Speech Pathology and Audiology

M. J. Germani, Chairperson

bsu.edu/spaa

Speech-language pathologists provide diagnostic services and therapy to people with speech or language problems. Audiologists provide diagnostic and rehabilitative services to people with hearing and balance problems. Speech-language pathologists and audiologists work in medical settings, schools, private practice, community and university clinics, long-term care facilities, and industrial settings.

The Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology's graduate programs are accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation (CAA) in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). To become licensed, certified speech-language pathologists, students must complete both a bachelor's degree and a master's degree. To become licensed, certified audiologists, students must complete both a bachelor's degree and a doctorate degree. As part of their work, students acquire extensive clinical practicum experience working with patients who have speech, language, and hearing problems.

At the undergraduate level, the department offers preprofessional undergraduate majors in speech-language pathology and preaudiology. The majors, combined with an appropriate graduate program, lead to a state professional license, national certification, and school licensure. Admission to the clinical portion of the major is selective. Students should obtain a copy of the department's “Undergraduate Major Admission and Progression Policies” from the department office, Arts and Communications Building, Room 104. For information on the department's Master of Arts (MA) in Speech-Language Pathology and Doctor of Audiology (AuD) degree, see the Ball State University Graduate Catalog.

The department operates the Ball State University Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Clinics as campus facilities where students can participate in their initial practicum experiences under the supervision of the department's faculty.