Who We Are Now
The Master of Science (M.S.) education program (residential) in speech-language pathology at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, 2200 Research Boulevard, #310, Rockville, MD 20850, 800-498-2071 or 301-296-5700.
The program’s current accreditation cycle is from July 1, 2015 until June 30, 2023.
Links to other information and documents related to our accreditation can be found under Accreditation Information.
COMD-National Student Speech-Language Hearing Association (NSSLHA): National Gold Honors
2022 Chapter Honors Recipients
The Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders student organization, UTRGV Chapter of the National Student Speech-Language Hearing Association (NSSLHA), has been awarded Gold Level Honors by National NSSLHA for the second time in the chapter’s history.
The NSSLHA chapter worked diligently on several projects, to attain this level. Some of these endeavors included our NSSLHA chapter president posting monthly chapter updates in the National NSSLHA Community blog throughout the academic year, a donation to the ASHA Foundation NSSLHA Scholarship Fund, engaging in two legislative advocacy activities on legislature that would impact the field of speech-language pathology and audiology, and having a minimum of 30% of the members be national NSSLHA members. The chapter exceeded this with having 58% of the NSSLHA membership (91 members) being National NSSLHA members in addition to being local chapter members.
The NSSLHA chapter was successful in raising monies for the Rio Grande Valley Down Syndrome Association and for the Capable Kids Foundation through participation in various events. The NSSLHA chapter’s philanthropic service also included donations to organizations such as Operation Smile for three children to receive cleft palate repairs, Easter Seals of the Rio Grande, the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Association, TEAM Mario, and the Stuttering Foundation.
https://www.nsslha.org/Programs/Chapter-Honors-Recipients/
Telemundo came and did an interview with our very own Eric Cardenas about our Deaf Awareness Week celebration happening this week! Our very own ASLI Club President, Lily Hernandez stepped into to interpret!
Telemundo - Promueven la inclusión de personas con discapacidad auditiva mediante la lengua de señas
SEPTIEMBRE 20, 2021 - Un profesor de UTRGV nos cuenta cómo fue crecer siendo sordomudo, las discriminaciones que ha vivido en carne propia y cómo ahora quiere generar un cambio desde las aulas.
Translation:
Telemundo - Promote the inclusion of people with hearing impairments through sign language
SEPTEMBER 20, 2021 - A UTRGV teacher tells us what it was like to grow up being deaf-mute, the discriminations he has experienced in his own flesh and how he now wants to generate a change from the classroom.
UTRGV students learn, experience the world through Study Abroad courses
RIO GRANDE VALLEY, TEXAS- June 26, 2019 – This summer, 170 UTRGV students are traveling the world to discover new experiences through the Study Abroad program. In May, students along with their faculty advisors traveled to China, Spain, London, and South Korea as part of UTRGV’s Minimester Study Abroad program.
Amanda Meda, who has a bachelor’s degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders, was one of six graduate students who participated in a seminar in Multicultural Speech Langauge Pathology in Spain. The course was designed to expose students to diverse cultures and immerse them in a new environment. Meda said she enjoyed the food and the sights, and that the trip was “unlike any other educational experience” she had ever had. Read the full article here.
Introduction
Welcome to the Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. We are located on the main floor of the Edinburg Health Affairs Building West (EHABW). Our main office is EHABW 1.264. Our department offers a Master of Science (M.S.) degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders, a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders, a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in American Sign Language (ASL) Interpretation, as well as a minor in ASL Studies. You can learn more about the requirements for the master’s and bachelor’s degrees and the ASL Studies minor by simply clicking on the appropriate link above.
Graduate Program
The graduate (i.e., master’s degree) program in Communication Sciences and Disorders requires six consecutive academic terms to complete. Studies always begin in the fall semester, then continue into the spring semester, summer I session, summer II session, fall semester and finally spring semester. A student who enters the graduate program in the fall of 2019 will graduate in May of 2021 if they graduate on time. It should be noted that we accept only students who have earned a baccalaureate degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders or Speech-language Pathology. We do not offer courses for students who earned a bachelor’s degree in another discipline and would like to change career path, neither do we accept into our graduate program students who have taken “leveling” courses from another institution of higher education. Prospective graduate students are urged to visit the Program Accreditation section of our web site.
Undergraduate Programs
For the Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders and Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in American Sign Language (ASL) Interpretation, students officially enter the program and begin their studies at the beginning of their junior year. The undergraduate programs are designed to be completed within two academic years (junior and senior year) while the minor in ASL Studies is designed to be completed within the first two academic years of study.
We hope you find the information contained within to be informative as well as motivational. If you’re the type of person who loves working with other people in a way that makes a positive impact on their lives, Communication Sciences and Disorders may be the career path for you.
What are Communication Disorders?
Two professions comprise the field of communication disorders—Audiology and Speech-language Pathology. Audiologists provide diagnostic hearing and balance evaluations and aural rehabilitation services. Speech-language Pathologists (also known as a Speech Pathologists or Speech Therapists) work with people who have impairments of speech, language, and swallowing by diagnosing and remediating these disorders. Speech disorders may include problems with the proper pronunciation of certain speech sounds, voice and resonance disorders (such as vocal nodules or laryngectomy), and fluency disorders (such as stuttering). Language disorders can occur in children and adults. In children, language disorders may exhibit themselves in the presence or absence of other disorders such as developmental disabilities or intellectual impairment. In adults, language and swallowing problems are most likely a result of stroke or a progressive, degenerative neurological disorder such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease). Clients or patients represent the entire age range from birth to the elderly and come from a wide variety of racial, ethnic and cultural backgrounds. The majority of employment positions are in the public schools and medical settings but opportunities also exist in community agencies, free standing clinics and private practice.
Please note: The Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders does not offer an audiology program. Students desiring to become audiologists must either earn the baccalaureate degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders at UTRGV and then transfer to a university that offers an audiology program, or enroll from the outset in a university that has an audiology program.