Communication Sciences and Disorders: M.Ed. - Master of Education

The Master of Education (M.Ed.) residential education program in speech-language pathology at the University of Virginia is accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CAA) of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). 2200 Research Boulevard, #310 Rockville, MD 20850 800-498-2071 or 301-296-5700

To file a formal complaint, contact the Accreditation Office to obtain a copy of the complaint procedures through https://www.asha.org/ or by writing or calling CAA: Chair, Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CAA) American Speech-Language-Hearing Association 2200 Research Boulevard, #310 Rockville, MD 20850 800-498-2071 or 301-296-5700

Full accreditation documentation including information on Student Outcome Data can be found on the ASHA-CAA Annual Reporting Measures page of the school's Office of Assessment.

University of Virginia Communication Sciences and Disorders Program Statement Against Racism and Other Forms of Bias and Injustice

The core values of the Communication Sciences and Disorders Program are caring, collaboration, compassion, connectedness, and community. Our commitment is to our local, national, and global communities, especially persons of color and others whose voices have not been heard and whose rights have been denied. We are listening. We hear the anguish and the justifiable anger. We stand up against racism and all types of prejudice and injustice.

We pledge to continue and to increase our efforts and contributions to:

• support and advocate for students, faculty, and staff who are at risk of being marginalized.
• learn with our students and each other about the lasting negative impacts of systemic racism and other forms of bias and how these can be prevented and countered.
• collaborate with other members of our college, the university, and the community to identify and reduce systemic bias and alleviate the impacts of past injustices at all levels.
• research and develop admissions procedures to ensure equal access to all of our programs.
• university and college initiatives to establish pathway partnerships for students of color and from other under-represented groups.

We welcome students, colleagues, and community members who wish to join us in these endeavors and/or to make other suggestions for how our department can advocate for and increase social justice in the Communication Sciences and Disorders Program, EHDS department, School of Education and Human Development, UVA, Charlottesville, central Virginia, and beyond. Please share your questions, comments, suggestions, and let us know if you would like to partner with us on these endeavors.

We thank our sister program, the University of Vermont, for eloquently authoring and sharing this vision. Together, positive change is happening. Now is the time.

• 2024-2025 CSD Student Handbook

At any point in time, we have approximately 70 master’s degree students at various stages of the program.

Applicants do not need to prepare anything in advance. All applicants are asked the same questions. Interviews are conducted virtually. The purpose of the interview is for program faculty to learn about you, your interests and background experience.

Undergraduate prerequisite courses must meet the American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA) requirements for national certification. We encourage potential applicants to review ASHA’s course requirements. We do not preview transcripts, give enrollment advice or make transcript decisions before individuals apply to our program. Prerequisite Course Content Areas Related to SLP Certification Standards (asha.org)

We will reach out to applicants by email if we need clarification about an entry on the transcript. This often includes requesting a copy of the course syllabus from applicants. Please plan to obtain copies of your course syllabi in advance so that you can submit them upon request (most commonly in April – early May).

The answer to this question depends on which Track you enter: Blue or Orange.

Blue Track students enter the graduate program with successful undergraduate preparation in communication sciences and disorders (CSD), including four pre-professional courses: 

• Anatomy and Physiology of the Speech and Hearing Mechanisms 
• Speech and Hearing Sciences 
• Introduction to Audiology 
• Phonetics

Courses in basic human communication* may fulfill pre-professional coursework requirements in our program if judged by the student’s academic advisor to be equivalent to UVA courses. These decisions are made prior to the beginning of fall semester classes. A course from another university cannot substitute for a UVA pre-professional course unless the grade is B- or better.

Orange Track students enter the program having not yet completed the pre-professional courses during their undergraduate studies. They will begin their studies by taking Anatomy and Physiology of the Speech and Hearing Mechanisms, Speech and Hearing Sciences, Introduction to Audiology, and Phonetics.

