A Career As A Speech Language Pathologist

Lauren, as a member of University of North Carolina at Greensboro's alumni community, you successfully led a purposeful life and became an engaged global citizen. In the career of a Speech Language Pathologist, you were given the wonderful opportunity to work with individuals from various walks of life. Studying abroad allowed you to have the incredible opportunity to learn more about other cultures and lifestyles first hand, immersing yourself in another place. By studying and exploring many different aspects of life that another county had to offer, the experiences that you had bettered you emotionally, intellectually and make you more globally aware than what you ever dreamed possible. These traits of experience allowed you to be a better professional in your career field of Speech

For as long as I can remember I have devoted my time and energy into becoming a speech pathologist. As I enter my senior year and finalize my decisions to furthermore consider where to pursue my post-secondary education I have come across obstacles to where a new career aspiration in which lead me to new goals.

During high school volunteering at Columbus Regional Healthcare System led me to my path into Speech-Language Pathology. Since high school I was accepted into the Speech Pathology program and I apply to the graduate program this semester. Vidant Medical Center would be a wonder service-learning site to gain valuable career experiences. I would have the opportunity to incorporate my knowledge from previous classes with hands on experience with patients and staff members. Vidant Medical Center is a general medical and surgical hospital. Therefore, it serves an assortment of patients from pediatric to geriatric. The hospital offers several activities and services that could correlate with college students’ major or career interest. Some volunteers have the opportunity to work directly with patients or family member, while others assist the staff or administration work. Likewise to my experience with Columbus Regional Healthcare System introducing me to the amazing career of Speech Pathology, it would be an honor to donate my time and effort to make a difference in other individual’s lives.

Sixteen years old is when I learned the importance of resiliency and determination. When it was advised that I take a year off of high school, I responded by registering that fall without hesitation. When I was instructed not to compete in track, I worked twice as hard in physical therapy to regain my strength and when I was informed that a traumatic brain injury would forever hinder me, I physically, emotionally, and vocally declared, “Absolutely not!”

A speech pathologist is an expert prepared to recognize, survey, and restore people with speech or dialect issue, for example, enunciation issues, dialect issues, voice, or faltering issues. Keeping in mind the end goal to end up plainly one, they should have a bachelor’s degree in correspondence sciences and disarranges or related fields. For further education they will need an master’s degree that is authorize by the council on Academic Accredited in Audiology and Speech dialect pathology is required. With a specific end goal to work in this field of study you need to managed clinical experience and once that is finished you at that point proceed onward to clinical practice for a sum of 36 weeks or 1260 hours. Finally, a passing score on

Nearly 4 years of professional experience as a speech and language pathologist, and more than 2 years in pharmaceutical field develop my interpersonal,organizational and analytical skills. However, knowledge is to be necessary to provide me with opportunities for more challenging and interesting work. So I feel the need to seek obtain knowledge in Master of management administration

My dream job is to become a speech pathologist, specifically for children who suffer from speech impediments and stutters, or even for patients who have suffered from strokes or other traumatic experiences. If I was given the opportunity to job shadow a speech pathologist, I would prepare myself by expecting to encounter patients of any age and I would build confidence before-hand so perhaps I could attempt to communicate with them for some personal practice. I would develop questions which could allow me to converse with patients of any age. I would also formulate questions I’ve always had curiosity about in the field of speech pathology. The first question I would ask is: “What is the biggest struggle that comes along with your career?”.

“Hi Natalie, are you going to come to my house today!” My Uncle Shawn calls to me each time I see him. My Uncle Shawn has cerebral palsy and is autistic. It is a big accomplishment that he can call my name and engage me in a conversation. When he was born the oxygen was cut off to his brain long enough to cause the cerebral palsy and at the age of five it was determined that he was also autistic. He has always struggled to communicate his needs and feelings to each person in his life. Throughout his life the support he has had from speech pathologist has made a tremendous difference in his quality of life.

