Certification & Licensure Requirements
To become a professional speech-language pathologist (SLP), obtaining a graduate degree from a program accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation (CAA) in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) program is only the first step.
You also need to complete a supervised post-graduate experience (a clinical fellowship), pass a national Praxis exam in speech-language pathology and be appropriately credentialed to practice professionally.
Credentialing
There are two types of credentialing for speech-language pathologists: national certification and state licensure.
National Certification
The UW Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology is specifically designed to meet the educational knowledge and skill requirements for professional certification through ASHA, which is the national professional, credentialing, and scientific organization for speech-language pathologists. Any student graduating from a CAA-accredited program meets the educational eligibility requirements for ASHA’s Certification of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP).
State Licensure
All 50 states in the U.S. oversee and regulate the practice of speech-language pathology through licensure, which varies from state to state. The type of required state licensure often depends on the setting in which a speech-language pathologist will work. Licensing regulations and licensing bodies differ for noneducational versus educational settings in many states.
Educational Track students are prepared for licensure in the schools AND non-school settings in states as indicated on the lists below. Students in the other two tracks (Medical and Clinical Research) are prepared for licensure only in non-school settings upon graduation; however, with (typically minimal) additional training, they can be licensed for schools as well if they choose to pursue that setting.
If you’re planning to pursue state licensure or certification outside of Washington State, we strongly recommended that you contact the appropriate licensing entity in the state you’re seeking employment to obtain information and guidance regarding their requirements before beginning an academic program. We also encourage you to review ASHA’s state licensure requirements, which summarize licensure requirements for all states and territories.
The information below outlines how the UW Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology meets the educational requirements for professional licensure or certification across all U.S. states, districts and territories. These findings are accurate as of January 1, 2021. For the locations where our educational offerings do not meet a specific state’s requirements for licensure or certification, you may be required to obtain alternate or additional courses or more experiential or clinical hours.
UW Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology Compatibility With Licensure Requirements for School Settings
The UW Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology program meets the educational licensure requirements for practice in school settings in all but three states. Currently, our program does not meet the licensure requirements for Alaska or Connecticut, and we’re unable to definitively determine whether our program meets the licensure requirements for Florida.
Yes = program meets the requirements; No = program does not meet the requirements; Unable to Determine = cannot definitely determine if program meets the requirements
*Alaska has additional educational requirements:
- Three semester (4.5 quarter) hours of approved Alaska studies (taken within the past five years)
- Three semester (4.5 quarter) hours of multicultural education or cross-cultural communications (taken within the past five years)
Connecticut has additional educational requirements:
- Six semester or nine quarter hours of credit/course work in: foundations of education; psychology: child, educational, developmental, adolescent or cognitive learning; and classroom instruction and management, bilingual/bicultural education, reading, curriculum development or behavioral management.
- A course of study in special education comprised of not fewer than 36 clock hours, including study in understanding the growth and development of exceptional, handicapped and gifted and talented children; and methods for identifying, planning for and working effectively with special-needs children in the regular classroom.
UW Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology Compatibility With Licensure Requirements for Non-School Settings
The UW Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology program meets the educational licensing requirements across all U.S. states, districts and territories for practice in non-educational/school settings.
Yes = program meets the requirements; No = program does not meet the requirements