»Educating Tomorrow's Speech-Language Pathologist

CSD Mission and 3 Year Strategic Plan

2025-2026 Student Handbook

M.S. Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSD) Program Checklist

CSD uses PeopleSoft Campus Solutions to track both the master’s degree and credential requirements.

Master’s Degree Requirements (Program Evaluation Report): This report verifies the completion of all the required graduate coursework and final grades. It also confirms the status of the candidate’s Demonstration of Mastery (Comprehensive Exam).

Credential Requirements (Program Evaluation Report): This section of the report includes a list of all the required courses (same as the MS degree) and the status for the following documents: Basic Skills requirements, Certificate of Clearance and TB Test. The CTC/ASHA Crosswalk Matrix* is also reviewed for each candidate. This matrix includes the courses that fulfill the requirements for ASHA and CTC.

*The MS CSD program is finalizing the Preliminary SLP Services Credential Program Transition Plan, all modifications will be completed by the July deadline to comply with the CTC 2025 standards.

Preliminary Speech-Language Pathology Credential Verification Process  

The Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSD) department is accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CAA) in speech-language pathology. Graduate candidates who complete the MS degree are prepared for entry-level speech-language pathology positions in schools, medical and other employment settings. Candidates must meet all of the graduation requirements, and these requirements are in line with the knowledge, the skills and professional aspects that meet the accreditation standards of CAA and competencies outlined by CTC.

• Prior to being recommended for the Preliminary SLP credential, the Credential Submitter (CS) takes the following steps:
  • CS meets with second year graduate candidates to review the Preliminary SLP Credential application process. Interested candidates submit a formal request form to the CS.
  • CS audits each candidate’s Program Evaluation Report in Campus Solutions to verify all CTC and CAA academic requirements are met.
  • CS collaborates with CSD Director of Clinical Education to confirm that all clinical clock hours and competencies have been met. (All clinical clock hours and competencies are housed in Calipso. This is a web-based application, used to manage clinical clock hours, competencies and compliance documentation.).
  • CS verifies with the Registrar’s Office that MS degrees have been conferred on August 1.
  • After the MS degree has been conferred, CS will formally submit the Preliminary SLP Credential recommendations via CTC online for each candidate. CS notifies each candidate once the recommendation has been submitted.
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• Clear Credential Speech-Language Pathology
  
• All items listed above are verified, including documentation confirming the candidate has completed a 36-week full-time mentored clinical experience. This is verified by one the following:
  • A copy of the candidate’s American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC) card.
  • A copy of a valid California State Speech Language Pathology license issued by Speech-Language Pathology & Audiology & Hearing Aid Dispensers Board (SLPAHADB).

• Current Tuition and Fees
• Graduate Financial Aid Office
• Academic Calendar
• Graduate Catalog 

School-Based Setting Emphasis

The school-based setting emphasis prepares candidates to assess and treat preschool through high school students with communication disabilities that adversely affect their academic success. Students will become more familiar with federal and state laws, family counseling, evidence-based practice in articulation and language disorders, autism spectrum disorders, language/literacy delays, attention deficit disorders and augmentative and alternative communication. 

Medically Related Conditions Emphasis

The medically related conditions emphasis focuses on the conditions of voice disorder, neuro-physiological syndromes, dysphagia (swallowing), and stroke rehabilitation, and any injury or illness that results in speech-language impairment. Speech-language pathologists works in hospitals, rehabilitation centers, community clinics and private practice. 

To combine the two emphasis areas, special clinical training sessions are incorporated into the program each year at no additional cost, e.g. RiteCare Childhood Language Center of Orange County, Illumination Foundation, Head Injury Program at Coastline Community College, AAC Intensive experience, Stroke Survivor Boot Camp, Communication Recovery Group, Literacy for Homeless Students, Feeding for At Risk Infants, Preschool Speech and Language Screenings, Special Olympics Healthy Hearing Screening, Cleft Palate Panel, Sunrise Assisted Living Center Meal and Hearing Aid Programs, Weekend Fluency Sessions, Brain Injury Treatment Program and more. 

• The Master of Science graduate degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders is conferred one day a year, August 1.
• Cohort model with entry each fall.
• 61-unit (approximate) program designed to be completed in two years (six trimesters), which includes a graduate capstone project and comprehensive exams.
• Required 400 hours of supervised practicum in a variety of education and healthcare settings.

Learning Sequence - List of courses that students will complete during the program.

The Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSD) prepares students to become fully credentialed and licensed speech-language pathologists, clinicians and/or supervisors in healthcare and education settings.

This full-time, intensive program is a rich combination of didactic and clinical/fieldwork courses providing carefully guided internships each trimester. Placements include hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, private practice, agencies, early intervention programs, and K-12 public schools.

Students have both on-site supervisors and university supervisors for the MS degree and passing scores on required tests, allows graduates to be recommended for the Preliminary California State Credential in Speech-Language Pathology.  

Through skillful modeling and leadership, and highly individualized instruction, students develop the necessary professional competencies to: 

• Assess and treat persons with developmental or acquired communication disorder, such as stuttering, deafness/hearing loss, cleft palate, articulation disorder, child language disorder, autism spectrum disorder, voice abnormality, aphasia, traumatic brain injury, and swallowing disorders. 
• Counsel and support individuals, their spouses, family members, siblings, educators and other professionals on the use of hearing aids, assistive listening devices, cochlear implants, augmentative and alternative communication systems and other technology to communicate effectively.

The National Student Speech Language Hearing Association (NSSLHA) is a pre-professional membership association that consist of graduate and undergraduate students involved in the field of Communication Sciences and Disorders. It is only national student organization in the field that is recognized by the American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA). NSSLHA helps raise awareness about the profession of speech-language pathology and promotes understanding of speech and/or language disorders. The members of NSSLHA engage in a variety of community service and volunteering opportunities in the local community and the greater Los Angeles area, such as the Relay for Life, MS Walk, Autism Walk, Surfers Healing, Down Syndrome Association, BRAIN and Special Olympics. 

The organization collects dues, elects' officers, raises funds, and provides leadership opportunities within Region 10 in the US. 

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