Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences

Master's Programs

The Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences offers the Master of Arts in Speech-Language Pathology and the Au.D. in Audiology. These programs are accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.

Prerequisites for the M.A. Degree

Students enter the M.A. program in speech and hearing sciences with a diverse array of undergraduate backgrounds. There are certain courses, however, that must be completed either to comply with American Speech-Language-Hearing Association regulations for certification or because these courses form the essential foundation for graduate study in the field.

The following courses, or their equivalents, are prerequisites for graduate students in speech-language pathology and audiology. Students who have not taken these courses prior to graduate enrollment will be required to complete them as graduate students.

Introduction to Phonetics
Anatomy of Speech and Hearing
Human Hearing and Communication
Children’s Language Development
Children’s Language Disorders
Phonological Disorders
Introduction to Clinical Practice
Teaching the Hearing Handicapped

In addition to required course work for the master's degree, students hoping to achieve the Certificate of Clinical Competence in either speech-language pathology or audiology and to practice in either profession must document coursework in the basic sciences, including:

Course work in biological sciences, physical sciences, and mathematics (a list of courses considered to meet the biological and physical science requirements can be found on our departmental web site)
Course work in behavioral and/or social sciences (e.g., developmental psychology, sociology, economics)
Course work in basic human communication processes, including anatomic, physiological, physical, psychophysical, linguistic, and psycholinguistic bases of communication

This course work may be carried forward from the undergraduate degree or taken at the graduate level; if they are taken at the graduate level, they may not be counted to satisfy any requirements for the Master’s degree. Students are encouraged to visit the ASHA web site to review the above as well as additional certification requirements as it is ultimately their responsibility to assure they have fulfilled these requirements.

Feel free to contact the department to arrange a meeting with a faculty member and a tour of our facilities. To arrange a visit, contact Kim Elkins by phone at (812) 855-4202 or by e-mail at kelkins@indiana.edu.