UG Learning Objectives


The first and second BA/BS degrees in Communicative Disorders (COMD) prepare students with pre-professional campus and online education for entry into graduate nationally-accredited professional programs in speech-language pathology. Some Speech and Hearing Sciences students choose to pursue employment as speech-language pathology assistants (SLPAs) instead of or before going to graduate school. Students can pursue a USU SLPA Certificate which makes them eligible for national SLPA certification. The COMD coursework also provides foundational knowledge and skills relevant to audiology and deaf education, although those programs have their own prerequisite coursework. In addition, many bachelor's degree in COMD graduates go on to related careers in education, health, and human services.

Upon graduation with a BA/BS in COMD, students will demonstrate:

  1. Knowledge of human communication sciences 
  2. Knowledge of human communication disorders
  3. Introductory knowledge and skills for clinical management of communication disorders
  4. Awareness of the professions of speech-language pathologist, audiologist, and deaf educator

BA/BS in COMD Coursework to Achieve Learning Objectives

Students take a core set of COMD coursework with additional COMD course options to match individual interests and career paths, as well as required courses from outside of Speech and Hearing Sciences. The table below shows how knowledge and skills are built across the COMD Major curriculum by four levels of instructional emphasis. The courses are grouped by emphasis on the first three learning objectives. A graduate degree is required to achieve professional competency in the knowledge and skills required for clinical management of communication disorders. 

            Instructional Emphasis

  1. Introduced - initial instruction on knowledge and skills of a program objective
  2. Developed - builds upon prior introductory knowledge and skills with depth and/or breadth but not the main instructional attention
  3. Focused - the main instructional attention, builds upon prior knowledge and skills with further depth and/or breadth
  4. Reviewed - in addition to the main course focus, requires incorporation of prior knowledge and skills
Table 1. Program Objectives by Instructional Course Emphasis
  Knowledge of Human Communication Sciences Knowledge of Human Communication Disorders Introductory Knowledge & Skills for Clinical Management Awareness of the Professions
COMD 2600 Introduction to Communication Disorders Introduced Introduced Introduced SLP, Aud, Deaf Ed
COMD 2400 Orientation and Observation 

Introduced

    
ASL 3010 American Sign Language 1 (Option) Introduced Introduced Introduced Deaf Ed
COMD 3200 Child Language Development Focused Introduced Introduced SLP & Deaf Ed
COMD 3500 Phonetics and Phonological Development Focused Introduced Developed SLP
COMD 3600 Language Science Focused Introduced Introduced SLP
COMD 3800 Anatomy & Physiology of Speech & Hearing Focused Introduced Introduced SLP & Aud
COMD 5070 Acoustics of Speech & Hearing Focused Introduced Introduced SLP & Aud
COMD 5240 Neural Bases of Cog & Comm (Option) Focused Introduced Introduced SLP & Aud
COMD 4450 Developmental Communication Disorders Reviewed Focused Developed SLP
COMD 4500 Acquired Communication Disorders Reviewed Focused Introduced SLP
COMD 4700 Basic Audiology Reviewed Focused Focused Aud
COMD 3120 Mgmt of Speech Sound Disorders (Option) Reviewed Developed Focused SLP
COMD 4200 Clinical Methods Reviewed Reviewed Focused SLP
COMD 5330 Aural Rehabilitation Reviewed Developed Focused SLP, Aud, Deaf Ed
Table 2. Coursework By Competency Areas of Graduate Education in Speech-Language Pathology
  Biological, Neurological, & Acoustic Bases of Communication & Swallowing Psychological & Developmental Bases of Communication Linguistic & Cultural Bases of Communication Intro to Disorders of Communication & Swallowing Basic Audiology Intro to SLP Assessment & Treatment
COMD 2600 Introduction to Communication Disorders X X X X X X
COMD 2400 Orientation and Observation       X   X
ASL 3010 American Sign Language 1 (Option)     X      
COMD 3120 Mgmt of Speech Sound Disorders (Option)       X   X
COMD 3200 Child Language Development   X X      
COMD 3500 Phonetics and Phonological Development   X X      
COMD 3600 Language Science   X X      
COMD 3800 Anatomy & Physiology of Speech & Hearing X          
COMD 4200 Clinical Methods       X   X
COMD 4450 Developmental Communication Disorders       X   X
COMD 4500 Acquired Communication Disorders       X   X
COMD 4700 Basic Audiology       X X  
COMD 5070 Acoustics of Speech and Hearing X          
COMD 5240 Neural Bases of Cog & Comm (Option) X          
COMD 5330 Aural Rehabilitation       X X