Application Requirements

Communication Sciences and Disorders Foundational Coursework

To apply to Speech@Emerson, you must hold a bachelor’s degree in any discipline, from a regionally accredited university or college. If you did not study speech-language pathology (also known as communication sciences and disorders) during your undergraduate program, the Speech@Emerson program offers foundational courses online to help you prepare for applied graduate-level study.

If you have already taken foundational coursework, also known as prerequisite courses, at another institution, these courses and your grades will be reviewed when you apply to the program. All students are required to take and pass foundational courses (with a grade of “B” or better) before enrolling in applied graduate courses.

Coursework in Statistics and Basic Sciences

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) certification standards for speech-language pathology require that all applicants for ASHA certification demonstrate undergraduate-level knowledge of statistics and the basic sciences. Applicants must show evidence of completion of courses in statistics and the basic sciences in order to begin their Clinical Fellowship and obtain professional certification. The program does not offer courses in statistics or the basic sciences. Students applying for ASHA certification must complete undergraduate-level general education courses with a passing grade of C- or better in biological science, physics or chemistry, statistics, and behavioral/social science. If these courses were not completed during an undergraduate program, they must be completed before the end of Term 3 (5-term or 9-term) of Applied Graduate coursework in the Speech@Emerson program. Please note the following required features of this coursework:

Possible content areas include:

Applicants from the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Oregon will need to demonstrate that all basic science courses and foundational courses are complete in order to meet the 75 total credit hour requirement to satisfy the educational requirements for state licensure.

Find out more about which states the program operates in here.

In addition to the online application, you must submit the following to apply:

Official transcripts are required from any institution where you earned a bachelor’s degree, took general education courses, or took foundational courses. All non-US transcripts must be sent to an evaluation agency and should include a course-by-course evaluation, GPA, and degree equivalency.

All official transcripts should be submitted electronically through appsvcs@speech.emerson.edu or by mail to the following address:

Emerson College
Application Processing Center
Speech@Emerson
PO Box 30096 005-001
College Station, TX 77842

Please note: To be considered an official transcript, the transcript must be sent directly from your institution(s) or through an electronic transcript vendor retained by that institution. Unofficial transcripts may be accepted to receive an admissions decision. If admitted, students must submit official transcripts for all US degree-bearing schools where a bachelor’s degree was earned and schools with prerequisite courses.

You must submit a current résumé that includes relevant professional and volunteer experience.

You must submit three letters of recommendation from people best able to assess your educational and professional qualifications for academic study and clinical work as a speech-language pathologist, including your motivations, goals, and clinical potential. We recommend that you reach out to your former professors, mentors, and supervisors to obtain letters that can speak directly to your potential for success in a rigorous academic program.

Emerson College’s graduate programs form a vibrant and engaged community of creative artists, professionals, scholars, and clinicians who all believe in the power of language and communication to transform society. Your careful responses to the following prompts will help us determine if the program you are applying to is the right fit for you. Please answer each prompt as thoughtfully as possible.

The essay prompts must be included in the header of your essay before saving and uploading the file to your application.

An interview, which will be scheduled following the submission of your online application, is required for admission and will be scheduled by your admissions counselor. The interview will be conducted over video, recorded, and included in your completed application.

Applicants whose native language is not English must provide evidence of English proficiency by submitting official TOEFL, IELTS, Duolingo, or Pearson test results.

The application fee for the program is $75, and it is nonrefundable.

Admitted students may elect, once the non-refundable enrollment deposit is paid, to defer a start date for up to one calendar year from the term for which they were originally admitted. Please connect with the Admissions team with any further questions.

If an applicant is not admitted into the Speech@Emerson program, they must wait at least one year after the term that their original application was reviewed. For example, if a prospective student’s previous application was reviewed for September 2019, the earliest term they can reapply for is September 2020. This time period gives applicants the opportunity to strengthen their application before re-applying. Please reach out to the Admissions team with any questions.

State Authorization

Speech@Emerson students must reside in one of our 45 approved states and must participate in educational activities from within those 45 states. Find out more about which states the program operates in here.

Speech@Emerson offers three cohorts throughout the year in January, May, and September. Admissions decisions are made on a rolling basis. Applications are now being accepted for the May 2024 cohort: