Pursue Your Master’s with ACU
ACU’s Master of Science in Speech and Language Pathology (MS-SLP) program, with more than 20 years of accreditation, is home to more than 100 graduate students preparing for professional practice. Our master’s program offers you:
- Small cohort sizes, with a ratio of <10 graduate students per faculty member.
- One-on-one mentorship and clinical supervision.
- An engaging, collaborative and faith-based learning atmosphere.
- Well-equipped facilities designed for immersive skill development.
- International clinical placement opportunities.
You have the option to pursue the MS-SLP at our Abilene or Dallas campus. No matter which location you choose, we ensure you meet the academic and clinical requirements for certification by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Both sites provide seasoned clinical directors and coordinators dedicated to providing and connecting you with high-quality clinical practice in a variety of settings. Learn more about what makes each campus unique by clicking the location name!
The Abilene campus offers you a university experience within a growing city where you’ll find opportunities for service projects, events and a one-of-a-kind community. Abilene’s MS-SLP program is facilitated in ACU’s Center for Speech, Language and Learning, also known as the Duncum Center. For our graduate students, the Duncum Center becomes your academic home, serving as a classroom and study space. For the local community, it’s a fully functioning clinic offering treatment services for a variety of communication disorders. Here, you earn a portion of your clinical practice hours working alongside clinical educators and supervisors.
Additionally, ACU’s Maker Lab provides our students the innovative tools and support needed to create switches for augmentative communication devices used in therapy sessions.
In the suburb of Addison, the Dallas campus offers all the benefits of a major city at your disposal. Located on the eighth floor, take in breathtaking views of the skyline from the classroom, community areas and work spaces. Students enjoy a breadth of options for clinical practice opportunities, including major medical facilities, schools, and private or specialty SLP practices. A team of dedicated clinical coordinators oversees these placements to ensure your successful experience.
International Placement
Hope Speaks Uganda
The ACU Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders is honored to partner with Hope Speaks Uganda, a speech-language pathology mission founded by directors Kari David (MS-SLP) and husband Ben David. For their final 6-7 week clinical rotation, graduate students in Abilene and Dallas may elect to serve at Hope Speaks, where they will work in the capital city of Kampala alongside Ugandan professionals to provide children and adults with much needed swallowing and communication intervention. Students will also enjoy opportunities to experience the culture and sights of Uganda on safari.
Professional Development – ACU Abilene
Hospital Orientation Program (HOP)
HOP is a five-week program for all first-year graduate students in the Abilene cohort. Students are divided into small learning teams of 8-10, with instruction and mentoring provided by a local acute-care SLP specialist. During the program, you’ll become familiar with the terminology, tasks and expectations of hospital practice before placement in a hospital externship. Hands-on learning activities include work in a hospital simulation lab to practice skills such as reading vital signs, positioning patients for treatment and managing hospital equipment. Experience significantly increased confidence in your ability to successfully work with patients in hospitals after participating in the program.
Professional Development – ACU Dallas
MEDICAL SIMULATION LAB
The medical simulation lab, located in Wildcat Cove, immerses the Dallas cohort in experiential learning opportunities that foster a solid foundation of medical knowledge before entering into clinical placements. Throughout your training, students are immersed in a mock hospital room setting. In the second semester, you’ll utilize a patient mannequin during a dysphasia lab to demonstrate basic patient care skills and practice evaluation processes, such as the clinical bedside swallowing evaluation. During your second year, advance to practicing tracheostomy and ventilator care via speaking valve placement and suctioning skills.
Bilingual Emphasis Program – ACU Abilene
The Bilingual Emphasis Program (BEP) provides targeted training and clinical experiences for multilingual students who are accepted to the MS-SLP program, and who desire to participate. (An intermediate level of proficiency in a language other than English is required for participation; eligibility can be established through conversation with the program director prior to acceptance.) Students participate in specialized coursework and projects regarding assessment/treatment in their other treatment language, and engage in clinical practice with bilingual supervisors in that language also (as available).
Participants exit the Bilingual Emphasis Program when they graduate with their MS-SLP degree, and are provided with a BEP letter of completion/credentials at that time. This program is led by a faculty member who is a bilingual speech-language pathologist specializing in service delivery to bilingual populations. The majority of the program activities are integrated into the student’s MS-SLP coursework; the only additional costs to participate are: 1) the cost of auditing one course and 2) the cost of completing language proficiency assessment just prior to graduation. Some scholarship funds are available for program participants; request information from the MS-SLP Abilene program director.
The BEP is only available at the Abilene campus at this time. Click the button below for program details.
Student-Led Research – ACU Dallas
Our graduate students thrive with the opportunity to conduct and develop an original research project alongside faculty mentors. Research
Monica Garcia, MS-CCC, SLP
Director of Clinical Education, Instructor, Supervisor
ACU Abilene
Monica Garcia works one-on-one with our first and second year graduate students to coordinate their five clinical rotations during their master’s program. Keeping personal interests and previous experiences in mind, she ensures each student is exposed to a variety of clinical settings and clientele within the local Abilene community and beyond. Whether you’re placed within ACU’s umbrella of clinical partners or with an external location of your choosing, Garcia is dedicated to connecting you with only top-notch ASHA-licensed supervision.
“What we do as speech-language pathologists is so vast and diverse, and I want our students to have a little snippet of the work they will be immersed in – whether it’s working with babies in the NICU or end-of-life care.”
Student Spotlight
Kaleigh Tom
Second-Year MS-SLP Student
ACU-Abilene
Within one semester enrolled in her master’s program at ACU, Kaleigh Tom gained an entirely new perspective on school, herself and the field of speech-language pathology as a whole. For Kaleigh, the hands-on mentorship from CSD faculty has been impactful for her learning experiences.
“My perspective on school has changed a lot during my first semester. Our department values our work as a mission even though we’re not working in a church setting. I’ve learned that what I’m gaining here is not for my own benefit but to be able to show the love of God through the services we provide for others. My professors are doing a great job at reinforcing our confidence in this as we become better clinicians.”
Alumni Spotlight
Ricardo Flores, MS-CCC, SLP
ACU MS-SLP Bilingual Emphasis, 2017
Director of Outpatient Therapy Clinics –
South Texas Health System
Within five years of graduating, Ricardo Flores is advocating for speech pathology services under a Fortune 500-owned company. With extensive clinical rotations and bilingual therapy training from his master’s program, he quickly climbed the ranks to his current position overseeing outpatient therapy for six South Texas Health System Clinics in the Rio Grande Valley area. Flores commends ACU for providing the hours of clinical exposure that assisted his transition to real-world practice.
“Experience in the field is not guaranteed in other programs like it is at ACU. I felt like I gained years’ worth of it and an entire system for addressing communication and neurological disorders for my bilingual clients before I graduated. I’ve been in the field since 2017 and have never had a single moment where I didn’t feel prepared for what work was in front of me as an SLP.”