2006-2008 Catalog of Courses

Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders

College of Humanities and Fine Arts

www.uni.edu/chfa

Staff:

C. Highnam, Head. K. Bleile, T. Bohnenkamp, A. Burda Riess, C. Hageman, J. Lubker, L. Nelson, J. Olsen-Dunbar, B. Plakke.

The Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders offers the following graduate programs.  Specific requirements for these programs are listed within this Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders section in the following order:

Graduate Majors (M.A.)

Speech-Language Pathology

Master of Arts Degree Program

Major in Speech-Language Pathology

This major is available on the thesis and non-thesis options. A minimum of 40 semester hours is required for the thesis option, and a minimum of 39 hours is required for the non-thesis option. A minimum of 6 hours of 51C:299 is required for the thesis option. A minimum of 32 hours 200-level course work is required.

The Graduate Record Examination (General Test) is required for admission to the program.

Successful completion of a final oral and/or written comprehensive examination is required for both thesis and non-thesis options.

Requirements for this major include both graduate and undergraduate courses considered essential to certification and the master's degree. Asterisked (*) courses will normally have been completed at the undergraduate level; if not, the student and departmental graduate academic advisor will determine how such incomplete requirements will be met. Students must complete 25 clock hours of supervised clinical observation prior to beginning clinical practice.

Students are expected to receive grades of B- or better in each of the three required credits of 51S:250 Clinical Assessment and each of the four required credits of 51S:255 Advanced Clinical Practice. Students who do not receive a B- grade will be required to meet with the clinic director and department head for review and consultation. Students who demonstrate significant difficulties in the clinical courses, such as failing to meet the B- requirement, may be asked to take an additional semester of either 51S:250 or 51S:255.

Communicative Disorders: 51C:106*; 51C:107*; 51C:111*; 51C:114*; 51C:125*; 51C:127*; 51C:129*; 51C:151*; 51C:152*; 51C:155*; 51C:162*; 51C:166*; 51C:168*; 51C:175*; 51C:177*; 51C:180*.

Students may select a thesis or non-thesis option upon consultation with their graduate advisor. In the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, all students must have the signature of their advisor for registration for classes, including all adds and drops. Students who are suspended by the Graduate College may not enroll for major courses within this department.

All students must abide by the policies and procedures found in the Graduate Student Handbook, which is published by and available in the department.

The student, in consultation with the advisor, must choose courses designed to meet the standards of the Council on Academic Accreditation of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association academic requirements for the Certificate of Clinical Competence. Recommendation for clinical certification will be given only upon successful completion of all academic and clinical requirements.

The student must complete a minimum of 400 clock hours of which 25 are observation and 375 are in direct patient contact in the supervised clinical practicum; at least 325 of the 400 clock hours must be at the graduate level. Certificates in specialty areas will be awarded to students who complete the core and a minimum of 6 additional hours in one or two areas of emphasis. Students should consult with their advisor concerning the specialty certificates.

Based on satisfactory completion of an undergraduate degree in Communicative Disorders or the equivalent, course work, clinical assignments, and the internship experience will ordinarily take four semesters and one summer.

Students seeking endorsement #237 by the Iowa Department of Education must enroll in Human Relations (280:170g). In addition, students are required to complete a minimum of 10 semester hours of course work in professional education, to be selected under guidance of the major academic advisor, and 10 semester hours of practicum in a public school internship.

The professional program in speech-language pathology is a program of both undergraduate and graduate courses leading to a Master of Arts degree. The program is designed to prepare students for careers as speech-language pathologists providing remedial services to the speech, language, and hearing disabled in a wide variety of settings including schools, hospitals, clinics, and care centers for the elderly.