Advice for confused undergrad

[SLPvsAUD]

I'm so happy I found this forum! I've been reading through most of the threads and have been learning a lot about what I should be expecting as a Au. D. student. Currently I'm in my final semester in Communication Sciences and Disorders. I'll be graduating in May, however I'm still not sure if I want to pursue SLP or AuD (I'm leaning more towards audiology) so I will have to take a year off and apply for fall 2013 . I want to use this time to gain experience in the audiology field, but I'm having trouble finding job opportunities. If anyone has any idea of the kinds of experience, volunteering, or jobs I should look into I would really appreciate it!

I'm attending my first Au. D. open house at the University of Florida on 2/3! I'm really excited for my first glimpse inside the program & I hope I like what I see! So if anyone has advice on what I should focus on during my visit or questions I should ask, I would love to hear from you.

Thanks in advance!
-H

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[quiteaud]

You may be able to get a job as an SLP assistant or audiology tech, but I don't know how hard it is to find this type of job. You can always call some SLPs and audiologists and ask if you can observe them. Good luck!

 

[KCO47]

If you're willing to go anywhere in the country for a few months, you can get an SLPA job through a staffing company (try Sunbelt or Soliant). Not sure if it's as easy with an audiology tech position though.

 

[SLPvsAUD]

Thanks for the info! I actually got some really good news today! One of my professors who is an Audiologist has agreed to sponsor me so I can be an Audiology assistant and offered me a externship at the campus hearing clinic for this fall. I also talked to a couple students in the same situation as me that are working as newborn hearing screening specialist in area hospitals that gave me some information about jobs. Now I'm actually looking forward to my year off.

 

[AuDStu]

Congrats!! I was in the same situation as you. The only real way to make a decision is to spend a decent amount of time observing both professions. Be sure that you are aware of the different specialities in audiology--vestibular, pediatrics, hearing aids, electrophysiology (ABR).