Before Nicole Spruill opened her own practice as a speech and voice coach, she often saw patients with voice injuries in the North Carolina hospital where she worked as a speech language pathologist (SLP). She taught pastors, teachers, cheerleaders and singers to heal vocal nodules and properly use their voices without causing more harm.
“Most of it was just an abuse of the voice,” she said.
Spruill is among the speech pathologists applying their knowledge outside clinical and classroom environments. While most speech language pathologists work in schools or health care facilities, there are other therapy settings that benefit from an SLP’s expertise.
“I can listen to people on the news or even people on the radio or analysts, and I can hear that they’re just misusing their voice. And I can automatically tell where that tension is,” Spruill said. “We are trained to know what it looks like and what it should sound like.”
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Speech Pathologist Job Outlook
The need for speech pathologists is being driven by a combination of factors including an aging population; increased survival rates for premature infants, trauma victims and stroke victims; increased school enrollments and bilingualism, according to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA).
The median SLP pay by industry, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics is: nursing and residential care facilities- $94,680; therapists’ and audiologists’ offices- $84,390; hospitals- $83,970; schools- $68,270.
Where Do Speech Language Pathologists Work?
Most SLPs work in educational and health care settings, but there are other workplace environments available to SLPs, according to the BLS. Some SLPs even travel between different facilities or fill temporary positions for weeks or months in different states or countries.
Traditional settings
- Schools 38%
- Therapists’ offices 23%
- Hospitals 14%
Alternative settings
- Nursing and residential care facilities 5%
- Self-employed 4%
The states that employed the highest numbers of SLPs in 2019 included New York, Texas, Illinois, Florida and California, the BLS reported.
5 Alternative Career Options for Speech Language Pathologists
Additional education after speech pathology school is not always necessary for SLPs to make a career change, but it can be helpful to take coursework in specific concentrations of speech language pathology to further professional development.
To maintain their certification with ASHA, SLPs are required to complete 30 hours of Certification Maintenance Hours (CMHs) every three years. Concentrating those professional development courses in a preferred area can help SLPs direct their career path toward areas of interest. Working with mentors and taking on side work can also help SLPs transition into new fields where a master’s in speech pathology degree may not be required.
Voice coach
Voice and speech coaches can train actors, executives and others to reduce their accents, adapt new dialects, and heal and prevent voice injuries by using their voices properly. Although no additional education is required to become a voice coach, Spruill suggests taking continuing education courses in voice and speech. Certifications like the Compton PESL (Pronouncing English as a Second Language) can also help coaches specializing in accent modification.
SLPs have a strong understanding of mechanisms of the voice and an edge in working with injured voices, Spruill said.
“A lot of people get vocal nodules because they are misusing their voices. But why are you misusing your voice? What muscles are you using?” Spruill said. “We can hear it immediately. Especially those of us who are trained in voice know exactly where that breakdown is.”
Executive communication coach or corporate SLP
Similar to voice coaches, corporate SLPs train executives to communicate more clearly by addressing vocal misuse, improving social skills and reducing accents. Spruill said she works with a number of executive clients to reduce their accents and adapt regional dialects that make them more relatable to their coworkers and customers.
“The area of corporate speech language pathology is recommended only for SLPs who have several years’ experience and comfort with their clinical skills,” according to The ASHA Leader.
In addition to speech and voice courses, taking business classes can also help SLPs prepare to work in a corporate setting.
Traveling SLP
Traveling SLPs take on temporary assignments in a range of clinical settings domestically and abroad. Traveling positions typically require at least two years of experience working in a permanent clinical setting. Traveling SLPs can work with therapy or medical staffing agencies to secure contracts at hospitals, schools and other facilities that need to fill SLP positions quickly.
“Be positive, be flexible, and be prepared to hit the ground running and go to work in any situation,” said Kuhn. “Be open to new possibilities. Travelers go where therapists are needed. If you are really stuck on going to one location or working in one specific setting, it may never happen.”
Researcher or professor
SLPs in academia can teach other prospective speech pathologists and conduct research in the field of speech language pathology.
Unlike other SLP careers, obtaining an academic position typically requires a PhD. There’s a need for more PhD-prepared SLPs to fill faculty and scientist positions, according to ASHA.
“Careers as teachers, scholars, and researchers can be pursued at many different types of universities and colleges,” according to ASHA. “Individuals with a PhD may also be employed at hospitals or clinics where clinical research is a part of the institution’s mission or in an industry-related organization (e.g., hearing aid manufacturer) for product research and development.”
Interpreter or translator
Interpreters and translators often work closely with SLPs alongside clients who speak other languages, including sign language.
Becoming an interpreter or translator requires fluency in a second language or sign language. Interpreters and translators must also undergo training and obtain certification, such as certification from the American Translators Association.
Sponsored Online Speech Pathology Programs
Online MS: Pursue SLP Certification. Study FT/PT
Speech@Emerson enables you to earn an MS online and pursue SLP certification in as few as 20 mos. Learn the same curriculum as the on-campus program. Study FT or PT.
- Prepares you to pursue certification as an SLP generalist
- In-person clinical placements at faculty-approved partner sites
- As few as 20 months to complete
SPONSORED
Want to Become an SLP? Earn an MS Online at NYU
NYU Steinhardt’s online master of science program in Communicative Sciences and Disorders prepares aspiring speech-language pathologists with a comprehensive professional education.
- Prepares students to pursue SLP licensure
- Accredited by ASHA’s Council on Academic Accreditation
- As few as six terms to complete
- Full-time and part-time plans of study
SPONSORED
Speech Language Pathology Specializations
In addition to alternative careers, SLPs can choose to specialize in particular areas. Specialty certification is not required to practice in any area within the Speech Language Pathology Scopes of Practice, but board certification in a specialty signifies that an SLP has advanced skills and experience beyond the Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC) in a specific area of clinical practice.
SLP specialties include:
Child Language and Language Disorders
These SLPs have advanced expertise in child language: comprehension and production of form, content and use of language for individuals ages 0–21.
These specialists have a high level of knowledge and clinical expertise in diagnosing and treating individuals with fluency disorders.
These SLPs are experts in dysphagia or swallowing disorders. There are both clinical and academic tracks for board certification.