Regardless of whether the disorder is related to cognitive aspects of communication, fluency, articulation or swallowing, a speech-language pathologists’ relationship to the patient is rooted in service. After college I took a break from school and began working at the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site through an internship position with a non-profit called Greening Youth Foundation. I enjoyed learning about the historical Old Fourth Ward and the legacy of this great American hero and revolutionary. Following this opportunity, I joined Americorps, a national service organization known for making positive impacts in local communities. My first term was spent with Hands On Atlanta and the Office of Mayor Kasim Reed. I reported directly to the Chief Service Officer, promoting the Mayor’s service initiatives and leading volunteer projects throughout the city. I worked with many individuals, groups and corporations to create successful beautification projects in impoverished areas, better reading skills in elementary school children, improve public recreational centers, and more. Upon completion of my service term, I was already signed up to start a new term as a Volunteer Manager with a local non-profit called Truly Living Well Center for Urban Agriculture. Truly Living Well is an urban farm with multiple locations throughout Atlanta that serve “food desserts”, or communities with restricted access to fresh, organic produce. In this role, I was able to make a long-lasting impact by creating and reshaping the organization’s new and existing volunteer programs. During those years I gained experience in every sector, from government to private, from corporate to nonprofit. I am proud to say that I was a part of implanting change that affects very important socio-economic causes. These experiences were life-changing, yet they all

On October 7, 2017, I shadowed a speech language pathologist at Trustpoint Rehabilitation Hospital. During this time, the therapist was working on the pediatric floor and was administering therapy to different patients every hour. The therapist treated a variety of patients with different needs and goals. Many of the patients had sustained an accidental injury that affected their daily living routines and quality of life.

So often in life does time pass by so fast that we forget to slow down and think about everything that we have done. Self-reflection is an essential part of who we are in that it allows us to learn more about ourselves and the experiences we have had in a deep, introspective way. In an academic sense, reflecting on a class or a few assignments grants us the opportunity to examine the impact that a specific thought or approach may have played on us as an individual. Whether it be something the professor may have said or a topic that altered our perspectives, we gain knowledge every time the class meets. Because of the importance of taking time to evaluate progress, I find this assignment to be incredibly helpful – especially since it is assigned near the halfway point of the semester.

As a daughter of a Special Education teacher, my interest in populations with special needs was sparked at a young age. Though I’ve always been interested in health professions, I was indecisive on which field best suited me. However, I when I discovered Speech Language Pathology (SLP), I found what I was looking for. I desire to be an SLP because it will give me the freedom to work in a variety of locations and environments with many different populations while enjoying the luxury of a flexible schedule, a nice income, and possible self-employment. I am eager to learn in graduate school and am excited about being a future SLP.

Currently, I am a member of the National Student Speech-Language Hearing Association (NSSLHA). NSSLHA is a pre-professional organization that provides opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students in Communication Sciences programs. The organization is aimed at promoting awareness of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology. I recently joined to engage with peers and gain more knowledge as I learn more about the profession outside of an academic setting. The organization so far has been a great introduction to advocacy in the field of Speech-Language Pathology and has provided numerous opportunities for me to practice such an important aspect of the field. Speech-Language Pathologists are not only charged with preventing, assessing,

Working as a direct caregiver for developmentally disabled adults in group homes was another rewarding experience. Both experiences instilled patience and tolerance in me which are essential qualities which ought to be acquired by every aspiring physician in order to develop a rewarding relationship with any patient population. In addition to my work experience, I have volunteered as a mentor in Newark Juvenile prison and a counselor in a summer camp for children with muscular dystrophy. These experiences exposed me to different groups of individuals, enabled me to identify their needs and develop qualities that would aid me to deliver the best possible quality health care to any group of patient I would come across. As I conclude this current stage of training as a medical student, I look forward to joining a new team of physicians as a goal-oriented, cooperative, dependable, innovative and hardworking team player who would spend the next three years being an inspiration and source of motivation to the rest of the team

Someone who has influenced me to want to have this career is my mom. Who happens to be in college now to become a speech language pathologist, she will graduate this year with a master’s degree. She tells me how much she enjoys being able to teach other people how to improve their communication, swallowing, and voice disorders. I love encouraging young children to start speaking or improve their vocabulary by communicating with them. Currently, I am in 4-H and have had to take impromptus, which are about seven minute long speeches and have done quite well. When you get involved in 4-H you give a lot of speeches in front of large groups of people and how well you do may determine how much supplies you can get donated to you. Therefore, I think I would feel very confident informing people how to help their disorders.