For professional certification, ASHA requires at least one course in each of the following areas: 

• biological sciences 
• physical sciences (specifically: an undergraduate course in physics or chemistry) 
• statistics 
• social/behavioral sciences

Students who did not fulfill this general education requirement as undergraduates will need to do so before starting any of the pre-professional track courses. Students are commonly able to do so by taking summer classes. If students are unable to satisfy the requirement, they will be allowed to defer enrollment for one year to complete the deficiencies, after which the offer of admission will be void.

Graduate courses completed at other ASHA-accredited programs in CSD may be accepted as replacements for up to six hours of professional coursework* (i.e., 700- and 800-level courses) in the UVA communication sciences and disorders program. Course substitution decisions are made by the student’s advisor prior to the beginning of fall semester classes. Students must have received a grade of B- or better for consideration of a course waiver, and documentation for the course proposed as a substitute must be provided.

*Category specified in the ASHA Membership and Certification Handbook

Yes, if you have documentation for clinical observation hours that includes the required information, the hours will transfer into the communication disorders program at UVA. Minimally, for every session that was observed we will need to see: your name, the observation site, date of observation, age of client(s), type of session (evaluation or treatment), name of ASHA certified speech language pathologist, their ASHA number and their signature.

This is not a common choice, but it may be a good one for students who prefer a longer and less compressed graduate program and/or a more gradual entry into the clinical training component. A student who chooses to do this would follow the sequence of academic courses and clinical practica that unfold over 29 calendar months, rather than the Blue Track which is usually completed in 21 months. 

Please take the following into consideration: 

• Offers of admission are not interchangeable. If you are admitted to one Track and wish to change to the other Track, you must reapply for admission during the next admission cycle. 
• The Orange Track is carefully curated to support student development of professional knowledge and skills. The sequence of courses and clinical rotations cannot be altered. 
• There is at least one semester in the Orange Track in which a student who had already completed the pre-professional courses would be enrolled in less than 12 credits, the minimum to be considered a full-time student. Since taking less than a full-time load of courses could negatively impact some forms of financial aid, students in this scenario may choose to enroll in independent study credits or take a UVA course(s) outside the CSD program to reach the 12 unit threshold.

The CSD program director and/or academic advisor will be happy to talk with you about this option. Please take advantage of this support if you are considering this option.

There are three forms of financial support that the CSD program can provide to current and prospective students: wage-earning positions, funded project participation, and scholarships or awards. 

Wage-earning positions constitute the most consistently available form of financial support for potential students. This financial support includes a limited number of paid positions that allow students to earn income doing work that is related to their studies or clinical training.  These wage-earning positions might include serving as a research assistant in a faculty research lab, a grader in one of our larger undergraduate courses, or assisting with clerical tasks related to academic or clinical training. Students may be eligible for a wage-earning position during the “long semesters” (fall and spring) during which they are also attending in-person academic courses on the UVA campus. For students on the Blue path that is their first fall and first spring semesters only, while for students on the Orange path that is their first fall, first spring, second fall, and second spring semesters. The CSD program does not have funding to support wage-earning positions during the summer.

The CSD program is committed to supporting CSD graduate students who receive a Federal Work Study award (FWS). Each year we prioritize stretching our budget to hire as many CSD students with FWS awards within our program as possible.  This ensures that graduate students can be employed doing work that supports their graduate studies and helps to build the foundation for their future careers. If there are more students with work study awards than we can afford to hire, we help our CSD students get connected with other programs that offer opportunities to work in positions that build clinically useful skills such as tutoring in a literacy program. So, fill out your FAFSA form, even if you do not think that you would qualify for financial assistance. It might help you get a job!

Students who would like to be employed should fill out the EDHS work interest survey. Every year, the link for this survey is emailed to all new and returning graduate students in early summer. Watch in your UVA email account in late May through June for this invitation. This survey allows the program and department to know which students would like to be employed if funds are available. If you have specialized skills (e.g., speaking Spanish or another language, graphic design, database management, etc.) be sure to include that information in your survey response.  

