Graduate Program Overview

To become a certified Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP), it is necessary to earn a Master’s Degree, complete a Clinical Fellowship Year, and pass the Praxis II. Our master’s program is designed to fulfill the academic and practicum requirements for clinical certification established by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), as well as for licensure in most states.

Graduate Degree Requirements for a Masters of Science (M.S.) in Communication Sciences & Disorders

1. A minimum of 61 credit hours, including 46 hours of academic course work and 15 hours of graduate practicum. Academic course requirements include CSD: 505, 513, 521, 523, 526, 541, 557, 605, 613, 620, 622, 624, 625, 627, 642, and 690. Clinical course requirements are five semesters of clinical practicum (CSD 691, CSD 692, CSD 693, CSD 694 and CSD 695).
2. 400 clinical clock hours, including 25 observation hours and 375 hands-on hours. A minimum of 325 hours must be earned under the direction of the University of Mississippi CSD faculty and/or approved offsite supervisors. Under special arrangements, portions of practicum can be completed elsewhere.
3. Graduate students must maintain a minimum of a 3.0 grade point average in the department to maintain enrollment, to qualify for graduation and to qualify for department financial aid consideration.
4. This is a full-time program and students are expected to be enrolled in the program for 7 semesters over the course of two years, including summers. (Summer-II & August intersessions, Fall, Spring, Summer, Fall, Spring.)
5. Typically, more than 50% of the academic course credits are taught in a Face2Face (F2F) format. Some courses are taught online to allow students the flexibility in mastering the required knowledge while completing their clinical practicum at various sites. However, under special circumstances (e.g., pandemic), more than 50% of the courses may be offered online for specific reasons (e.g., allow on time graduation while keeping the students safe).

­How can I learn more?

For more information, please refer to our admissions page and our eligibility page.

How do I apply?

All applications for the M.S. in SLP program must be submitted through the Communication Sciences & Disorders Centralized Application Service (CSDCAS). To learn more about the application process, please review the Before Applying web page.

Please refer to the following for more information:

2020-2022 Graduate Handbook

2021-2023 Graduate Handbook

2022-2024 Graduate Handbook