Department of Communication Disorders and Sciences

Distance Learning Program

CD 672 A/B: Graduate Student Externship

General Orientation

Welcome to the final clinical phase of your academic program in the Master’s Degree Program in Communication Disorders and Sciences.

As an aspiring speech-language pathologist, you should be aware of the following general information:

All student clinicians should be as flexible as possible when it comes to externship experiences. You must be available five fulldays per week, for the 11 weeks of the externship. Once your externship days and times (including start and stop dates) are set, you may not renegotiate this with your site supervisor.

You are expected to provide us with the names, addresses, and phone umbers of at least three possible externship sites. Please do not make contact with the sites without express permission from the Department.

Student clinicians should be aware that their mentors do not get paid extra for this, and many do not get a release from their regular job duties during the time you are with them. Many of our Speech and Audiology mentors volunteer for this role because they remember that someone took the time to mentor them. We hope that you will remember this “Pay It Forward” philosophy when you are a member of our professional community.

You will most likely have to interview for your externship. There are several reasons for the interview phase:

It gives you a chance to show the interviewing facility what education and experiences you have had, to talk about what kind of experiences you are hoping for, and to show them how professional you are (be sure to bring several copies of your resume)

It gives the externship facility an opportunity to see how you will present to their clients, it allows them to see how much extra training time they will need to provide, and to determine what client/ patient populations you will be capable of treating as you are learning.

It affords both of you the opportunity to frankly discuss the number of hours needed, expected hours of work, and how many weeks you will be working. You should be prepared to tell the interviewing facility how many hours you need, and in which categories (putting this in writing is a good idea).

So, what should you do to prepare for the interview?

Make sure your resume is current and make several copies to bring along to the interview.

Know how many hours, and with what populations, you need for ASHA. (But at the same time, please understand that your externship experience may be much broader than the specific hours you need).

Study up on the major client problems seen by the facility interviewing you.

Rehearse questions and answers with friends. Sample questions may be:
What would you do for a client who needs an assessment for possible fluency disorders?
Have you ever seen a voice patient (If so, what was the problem, and what kind of therapy was recommended)?
Tell us what you have learned about dysphagia.
What articulation tests have you had experience administering?
What experience have you had in testing or fitting in-the-canal hearing aids?
What do you know about cochlear implants? Balance testing?

Wardrobe is important! Dress professionally, cover tattoos and non-ear piercings, no open-toed shoes if interviewing in a hospital, no tank tops or T-shirts.

Turn off your cell phone before entering the building!

No gum!

During the interview, be pleasant and honest. If you have not treated a particular disorder, but have learned about it in a class, say so. Then elaborate on what you have learned. (Remember, too, that you may have observed a fellow student working with a client with that exact disorder). Offer your willingness to learn.

You may be asked to undergo a physical, an additional TB test, a criminal background check, or to go through HIPAA training or some other sort of orientation at the externship site. Some sites that do business with the State Department of Education will need you to be fingerprinted for their facility’s records. This is part of the facility’s policies and procedures, and should be viewed as a learning experience for that externship as well as for your future CFY/RPE.

You may be asked to purchase a lab coat or scrubs. If so, do so.

Be flexible!! Be flexible!! Be flexible!!

Once you have been accepted, there are a few more items you will want to ask about:

Hours of operation (if you haven’t already discussed this)
What to do if you are going to be late or absent
Standard format they want you to use to sign documentation
Does the facility have a standard report format?
Is there any orientation information or any resources/ articles they would like you to study prior to starting?
Is there a list of approved abbreviations or terms they would like you use?

What should you expect from your supervisor?

All Externship Supervisors must hold a valid and current State of California license for Speech Language Pathology or Audiology AND a current ASHA Certificate of Clinical Competency. Student training hours can only be counted if these conditions have been met.
The American Speech-Language and Hearing Association (ASHA) has set minimum supervision standards for University students and externs. The Department of CDS follows the ASHA guidelines for supervision of students during their Clinical Practica. Supervision Guidelines are listed in the ASHA Certification and Membership Handbook, and summarized herein:

At least 25 percent of each student’s total contact time with each client in clinical evaluation and treatment must be observed directly by a supervisor. These are minimum requirements and should be adjusted upward if the student’s level of competence and experience warrants.

Observations may take place on site or by closed-circuit television. In addition to observations, it is recommended that other means of evaluating performance – such as conferences, audio and video recordings, written evaluations, rating instruments, inspection of lesson plans and written reports – be used in the supervisory process.

In general, externship supervisors spend more time in supervision with students at the beginning of their externships, and less time toward the end of their externships. Supervisors should keep in mind that these are minimum guidelines; if a student should require significantly more than this, supervisors are asked to notify the Clinic Coordinator in the Department of Communication Disorders and Sciences.

What are the requirements for clinical hours?

(See next page, please)

Clinical Hours Requirements for Speech-Language Pathology

Speech-Language Pathology students are required to log a minimum of 400 clock hours in their University training program. Students are encouraged to use the ASHA website for the most current information as their reference document. What follows herein is a summary of the new ASHA requirements:

25 hours of observation prior to face to face clinical practica
375 hours of face to face clinical practica providing a variety of experiences across the lifespan, and across the scope of practice. Experiences must include evaluation and treatment of adults and children in 9 diagnostic areas: Articulation, Fluency, Voice and Resonance, Receptive and Expressive Language, Hearing and its Impact on Speech, Swallowing, Cognitive Aspects of Communication, Social Aspects of Communication, and Communication Modalities.
Of the 375 hours, the Department has set a minimum standard of 8 hours in the area of hearing. This must include hearing screening and identification as well as remediation of speech or language disorders resulting from a hearing loss.
At least 325 clock hours of practicum must be completed at the Graduate level.
You must have at least 50 clock hours at three different training sites.

Our ASHA program accreditation and University policy requires that we approve all practica, including supervisors and place. We maintain records on supervisors and their clinical settings. Our oversight of the practica includes resolution of all potential conflicts of interest in situations where an employer or potential employer might also wish to provide you with practicum supervision.