Audiology
Position Description
Audiologists work with the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of hearing disorders. They identify and provide treatment to hearing impaired children and adults, which may include fitting and dispensing hearing aids to their clients, as well as assistive listening, alerting, and captioning devices. They test and diagnose hearing and balance disorders in infants, children and adults. Audiologists also educate consumers and professionals on the prevention of hearing loss and conduct research into environmental influences on hearing, new testing methods, and new rehabilitative devices such as cochlear implants. They also consult and administer help through hearing conservation programs in industry to prevent workplace-related and recreational hearing loss.
Most and audiologists work in hospitals, rehabilitation centers, public schools, medical clinics, and in private practice. They are also employed by nursing homes, research laboratories, community centers, colleges and universities, and state and federal agencies.
According to the 2006-2007 edition of the Occupational Outlook Handbook, the employment rate for audiologists is expected to grow about as fast as the average occupation through 2014 due to the anticipated increase in the elderly population, as well as advances in medicine which have increased the survival rate of premature infants and stroke and trauma victims who may require assessment and treatment.
Education and Training
Degrees offered: Doctorate of Audiology (Au.D.). The Au.D. is the minimum level of education required by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association to become certified as an Audiologist.
- Program length: Approximately 3-4 years, depending on the curriculum of the program and the degree sought.
- Students must complete the equivalent of a one year full time supervised professional placement spread across their program.
- Almost all states require practitioners to be licensed if they work in a health care setting.
Application Timeline
- Freshmen through junior years: research field and graduate programs; gain insight through observation and volunteer experiences; develop leadership experience and communication skills through campus and community involvement; take prerequisite coursework and electives that complement your area of interest; visit schools; join a professional organization in your major; develop a resume and keep it up to date; identify and network with individuals who will write letters of evaluation.
- Spring of junior year: begin requesting information from all graduate programs you are considering.
- Summer prior to senior year: take GRE (may take earlier); continue collecting application materials from schools and begin filling out applications. Work on drafting your personal statement. Visit school websites, determine application criteria and deadlines and begin organizing information (use a checklist) so you can plan appropriately.
- Fall of senior year: Begin asking for letters of evaluation early in the semester (if not before). Be sure to ask and provide them with all requested information they need to write you a strong letter. Complete and submit applications. Be sure everything is complete—along with your application, submit official transcripts, letters of evaluation, GRE scores, personal statement, and any other materials requested. Follow application instructions closely. Type or print neatly. Allow time to follow up to be sure all application materials have been received on time. Make contact with schools to address questions you may have about their program; visit schools as time allows.
- Spring of senior year: continue to interview faculty and students about programs you are interested in, re-visit schools if needed, decide which program offers you the best fit. Finish remaining coursework and arrange to have final official transcripts sent following graduation.
- Note: This timeline is a suggested guideline. Students are responsible for knowing and complying with the requirements and deadlines of the schools to which they apply.
Admissions Criteria
- Admissions Test: GRE
- Prerequisite Coursework: Grades of C or better are strongly recommended in all prerequisites
- Clinical Experience: Most programs will want to see exposure to the field. Many require a minimum of 25 documented hours of observation of a certified professional in the field by the time they enter a graduate program.
- GPA: Generally a minimum GPA of 3.0 is required.
- Letters of Evaluation: Most programs require 2 to 3 letters of evaluation; it is recommended that the majority be academic performance letters (from instructors in the area you plan to pursue) but one may also be from a practicing clinician in the field.
Students generally do use LEO for letters of evaluation. - Visit the ASHA website for a directory of accredited graduate programs.
- Visit school websites for specific program requirements and application deadlines.
- Read about the Job Outlook for Audiologists in the Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Prerequisite Coursework
Note: Students should contact individual schools for accurate prerequisite information. These may differ among schools. The following list is intended only as a guideline.
Courses in normal and disordered communication may include but are not limited to:
- General Phonetics
- Anatomy and physiology of the speech mechanism
- General speech science
Development of spoken language - Introduction to audiology and hearing disorders
- Introduction to sound and hearing science
- Aural rehabilitation of children to adults
- Neurology
- Introduction to voice disorders
- Manual communication
- Pre-practicum experience in audiology
Other courses may include:
- Courses in each of the following areas: mathematics, biological science, physical science, behavioral and social sciences. These may include:
- One introductory course in psychology
- One course in child psychology or child development
- One course in normal or abnormal psychological perception or function
- A course in Statistics (additional math courses may be required depending on the program)
Programs in Illinois
- Illinois State University
- Northern Illinois University
- Northwestern University
- Rush University
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
