Undergraduate Degree
A Bachelor’s degree in Speech and Hearing Science, Communication Sciences and Disorders, or Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology fulfills the undergraduate degree requirement for admission to our graduate programs in Audiology or Speech-Language Pathology, as long as it includes courses equivalent to those in our list of pre-requisite courses. A Bachelor’s degree in a related major with a minor in Speech and Hearing Science may also fulfill the requirements.
Students with non-Speech and Hearing Science Bachelor’s degrees: (e.g., linguistics, psychology, biology, special education, etc.) are also encouraged to apply. There are specific undergraduate courses that are prerequisite to beginning a graduate program in either Audiology or Speech-Language Pathology. Students are able to take many of these courses online during the summer prior to beginning the graduate program through the Department’s Summer Prerequisite Bridge Program.
Factors Used in Evaluating Applications
The factors that are used by the faculty and clinical staff who are involved in the evaluation of applications for admissions to the MA-SLP program include each of the items in the bulleted list. Because individual evaluators view the importance of these factors, the comments that follow each factor represent informal observations about how these factors may be viewed.
- Grades: We pay special attention to overall undergraduate GPA, grades in the major, later grades, and grades in pre-requisite courses. Less attention may be paid to those courses taken very early in an individual’s academic career. The Graduate School at OSU requires a minimum cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale for all admitted students. Successful applicants in recent years have had cumulative GPA for their undergraduate career between 3.7 and 4.0.
- Letters of Recommendation: We pay special attention to letters from faculty members who know the applicant well, for example, because of having taught them in a number of courses or having involved them in the faculty member’s research. Much less attention will probably be paid to letters that come from former employers or volunteer contacts.
- Short Essays: We consider our short essays to be in lieu of a personal statement. We pay special attention to responses that fully address the question, demonstrate originality, and reflect strong writing skills. Less attention will be paid to responses that simply list items from the student’s resume or platitudes about one’s desires to help others.
- Relative preparedness to begin the program, with special attention paid to the number of pre- requisites still outstanding.
GRE scores are no longer required and will not be a factor in admissions decisions
Average GPA of Incoming MA-SLP Classes 2021 - 2024
2024 = 3.9
2023 = 3.8
2022 = 3.9
2021 = 3.8