Funded projects or grants provide an important source of financial support for graduate students in CSD. The amount of financial support and associated obligations are determined by the funding agency. For example, training grants that are funded by the U.S. Department of Education usually include an employment requirement that is fulfilled after completing the master’s degree, such that a student might agree to work for two years in a U.S. public school for each year of graduate funding received. 

Scholarship funds have been bequeathed or gifted to the CSD program by alumni and former faculty. The availability of these funds fluctuates over time and the CSD program must comply with limitations specified by the donors when distributing these funds.  As a result, in the spring of each year, the program is often able to offer scholarships and awards to currently enrolled students who demonstrate the clinical and scholarly attributes that donors value and wished to reward. Occasionally, a small amount of this funding might be available to recruit new graduate students to the program. In addition, enrolled CSD students may be eligible for competitive scholarships and awards that are provided by the School of Education and Human Development. Information about nominations and applications is provided to enrolled students annually. 

Please view our Fellowships, Scholarships, and Awards page for a full list of funding opportunities at our school.

It is possible for people who have naturally introverted personalities to become successful speech-language clinicians. This does, however, require the rapid development of a clinical persona (or interactive style) which the graduate student can deploy for the purposes of meeting their clients’ clinical needs. SLPs activate their own social strengths to help clients develop improved communication abilities. This is an unrelenting, moment-by-moment component of the profession that may not be obvious to an onlooker. Therapeutic services require SLPs to have interactive skills that are well-developed and highly adaptable. Throughout clinical training, graduate students must be primarily focused on the clients’ needs rather than their own personal comfort. In addition, clinical sessions are always observed and often videotaped so that students and supervisors can closely analyze performance with the goal of identifying teaching or interactive skills that the graduate student should improve. This is the nature of the profession and the nature of clinical training. Graduate students who are significantly introverted or who have substantial social anxiety may find the clinical requirements of the profession to be inherently taxing. The requirement for constant, intense interaction with others may make the career path less satisfying over the long term for some individuals who struggle with introversion or social anxiety.

Oral communication skills are essential for clinical practice in speech-language pathology, students must demonstrate proficiency in the English language before they can begin clinical assignments. Students whose oral communication skills do not allow them to complete all practicum requirements (i.e., work with clients of all ages, backgrounds, and disabilities) will not be eligible to graduate or obtain ASHA certification following graduation. In the case of international students who plan to practice outside the United States, ASHA certification may not be necessary. Importantly, however, the School of Education and Human Development does not offer a non-clinical degree in communication sciences and disorders. Therefore, any student who is unable to complete all practicum requirements, for any reason, cannot complete the master’s degree.

Students who initially are ineligible for practicum assignments may opt to engage in a program to improve their oral communication skills at the UVA Speech-Language-Hearing Center. If proficiency can be demonstrated following the program, the student will be able to complete practicum requirements and apply for ASHA certification following graduation.

No, we do not.

As a member of the State Authorizations Reciprocity Agreement (SARA), the University of Virginia (UVA) is authorized to provide curriculum in a distance learning environment to students located in all states in the United States except for California. (34 CFR 668.43(a)(6)& 34 CFR 668.72(n)). Although California does not participate in SARA, it allows students to enroll in out-of-state programs.

Upon completion of the Master of Education in Communication Sciences and Disorders at the UVA School of Education and Human Development, graduates may be eligible for initial professional licensure in another U.S. state by applying to the licensing board or agency in that state.

Please visit the University’s state authorization web pages to make an informed decision regarding which states’ educational requirements for initial licensure are met by this program. (668.43(a)(5) (v)(A) - (C))

Enrolled students who change their current (or mailing) address to a state other than Virginia should update this information immediately in the Student Information System as it may impact their ability to complete internship, practicum, or clinical hours, use Title IV funds, or meet licensure or certification requirements in the new state. (34 CFR 668.402).