Practical Strategies for Recruiting Underrepresented Students into the field of Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSD)
Recruiting students from underrepresented backgrounds into the field of Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSD) remains a critical challenge. According to data from the most recent 2023-2024 CSD Education Survey, students from racial and ethnic minority backgrounds represent less than 34% of undergraduate students and 29% of graduate students enrolled in CSD programs. This decline between the undergraduate and graduate levels highlights…
Read MoreWhen Belonging Begets Belonging
Belongingness is not an aspirational concept in Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSD); it is a foundational condition for learning, professional identity formation, and ethical culturally responsive clinical practice. In CSD, students are asked to engage deeply—with vulnerability, cultural humility, and reflective capacity—while navigating high expectations, evolving clinical competence, learning in real time, teambuilding, and assessment-focused supervision. These demands do not pause…
Read MoreDismantling Microaggressions in Clinical Settings: A Guide for Teaching CSD Student Clinicians
Microaggressions are defined as brief, commonplace, daily verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative slights and insults and may have harmful psychological effects on individuals or groups (Sue et al., 2007). Microaggressions are pervasive in both clinical and academic environments and often manifest as subtle, yet harmful expressions of bias…
Read MoreNavigating Funding Mechanisms to Support Research: A Practical Roadmap for Speech Language Hearing Professional
When Maya, a second-year master’s student in speech-language pathology, developed an idea for her thesis on bilingual language development, her first reaction was excitement. Her second was hesitation. She wondered how she would pay for participant incentives, transcription support, and conference travel. Across campus, an early-career faculty member was refining a pilot study on technology-supported aphasia…
Read MoreDo Letters of Recommendation Actually Work?
In an age of holistic admissions, letters of recommendation are still common among CSD admission requirements; however, research suggests the tool systematically advantages some applicants while disadvantaging others. Historically, programs commonly use letters of recommendations because it provides a narrative context that could offer insight into future professional behavior. The issue at hand is not…
Read MoreFrom Service Learning to Participatory Action: A Process for Equity-Centered Engagement in CSD Education
Does your CSD program have a service-learning and capstone project to benefit the communities we serve? Our programs are well positioned to advance equity by preparing speech-language pathology and audiology students to engage with communities as equal partners. Yet traditional service-learning models often fall short of this ideal when problems and solutions are defined by the program or faculty alone. If we don’t partner with the community, we can be unintentionally…
Read MoreActivities to support DEIB during National Speech, Language, and Hearing Month
Creating a sense of belonging is one of the most powerful – and most challenging – goals within diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) efforts. While we often focus on increasing representation, ensuring equitable access, and promoting inclusive practices, belonging is what transforms those efforts into meaningful human experiences. According to Merriam-Webster, belonging is “a state of…
Read MoreHow to Integrate DEIB Into the Curriculum and Clinical Training
A principle of patient- and family-centered care is honoring a shared vocabulary which supports mutual respect and inclusivity among patients, families, and health care providers. Clinicians who practice patient-centered care are encouraged to dedicate time to listening attentively to clients’ lived experiences, thereby fostering deeper understanding and connection. A key aspect of connecting with patients…
Read MoreFostering Belonging as a Clinical Competency: Neighborism and Professional Identity Formation in Clinical Education
Author’s Note: For purposes of this article, neighborism is offered as a conceptual framework through which to view clinical education, professional identity formation, and relationship-centered practice. Drawing upon principles found in the scholarly literature on neighborliness, neighborism is proposed as a lens for understanding how concepts such as human dignity, belonging, mutual responsibility, cultural humility,…
Read MoreBuilding a Bridge: Configuring your CSDCAS Portal Page
The prelaunch configuration portal is now open, and programs have already begun to the process of building out their pages. Before starting this process, programs should conduct a systematic review of their portal to identify areas for improvement. It is critical to consider how the application is presented to applicants and how the requirements provide…
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