Data-Based Decisions
2024-2032 SLP Reaccreditation Decision Report
2025 SLP Annual Accreditation Report
The main data-based decision of 2024 was to celebrate the national recognition of the high quality of our SLP graduate program and its reaccreditation for 8 more years. Some highlights of our data-based program decisions in the past year:
- Increased the Severe Communication Disorders course from 2 to 3 credits to better reflect the increased attention to autism and concomitant increased time demands for students and instructor.
- Reduced the Professional Practices course from 2 to 1 credit to be maximally efficient for students and instructor.
- Provided more gradual introduction of clinical responsibilities of on-campus clinical practica, which was associated with higher performance and less stress for both students and supervisors.
- Modified the Outreach SLP Supervisor-Coordinator position to be split between two clinical professors who also maintain on-campus clinical duties to improve alignment between Campus and Outreach tracks, and increase perspectives and choices for Outreach students and supervisor-coordinators.
- Dropped the GRE as an admission requirement in the hope of increasing the number of graduate applications and admission equity, following state-wide and nation-wide trends.
- Flipped the semester sequence of COMD 6220 (Severe/AAC) and 6030 (Fluency/Stuttering) for instructor preference after determining that the change would not negatively impact pedagogical effectiveness.
- Added a remote applicant interview to the admission requirements to better evaluate the interpersonal and oral communication skills of applicants.
- Increased the admission committee size with an Outreach faculty member to gain better perspective on applicants for the Outreach program and have more faculty involved in these important decisions.