Chair:

Kathy Vander Werff, Ph.D.
621 Skytop Road, Suite 1200

Contact:

Phone: 315-443-9637
Email: csd@syr.edu

Faculty

Academic: Soren Lowell, Stephanie McMillen,  Jonathan Preston, Ellyn Riley, Victoria Tumanova, Kathy Vander Werff, and Jamie Desjardins; Clinical: Colleen Gargan, Brianna Hammerle, Anita Lightburn, Meghan Lister, Joseph Pellegrino, Laura Vincent, Ramani Voleti, Adjunct instructors for specialty areas: Bonnie Hulslander,  Carolyn Tamayo and Lauren Westby

Emeritus Professors: Raymond Colton, Mary Louise Edwards, Janet Ford and Linda Milosky

Program Description

The M.S. program in speech-language pathology is a nationally ranked, accredited program with a long history of excellence. While pursuing a speech-language pathology degree, students have the opportunity to work with researchers in state-of-the-art laboratories and to learn from certified speech-language pathologists whose expertise cover all areas of speech and language across the life span.  In addition, the location of the University provides students opportunities to gain clinical experience in diagnosis and treatment with a wide variety of clinical populations.  The M.S. program provides both substantive knowledge and practical experience through a carefully selected sequence of academic study, clinical practice, and research training. Students are prepared for a professional career in diagnosis and management of individuals with speech and language disorders.

Students in speech-language pathology participate in a wide range of diagnostic and therapy experiences under the direct supervision of clinical faculty. After obtaining a minimum of 75 hours of on-campus clinical practicum in the department’s Gebbie Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic (50 hour minimum for students who bring in 25 clock hours from their undergraduate program), students are assigned two off-site clinical experiences. These externship placements provide students with experience working in the field under the supervision of a certified speech-language pathologist. Placements include public schools, preschool programs, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes, private clinics, and special education programs.

Completion of the master’s program provides students with the academic and practicum qualifications for the Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC) from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and for New York State licensure in speech-language pathology. Graduates may also fulfill the requirements for New York State teacher certification as a Teacher of Students with Speech and Language Disabilities.

Accreditation:

The master of science education program in speech-language pathology (residential) is accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, 2200 Research Boulevard, #310, Rockville, MD 20850, 800-498-2071 or 301-296-5700.

Admission:

Admission occurs once per year for fall entry. Applicants must complete a common application on the CSDCAS application system for consideration. See our website for links to the online application: https://thecollege.syr.edu/department-communication-sciences-disorders/graduate-program/apply-ms-slp-and-aud/. 

Applicants are required to submit undergraduate transcripts, essays, and three letters of recommendation.  Although the minimum GPA is 3.0, a 3.4 or higher is recommended to be competitive, GRE scores are optional. If submitted, strong GRE scores will enhance applications.  GRE scores will not be used to deny admission or funding. Additionally, international students must score a minimum of 105 on the TOEFL exam.