Speech-Language Pathology (M.S.) Program Details
Degree Requirements
❱ Required coursework
❱ Qualifying or comprehensive examination
❱ Graduate School writing proficiency requirement
❱ Graduate School Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) requirement
❱ Clinical experiences
❱ Thesis track (optional; not required for the master’s degree)
❱ Final oral examination/thesis defense (Thesis track)
Research Specializations
❱ Bilingual
❱ Education
❱ Medical
❱ Technology
The Howard University Speech and Hearing Clinic (HUSHC) has been serving the community's communication needs for more than forty years. The Clinic is integral to Howard's Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. Our primary mission is to prepare graduate students to assume professional roles in Speech-Language Pathology or Audiology in various occupational settings. Graduate students work with clients under the supervision of experienced staff and faculty who hold American Speech-Language-Hearing Association certification. At the HU Speech and Hearing Clinic, clients receive services for diagnosing and treating various communication disorders and differences. The clinic is renowned for excellence throughout the Washington Metropolitan area.
My daughter came to the clinic at the age of 6, struggling to break down sounds and words which affected her reading. Since she started receiving services in the Howard University Speech and Hearing Clinic, there has been an increase in her confidence level. Her reading scores have increased in school."
Who We Are
Mission and Goals
The Howard University Speech and Hearing Clinic (HUSHC) mission is to provide exemplary training to graduate students in the prevention, identification, and remediation of various communication disorders, including cognition and swallowing. Remaining consistent with the core values of the University, the School of Communications, and the American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA, the HUSHC positions itself to advocate for and empower individuals with communication disorders through a variety of services from a multicultural perspective.
What We Do
Speech-Language Pathology Services
The Clinic offers assessments and treatment of disorders in the following areas:
- Accent modification
- Articulation/Speech
- Auditory processing
- Augmentative/alternative communication
- Autistic spectrum
- Cognition emerging language Fluency/Stuttering
- Language and literacy
- Orofacial myofunction
- Oral motor
- Phonemic awareness
- Voice
- Apraxia/Aphasia/Dysarthria Autism/PDD
- Brain injury
- Developmental delay
- Swallowing
- Dialect difference (regional)
Who We Serve
Community Outreach
The HUSHC offers family training, counseling, and support groups to facilitate clients’ communication and swallowing functioning. In addition, our staff and students conduct speech, language, and hearing screenings throughout the community and provide education about communication disorders to preschools, parent groups, senior citizen centers, and other community groups. Please contact our main office if you are interested in community outreach programs.
Our Clinicians
About Our Staff
The Clinic is integral to Howard University’s Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. All clinical faculty hold the Certificate of Clinical Competence by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) and DC Licensure. At the same time, the HUSHC provides a comprehensive clinical training component to the students. A significant strength of the Clinic is that the clinical supervisors are also practicing clinicians, so they train students to use the current and up-to-date, evidence-based clinical practices that have been proven effective. In addition, the teaching faculty often serve as consultants on clinical cases. These cases are regularly transferred into the academic setting and continue to be used as teaching cases.
How to Find Us
Where We're Located
The Clinic is located on the southeastern section of the Howard University campus, in the School of Communications C.B. Powell Building on the first floor. The HUSHC is best accessed from the entrance adjacent to the HU TV Station on the corner of 4th and Bryant Streets.
Research Areas & Interests
Faculty Areas of Expertise
| First Name | Last Name | Research Area & Interests |
|---|---|---|
| Alaina | Davis | Cognitive-communication Disorders, Cultural Responsiveness, Health Disparities, Sports-related Concussion, Traumatic Brain Injury |
| Robin | Eury | Clinical Service Training and Supervision, Clinical Service Delivery in a Graduate Training Program-Fragile X |
| Ovetta | Harris | Augmentative and Alternative Communication, Assistive technology, Literacy development, Language Development, Autism spectrum disorder, Language learning disordersВ |
| Valencia | Perry | Clinical Research: Language Development and Disorders, Language-Literacy Intervention and Assessment, Sociolinguistics: African American English, Spanish, and Latino English, Speech Sounds and Related Disorders; Research Methodology: Traditional, Contemporary, and Artificial Intelligence; Professional Issues: Private Practice Management and Administration, SLP Billing and Coding, Leadership & Mentorship |
| Andrea | Toliver-Smith | Cultural & Linguistic Diversity in Speech-Language Pathology: Deaf/Hard of Hearing Issues, Cultural Humility and Responsiveness, Accent/Dialect Modification, LGBTQIA+ Issues, Professional Issues in Communication Sciences and Disorders, Ableism |
| Tahnee | Wilder | Special Education, Educational Technology, Self- Regulation Skills, Executive Function Skills, Neurogenic Language Disorders |
| Miguelina | Zapata | Bilingual Assessment, Bilingualism, Language & Second Language Acquisition, Bilingual Supervision, Child Language  |
Sampling of Research
A sampling of research interests
- Neurogenic speech and language disorders (aphasia, apraxia, dysarthria)
- Speech production: articulation, phonology
- General to audiology and speech-language pathology
- Cognitive communication (e.g., dementia, traumatic brain injury)
- Augmentative/alternative communication
- Eye tracking methodology to examine cognitive and linguistic processing issues
- Early intervention in aural rehabilitation
- Language processing and development in second language learning and monolingual contexts
- Novel treatment approaches for neurogenic and swallowing disorders
- Autism spectrum disorders
Program of Study*
CORE COURSES
531 Clinical Practicum I
532 Clinical Practicum II
533 Clinical Practicum III
535 Clinical Practicum V
534 Clinical Practicum IV
560 Early Intervention
563 Phonological Disturbances
559 School Age Language Disorders
566 Language & Literacy
573 Stuttering
608 Applied Sociolinguistics
564 Intro to AAC
589 AAC Eval & Treatment
561 Neurogenic Language Disorders
570 Dysphagia
612 Traumatic Brain Injury
567 Neurogenic Speech Disorders
571 Voice Disorders 609 Medical SLP
691 Research I
594 Research II
586 Private Practice & Admin
611 Praxis Review
601 Independent Study
THESIS OPTION
Students who elect to complete the Thesis Option must have taken statistics at the undergraduate level or during the first year of graduate study. The Thesis course will replace Research II in spring of the second year of the program. Time to degree remains at two years, unless the Thesis in not completed by spring of the second year.
*Courses included in the sample program of study are subject to change. Students should consult with their programs regarding their required program of study.
Admission to Candidacy
Students are admitted to formal candidacy by the Graduate School when they have completed the required coursework, passed the qualifying or comprehensive examination, submitted an approved topic for research (if completing the thesis option), and been recommended by the Department. Candidates must also have satisfied the Graduate School writing proficiency requirement and Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) requirement.
Graduate Funding
Graduate research or teaching assistantships may be available at the department level. Research assistants and teaching assistants work no more than 20 hours a week under the program's direction, usually in support of faculty research (research assistants) or in support of assigned courses (teaching assistants).