kent State undergraduates only), who wish to combine their final semester of undergraduate study with their first semester of graduate study will need to indicate "yes" in the university application system when asked if they wish to apply to the combined baccalaureate-master's program (CBMP). These applicants must also submit a completed CBMP form.  This form will be reviewed and completed after the applicant has been accepted into the program. 

To be eligible to combine the undergraduate and graduate credits, students must have a minimum of 90 credit by the end of the Fall semester preceding the program start. The date to have all application materials in for the Kent State undergraduate Spring admission program is October 1. Please consult with your Kent State academic advisor to assess whether you are eligible to combine undergraduate and graduate credits. Students graduating in December or 12 months prior to the anticipated program start date are eligible to apply for the Spring M.A. Program admission.

Speech Pathology and Audiology offers a pre-professional Bachelor of Science degree.

Examples of Possible Careers and Salaries

Audiologists

13.3%

much faster than the average

13,800

number of jobs

$81,030

potential earnings

Health specialties teachers, postsecondary

20.5%

much faster than the average

254,000

number of jobs

$99,090

potential earnings

Speech-language pathologists

24.9%

much faster than the average

162,600

number of jobs

$80,480

potential earnings

Notice: Career Information Source
* Source of occupation titles and labor data comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Outlook Handbook. Data comprises projected percent change in employment over the next 10 years; nation-wide employment numbers; and the yearly median wage at which half of the workers in the occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less.
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