Communication Sciences and Disorders

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Purdue Fort Wayne
Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders
College of Science

Classroom and Clinic Bldg 111 ~ 260-481-6410

Shannon Bischoff, Interim Chair

Christopher Grindrod, Graduate Program Director
Jolene Lawton, Lead Advisor

The M.S. degree in Speech-Language Pathology is a two year (six semesters), full-time program that includes graduate level coursework focusing on assessment and treatment of speech, language, and swallowing disorders across the lifespan. Throughout the program, coursework and clinical experiences are integrated so that students develop the knowledge and skills needed to successfully engage in evidence-based practice as a speech-language pathologist. During the first year of the program, students gain clinical experiences in the department’s on-campus Communication Disorders Clinic. In the second year, students also complete clinical experiences in off-campus placement sites including schools, inpatient and outpatient medical settings, and skilled nursing facilities.

An undergraduate degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders is not required for admission, however, students are required to have the prerequisite knowledge needed to be successful in the graduate courses. This knowledge should be demonstrated through formal coursework in phonetics, child language development, speech and hearing anatomy and physiology, neural bases of speech and hearing (e.g., neuroanatomy and physiology), acoustics, audiology, and at least one course on speech-language disorders. In addition, students are required to have completed undergraduate coursework in biology, physical sciences (i.e., chemistry or physics), social/behavioral sciences, and statistics.

The Master of Science (M.S.) education program in speech-language pathology at Purdue University Fort Wayne is a Candidate for Accreditation by the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CAA) of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association, 2200 Research Boulevard, #310, Rockville, MD 20850, 800-498-2071 or 301-296-5700. Candidacy is a “preaccreditation” status with the CAA, awarded to developing or emerging programs for a maximum period of 5 years.

The Master of Science (M.S.) program in speech-language pathology is also an approved educator preparation program for the Indiana Department of Education Communication Disorders license. This license prepares students to work as speech-language pathologists in public school settings in the state of Indiana.

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