Data-Informed Decisions

2024-2032 CAA AuD Accreditation Approval Letter
2025 AuD Accreditation Action Report (pending release)
2024 AuD Accreditation Action Report 

During the 2023–2024 academic year, the AuD program completed a comprehensive, data-based review of its curriculum to strengthen alignment with accreditation standards and enhance student learning outcomes. This process incorporated curriculum mapping, faculty and student feedback, and benchmarking against leading AuD programs.

Implementation of the revised curriculum began in Fall 2024 and will be fully in place by Spring 2026. Following the initial rollout, additional program-wide adjustments were made in Spring 2025 to further refine course content, redistribute credit hours, and ensure balance across academic and clinical components.

The following highlights summarize these curriculum and structural changes.

 

Course Changes:

  • Creation of COMD 7240 – Anatomy & Physiology of the Auditory System: A new course was developed to address gaps in foundational knowledge. Content includes the peripheral, central, and vestibular systems, as well as genetics and pharmacology related to audiology (effective Fall 2025).
  • Revision of COMD 7310 – Psychoacoustics Course Structure: The course was divided into two distinct courses—COMD 7100: Acoustics & Instrumentation (1 credit hour) and COMD 7310: Psychoacoustics (2 credit hours)—to allow semester-long, in-depth coverage of essential auditory concepts (effective Fall 2024).
  • Revision of COMD 7420 – Amplification II Course Structure. The 2023–2024 proposal to divide Amplification II into separate adult and pediatric amplification courses was later reversed following the program-wide restructuring in Spring 2025. The course remains 3-credit hour and encompassing both adult and pediatric amplification content (effective Fall 2025).
  • Update to COMD 7000 – Implementation Science Seminar: Course content was expanded to include hearing conservation, supervision, professional skills and career development, occupational audiology, auditory processing disorders, and tinnitus, addressing previously limited coverage in these areas (effective Fall 2024).
  • Discontinuation of COMD 7860 – Practice Management and COMD 7480 – Clinical Training and Supervision in Audiology: Both courses were discontinued following program-wide restructuring in Spring to improve curricular efficiency and better align instructional resources with program priorities. The associated competencies in supervision, practice management, and professional development were integrated into COMD 7000: Implementation Science Seminar (effective Fall 2025).

Clinical Research Project (CRP) Changes:

Based on faculty and student feedback, the Clinical Research Project (CRP) was redesigned to promote earlier engagement in research, enhance mentorship continuity, and strengthen alignment between academic coursework and clinical inquiry. The revised CRP structure better supports student readiness, faculty capacity, and program learning outcomes.

The CRP now spans three semesters, beginning in Spring of Year 1 and continuing through Fall of Year 3, with students completing a total of four credit hours. Each student selects one of two tracks: Research-Intensive or Evidence-Based Practice (EBP).

Under the revised structure, students are introduced to CRP expectations during their first semester and formally declare their track by Spring of Year 1. Each student is paired with a graduate faculty mentor and assembles a committee consisting of a primary mentor, one additional research faculty member, one clinical faculty member, and one external member.

Both tracks culminate in a written deliverable, public presentation, and oral defense:

  • Research-Intensive Track: Students design and conduct an original research study under faculty mentorship. Deliverables include a one-page proposal, final research manuscript, oral defense, and presentations at the USU Student Research Symposium and Mountain West Regional Audiology Symposium.
  • Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) Track: Students address a clinically relevant question using a PICO framework. Deliverables include a one-page proposal, final EBP paper deposited in USU’s Digital Commons, oral defense, and public presentations at the same university and regional venues.

This revised model emphasizes early faculty mentorship, integration of research and clinical reasoning, and scaffolded professional communication experiences across the curriculum (effective Fall 2025).

 

Program Structure and Sequences:

The program’s course sequence was restructured to ensure that foundational content precedes advanced coursework, improving knowledge scaffolding, comprehension, and long-term retention. Course and clinic schedules were also realigned to balance workload across semesters, reducing student stress and supporting stronger learning outcomes. Both structural changes were retained following the program-wide restructuring in Spring 2025.

 

Pre-Requisite Changes:

As part of the 2023–2024 curriculum review, two prerequisite updates were implemented to better align pre-program preparation with AuD program objectives. These changes took effect in Fall 2024 and were not impacted by the subsequent program-wide restructuring in Spring 2025.

  • Added COMD 3200 – Child Language Development:  introduced as a prerequisite for entrance to the program. This change allows the program to focus on AuD-related topics and the audiologists role in working with speech-language pathologists (effective Fall 2024).
  • Removed COMD 3800 – Anatomy and Physiology of Speech and Hearing: Removed as a prerequisite, as relevant content now integrated into COMD 7240: Anatomy and Physiology of the Auditory System.