While many graduates in the Hearing and Speech Sciences (HESP) program at the University of Maryland go on to pursue graduate school in Speech Pathology or Audiology, these are not the only options for someone with a Bachelors in HESP.
Use this information as a place to start exploring your career interests. Review additional resources below and on the Feller Center's website.
Explore Career Paths
Start Planning
Related Titles & Work Areas
Career paths in hearing and speech often require an advance degree. However, past HESP undergraduates have been successful in the following fields, education, federal government, health care, sales, communications, and youth programs based on their in-classroom learning and co-curriculum activities.
- Activities Assistant
- Applied Behavioral Analysis Therapist
- Certified Caregiver
- Child Life Specialist
- Computer Clerk
- Corps Member
- Development Associate
- Early Intervention Instructional Therapist
- ESL Teacher
- Health Care Administration jobs
- Medical Sales Consultant
- Newborn Hearing Screener
- Program Analyst
- Rehabilitation Counselor
- Research Assistant/Lab Manager
- Special Education Teacher
- Speech Language Pathology Assistant
Recent Employers/Job Titles
- AABC Testing & Certification, Inc. - Data Reporting Specialist
- Impulse City - Counselor Counselor
- Mission Autism Clinics - Behavioral Therapist & Post-Grad Research Associate
- The Focus Foundation - Clinical Research Assistant
- University of Maryland, College Park - Lab Manager
If you are interested in pursuing a career in Speech-Language Pathology or Audiology, but do not want to go to graduate school quite yet, the titles below may be a good “in between.”
- Speech Language Pathology Assistant, qualification requirements for an SLPA. Requirements vary by state.
- Audiology Technician (Assistant), includes information on becoming an audiology assistant.
Start Exploring Career Titles/Work Areas
Use the sample job and internship titles (mentioned above) to start exploring career paths. The links below provide a short overview of the positions. Review more career areas related to this major as well as tips to succeed.
- Career Exploration Toolkit, self-paced activities to provide greater career clarification
- Occupational Outlook Handbook, a career title dictionary
- O*NET Online, the nation's primary source of occupational information
- FOCUS2, explore career paths using self-assessment questionnaires
- Terrapins Connect, talk with professionals working in the field through UMD’s alumni network
- Federal positions by major, research career titles with the federal government related to your major
- Career Guides: FirstHand, browse 100’s of industry guides to gain inside tips
Resources: Career Planning
Not sure where to start in planning your post-graduation activities? Start by reviewing these resources.
- ASHA: Explore Careers in Communication Sciences and Disorders
- CSD Major Guide
- Maryland Board of Audiologists, Hearing Aid Dispensers, and Speech Language Pathologists
- Careers in Healthcare
- ABA Therapist
- Read more about career paths: Audiology, Speech-Language Pathology, Speech, language and hearing sciences, Audiology and SLP Assistants (ASHA)
Other Careers Related to HESP/Allied Fields
Many HESP students choose to pursue careers in other fields that require graduate school. The resources below offer a brief overview of the graduate school application process and information on some of the more popular Hearing and Speech Sciences graduate degrees.
- Graduate degrees in Speech-Language Pathology- provides tips to consider from ASHA
- Considering a PhD, by ASHA
- UMD HESP provides additional information to consider when preparing to apply for a graduate program
- EdFind identify program-specific admission requirements and data on recently admitted students (e.g., average GRE scores and GPA ranges of students who are offered admission).
- The Council of Academic Programs in Communication Sciences and Disorders (CAPCSD) Centralized Application Service (CSDCAS) is a centralized admissions service that can be used to apply to multiple audiology or speech-language pathology programs.
- “The Inside Scoop on Grad School Applications” provides tips for creating a strong application.
Application tips: Feller Center's Graduate School Preparation Tips
- Application timeline, stay on track with your graduate school application
- Start your Graduate School Application Tracking Document
- Develop a strengths-based resume
- Review Personal Statement Guidelines; Get your thoughts down now: Create an outline with this chart
Start researching your career path of interest to identify the educational requirements.
Review a list of sample graduate programs/degrees that UMD HESP undergraduates have pursued
Market Skills Developed: HESP Major
Skills lead to jobs. Which skills do you possess?
- Assess your skills, abilities, interests, and values and explore how they relate to career options.
- Skills inventory - get started identifying your unique assets.
HESP majors have skills in…
- Accumulating and interpreting information
- Analytical skills
- Basic Statistics
- Contending analytical and theoretical approaches
- Critical thinking
- Interpersonal communication skills
- Oral and written communication
- Proactive and display initiative
- Quantitative and qualitative methods
- Research
- Research methods
- Understanding of multidisciplinary work
- Writing skills
Skills lead to jobs. Which skills do you possess?
- Careers and Skills related to HESP Major
- Assess your skills, abilities, interests, and values.
- LinkedIn Learning skill based videos.
Highlight your skills in your application materials.
Gain Experience
HESP undergraduates at UMD have opportunities to gain research experience in labs run by HESP faculty, develop clinical skills, join student organizations, and volunteer for various organizations and events. The list below offers options to gain more experience and test out your interests.
- Research Opportunities
- Clinical Opportunities
- Student Organizations
- HESP Honors Program
- Volunteer Opportunities
- Resources
Sample list of opportunities
- Start your search with these tips
- Gain Experience, BSOS Opportunities - browse links on out of the classroom experiences
- Handshake - check out job and internship openings for off-campus positions for UMD students related to working with children
- Prepare to apply: Tips to customize your resume, cover letter, etc.
Build Connections
After researching career paths, consider talking with people working in your field of interest to gain inside information. The links below provide sample events where you may be able to meet professionals in your field of interest. Use these opportunities to learn more about your field of interest, establish new networking contacts, and informational interviews.
- Career Events for BSOS students
- University Career Center Event Calendar
- Terrapins Connect, is an online platform that allows students’ virtual access to UMD alumni who have volunteered to share industry specific information and as well as conduct resume reviews, among other things
- Use LinkedIn to Locate Alumni & Recruiters
- Intern for a Day, matches students with professionals working in a field of interest to shadow for the day or offer informational interviews
- Get contact information: Employer & Industry notes for BSOS majors
Consider reviewing state and national associations to access career path information and even attend association sponsored events to network with professionals in your field of interest.
