Graduate School Applications Data: How Many Applicants vs Actual Accepted Students?
Graduate
School Applications Data: How Many Applicants vs Actual Accepted Students?
If you’re an undergraduate student
and you’re wondering how often people get accepted into graduate school for
Speech-Language Pathology, there are a few different articles and/or blog posts
you can read to find out more information. One such article is from Steffani
and Slavin (ASHA, n.d) “Survey of the Graduate School Admissions Process based
off of a survey from Goldberg (1993). Although an increase in the number of enrolled
students in masters programs for Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology was
found, the sizes of the programs were not great. A majority of the programs
enrolled fewer than 50 full-time equivalence (FTE) students. Because of an
increased interest in the profession of speech-language pathology, an increase
in the number of applicants, and limited availability for spots in the master’s
programs, it was expected that the competition for graduation schools would
increase. One of the reasons that the application pool was so limited was due
to the Educational Standards Board (ESB) Standards 2.6 required that accredited
master’s degree programs must obtain an FTE student-faculty ratio of 6:1 (ESB,
1992). Recently, the standard was revised so that programs must maintain a
student/instructional staff ratio that can be shown to be efficient to achieve
the mission, goals, and objectives of the program.
Unfortunately, there isn’t much
overall guidance on whether and/or where to apply for graduate school. Yes,
there is information available to prospective students via ASHA regarding accredited
programs, but there isn’t much information on how programs evaluate graduate
school applications. The purpose of the study was to determine: the relative
importance of entrance requirements, the minimum GPA and GRE scores, the
importance of student background and achievement, and the impact of ESB standard
2.6 on admission rates. Two questionnaires were independently developed and
then sent to ESB-accredited programs. The first author’s questionnaire was sent
to 231 ESB-accredited programs in Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology while
the second author’s questionnaire was sent to chairpersons of 233
ESB-accredited master’s degree programs in speech-language pathology.
Survey results indicated that the
major GPA and overall GPA were rated as the most important entrance
requirements. GPA in the major was extremely important and compared to the
overall GPA. Other admission requirements not mentioned in the surveys that
were rated as highly important included “related/outside/clinical experience”
and interview. Regarding the letter of intent, quality of writing was
determined to be the most important factor. Interestingly, less than a third of
respondents considered evidence of extracurricular activity either within the
college/university or outside the college/university considered it to be an
important factor (GPA and writing skills were most important, while
extracurriculars were less important). More information that the accredited
programs were looking for in letters of intent included “information regarding
a student’s clinical skills” and “ability to speak a foreign language.” Other
factors that were deemed less important included overall life experiences,
exposure to speech and hearing, and the ability to build a convincing case for
admission.
Regarding minimum values for major
and overall GPAs, survey respondents had different responses. For example,
while one institution indicated the minimum GPA is 3.0, it is actually 3.25 (so
there is a discrepancy on the minimum it takes to apply to graduate school,
versus the minimum GPA it takes to possibly be considered as a prospective
student for the accredited program). The majority of respondents (14.3%) had a
minimum GPA requirement within the major of 3.0, while 1.9% had a minimum major
GPA of under 3.0. For overall GPA, 65.7%
had a minimum of 3.0, 9.5% had a minimum
of over 3.0. Although 3.0 was the most common minimum requirement, this does
not mean that a student with a 3.0 GPA would definitely be accepted into a
program.
Regarding GRE scores, 56% of survey
respondents said they have a minimum GRE requirement. The verbal and
quantitative portion of the GRE were most often required. The most common
required score was 1000 (taken from the OLD GRE…test.) Again, receiving minimum
GRE scores also did not guarantee admittance into a graduate program. The majority
of programs accepted between 15-30 students. Forty-six respondents reported
they gave preference to undergraduate speech-language majors while 48% said
they did not. Of this, 86% of
respondents reported 40-100% of their students in their graduate programs had
an undergraduate major of speech-language pathology. Although ESB standard 2.6
has been modified, and that there might be a possibility for an increase in the overall number of students
accepted into an accredited program, factors should as programmatic
constraints, especially regarding clinical training may keep sizes at their current
levels. The availability of clinical practice sites as well as availability of
supervisors and clients within sites may also restrict how many students can be
adequately supervised.
In conclusion, major and overall GPA
were determined to be the most important factors that accredited programs were
looking for. Majority of graduate students enrolled in speech-language
pathology programs have speech-language-hearing related undergraduate majors.
Membership in an underrepresented group and special skills (e.g. bilingualism)
were deemed to only be important in 38% of the programs surveyed.
SO…what can be learned from this?
When trying to find the “best fit” graduate program. Prospective students
should ask:
·
“Is there a minimum major GPA?”
·
“What was the range of overall GPA and GPA in
the major for students admitted the previous year or years?”
·
“Is the GRE required and what minimum score is
expected? How heavily is it weighted in the decision process?”
·
“What information or qualities are assessed in
the letter of intent?”
·
“Who should I ask to provide my letters of
recommendation?”
·
“Is preference given to speech-language pathology
majors”
·
“Is preference given to students from their own
undergraduate program?”
·
“How heavily is clinical experience weighted?”
·
“Is preference given to individuals who have
special skills (e.g. bilingual, sign language) and/or are members of an
underrepresented group?” “What group do they consider to be underrepresented
(e.g. African American, Latino, male, veterans?)
·
“Will more students be accepted now that the 6:1
ratio is no longer mandated?”
**Although personal background and
experiences may not play a prominent role in the admissions process, it may
help an applicant stand out when compared to other applicants who have similar
GPA and GRE scores.
Other articles/resources you may want to check out:
The Speech Blog (2016). How Do SLP Grad Schools Evaluate
Applications?: 2 case studies. Retrieved from http://www.thespeechblog.com/how-do-slp-grad-schools-evaluate-applications/
CSDCAS (2018). CSDCAS 2017-2018 Applicant Data Report. Retrieved
from https://wordpressstorageaccount.blob.core.windows.net/wp-media/wp-content/uploads/sites/1023/2019/06/CSDCAS-Applicant-Data-Report-2017-2018.pdfhttps://wordpressstorageaccount.blob.core.windows.net/wp-media/wp-content/uploads/sites/1023/2019/06/CSDCAS-Applicant-Data-Report-2017-2018.pdf
References
Steffani, S. A., and Slavin, D. (n.d.) Survey of the
graduate school admissions process. Retrieved from https://www.asha.org/uploadedFiles/asha/publications/cicsd/1997SurveyoftheGradSchoolAdmissionsProcess.pdf
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