Students and New Professionals

The Department of Communication Disorders at Southern Connecticut State University offers an undergraduate Bachelor of Science Degree in communication disorders and a Master of Science Degree in speech-language pathology.  In addition to offering an exemplary academic program, the Department of Communication Disorders provides its students with rich internal and external clinical experiences. With the largest university clinic for speech-language pathology in Connecticut, Southern students are offered a wide variety of clinical opportunities. Three on-campus clinical service programs, The Center for Communication Disorders, The Access Network, and Southern Connecticut Audiology Services, provide the communities of the Southern campus and the Greater New Haven area with a wide variety of diagnostic and treatment opportunities in the fields of speech-language pathology and audiology.

The mission of the SLHS department is to educate students on the processes of hearing, speech, language, cognition, and swallowing, to engage in the scientific study of human communication and its disorders, and to serve the community of individuals with communication disorders or differences. In all endeavors the department strives to foster a culture of inclusiveness and respect.

The department offers an undergraduate program in Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences as well as three graduate programs – 1) M.A. in Speech-Language Pathology; 2) Au.D. in Audiology; 3) Ph.D. with five areas of emphasis.

The undergraduate concentration is a pre-professional major within the liberal arts and sciences curriculum. Upon graduation, students pursue studies in one of two distinct areas offered within the graduate program leading to either professional or research degrees.

Clinical experiences in speech language pathology and audiology are important components of these degree programs and are offered in the UConn Speech and Hearing Clinic (located in the D.C. Phillips Communication Sciences Building) as well as at several external sites. Off-campus placements include acute and rehabilitation hospitals, long term-care facilities, out-patient clinics, birth-to-three agencies, schools, and private practice settings.

Five areas of emphasis are offered for the research Ph.D. degree: (1) speech pathology, (2) language, (3) audiology, (4) speech science, and (5) hearing science. The curriculum for the full-time program involves broad-based coursework and mentored experimental investigations followed by dissertation research.