For general information on the undergraduate major in speech pathology, please contact the department office at 510.885.3233.

Career Objective Students. Students who are planning a career in Speech- Language Pathology or Audiology need to maintain close contact with an advisor throughout their undergraduate years. Admission to the graduate program requires the completion of work at a high academic level and beyond the minimum undergraduate major requirements. Students planning to do graduate work in this field should complete as many as possible of the advanced undergraduate electives in the program. Careful planning will increase the likelihood of admission to graduate programs of your choice and help to assure your success in graduate training.

 Application to graduate programs is normally made during the senior year. The faculty is pleased to assist students in choosing appropriate programs and is prepared to write appropriate recommendations.

 Non-career Students. Some students choose Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology as a major, but are either uncertain about their career plans or wish to pursue a career in a related field. Many of our graduates have completed successful training in education, special education, nursing, counseling, social work, business and public administration, and have obtained jobs in these fields. It may appear that the Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology major requires mastery of highly specialized material which has little direct application outside the profession; how- ever, the major requires that students complete course work in the broader areas of the social and biological sciences as well. Furthermore, the didactic and practical training in the major emphasizes the development of clear thinking, clear writing and speaking, and successful problem solving. These are skills which are useful and applicable in any career choice.

Students who are majors in other departments, as well as students in the Liberal Studies Program, who are seeking teaching credentials may complete programs which provide basic information about the development of speech, language and hearing, and the disorders which affect functioning in these areas. Such information is a valuable adjunct to related disciplines in Special Education, Human Development, Psychology, Nursing and Health Science.

 Students who are interested in these programs are encouraged to develop a compatible program with a member of the Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology faculty.

A number of individuals decide to pursue a career in Speech-Language Pathology or Audiology after having completed undergraduate or graduate degrees in other areas. Sometimes this new career decision comes after some time away from school and after considerable experience in another kind of work. In such instances, there is an understandable sense of urgency to complete requirements as quickly as possible. Depending on the student's academic and work experiences, it usually will take between three and four years to become qualified to work in this profession. Typically, students need to complete one and one-half to two years of undergraduate prerequisites in order to be admitted to graduate course work. The program at CSUEB provides students with the prerequisite course work and clinical experience necessary for admission to full graduate status.

 Since individual academic and work experiences vary widely, students are urged to meet with a faculty advisor in the program to determine the nature and extent of the course work needed to qualify for admission to graduate programs.

 Before applying to California State University, East Bay, prospective students in this category should read the material about Applying to the University and the Department, which is published by the Department. You should also refer to the section on Conditionally Classified Category I, on the Graduate Admission Requirements page.

Students expecting to transfer to the Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology major at California State University, East Bay from a community college should contact a faculty advisor in this program as soon as possible. It is important that as many as possible of the lower division major requirements be completed. The college counselor or advisor can tell you which courses are equivalent to those at CSUEB