Admissions Health Requirements

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Graduate study leading to the Master of Science (MS) with a major in audiology is only available to those students accepted to and enrolled in the AuD program. This degree is awarded to students who desire a master’s degree as part of their progress toward a doctorate. A student must be in good standing within the AuD program and must have completed a minimum of 42 credits of academic coursework at the 500 or 600 levels (not including ASP 512 Clinical Practice in Audiology or 515 Practicum in Aural Rehabilitation) and must pass a qualifying examination or equivalent.  Award of the MS in Audiology requires approval by the student’s academic advisor.  The Intent to Graduate Form must be submitted at the beginning of the term in which the students intends to complete the MS in Audiology requirements.  In addition, an approved master’s level degree plan must be submitted to the UTHSC Office of the Registrar no later than the second month of the term in which the student intends to be awarded the degree. 

Admissions (to the AuD degree program)

1. Bachelor’s degree from an accredited university
2. A minimum GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale in the Bachelor’s degree
3. A satisfactory score on the Verbal and Quantitative scales of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE).
4. Three letters of recommendation preferably completed by 3 professors who had the student in class.
5. A personal statement of intent.
6. Foreign applicants whose native language is not English must submit results of TOEFL with a minimum score of 550

Applicants who accept an offer of admission will be required to complete the UTHSC Pre-Admissions Requirement System (PARS).

Health Requirements

Audiology students are required to show proof of current health insurance prior to enrollment. Students are required to be immunized against the Hepatitis B virus and to have an annual skin test for Tuberculosis. Information about meeting these requirements is presented via email prior to the first day of class and, again, during orientation. Some clinical education sites require affiliating audiology students to have one or more of the following: rubella titer or vaccine, general physical examination. Students are responsible for these costs.

Technical Standards

Audiology students must have or acquire certain essential skills, functions, and professional attitudes and behavior as described in the Technical Standards document. All students who enroll must be prepared to understand and abide by these requirements. Information about meeting these requirements is presented during orientation.

In order to acquire the knowledge and skills requisite to the practice of audiology or speech-language pathology, to function in a broad variety of clinical situations, and to render a wide spectrum of patient care, individuals must have skills and attributes in five areas: communication, motor, intellectual-cognitive sensory-observational, and behavioral-social. These skills enable a student to meet graduate and professional requirements as measured by state licensure and national certification. Many of these skills can be learned and developed during the course of the graduate program through coursework and clinical experience. The starred items (*), however, are skills that are more inherent and should be present when  a student begins the program.

Communication
A student must possess adequate communication skills to:

• Communicate proficiently in both oral and written English language. (Language to be determined by program.)*
• Possess reading and writing skills sufficient to meet curricular and clinical demands.*
• Perceive and demonstrate appropriate non-verbal communication for culture and context.*
• Modify communication style to meet the communication needs of clients, caregivers, and other persons served. *
• Communicate professionally and intelligibly with patients, colleagues, other healthcare professionals, and community or professional groups.
• Communicate professionally, effectively, and legibly on patient documentation, reports, and scholarly papers required as a part of course work and professional practice.
• Convey professional information accurately with relevance and cultural sensitivity.

Motor
A student must possess adequate motor skills to:

• Sustain necessary physical activity level in required classroom and clinical activities.*
• Respond quickly to provide a safe environment for clients in emergency situations including fire, choking, etc.*
• Access transportation to clinical and academic placements.*
• Participate in classroom and clinical activities for the defined workday.*
• Efficiently manipulate testing and treatment environment and materials without violation of testing protocol and with best therapeutic practice.
• Manipulate patient-utilized equipment (e.g. durable medical equipment to include AAC devices, hearing aids, etc.) in a safe manner.
• Access technology for clinical management (i.e. billing, charting, therapy programs, etc.).

Intellectual/Cognitive
A student must possess adequate intellectual and cognitive skills to:

• Comprehend, retain, integrate, synthesize, infer, evaluate and apply written and verbal information sufficient to meet curricular and clinical demands.*
• Identify significant findings from history, evaluation, and data to formulate a diagnosis and develop a treatment plan.
• Solve problems, reason, and make sound clinical judgments in patient assessment, diagnostic and therapeutic plan and implementation.
• Self evaluate, identify, and communicate limits of one’s own knowledge and skill to appropriate professional level and be able to identify and utilize resources in order to increase knowledge.
• Utilize detailed written and verbal instruction in order to make unique and independent decisions

Sensory/Observational
A student must possess adequate sensory skills of vision, hearing, tactile, and smell to:

• Visually and auditorily identify normal and disordered communication in all areas relevant to professional practice.
• Identify the need for alternative modalities of communication.
• Visualize and identify anatomic structures.
• Identify and discriminate findings on imaging studies.
• Discriminate text, numbers, tables, and graphs associated with diagnostic instruments and tests.
• Recognize when a client’s family does or does not understand the clinician’s written and or verbal communication.

Behavioral/Social
A student must possess adequate behavioral and social attributes to:

• Display mature empathetic and effective professional relationships by exhibiting compassion, integrity, and concern for others.*
• Recognize and show respect for individuals with disabilities and for individuals of different ages, genders, race, religions, sexual orientation, and cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds.*
• Conduct oneself in an ethical and legal manner, upholding the ASHA Code of Ethics and university and federal privacy policies.*
• Maintain general good physical and mental health and self-care in order not to jeopardize the health and safety of self and others in the academic and clinical setting.*
• Adapt to changing and demanding environments (which includes maintaining both professional demeanor and emotional health).
• Manage the use of time effectively to complete professional and technical tasks within realistic time constraints.
• Accept appropriate suggestions and constructive criticism and respond by modification of behaviors.
• Dress appropriately and professionally.