The undergraduate major in speech, language and hearing sciences (SLHS) at CU Boulder includes coursework in three general areas:
- Characteristics, causes and treatment of disorders that impact speech, language and/or hearing (e.g., stuttering, head injury, deafness, autism, learning disabilities, etc.).
- The science behind human communication (e.g., the anatomy and physiology of the speech and hearing mechanisms, acoustics of sound, etc.).
- Linguistics, specifically the normal development of language in children, phonetic transcription and the various component parts of language.
The program leads to a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree. In addition to learning in the classroom about normal and disordered communication, students will observe graduate students and professionals engaged in clinical work with individuals exhibiting speech, language, learning and hearing problems. Internships are optional but are encouraged throughout a student's program.
Requirements
Program Requirements
Students must complete the general requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences and the required courses listed below. The major includes 35 credit hours of required coursework plus a 3-credit course in general psychology.
All required major courses and the required general psychology course must be passed with a C- or better and cannot be taken pass/fail. No more than 45 credits in SLHS may be applied to overall graduation requirements. Students must have a grade point average of at least 2.000 in the major in order to graduate.
Required Courses and Credits
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| LING 2000 | Introduction to Linguistics | 3 |
| LING 3100 | Language Sound Structures | 3 |
| SLHS 2000 | Introduction to Communication Disorders | 3 |
| SLHS 2010 | Science of Human Communication | 3 |
| SLHS 3106 | Hearing Science | 3 |
| SLHS 3116 | Anatomy, Physiology, and Science of Speech | 3 |
| SLHS 4502 | Language Disorders Across the Lifespan | 3 |
| SLHS 4512 | Speech Disorders Across the Lifespan | 3 |
| SLHS 4560 | Language Development | 3 |
| SLHS 4704 | Audiological Evaluation | 3 |
| SLHS 4714 | Audiological Rehabilitation | 3 |
| SLHS 4918 | Introduction to Clinical Practice | 2 |
| Total Credit Hours | 35 | |
Required Ancillary Course
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| PSYC 1001 | General Psychology | 3 |
Recommended Electives
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| The following courses are recommended, but not required: | ||
| Disabilities in Contemporary American Society | ||
| American Sign Language 1 | ||
| Hearing Loss Epidemiology | ||
| Communication Neuroscience | ||
Speech-Language Assistant Certificate Program | ||
| If planning to attend graduate school for SLHS, students should take one course from each of the following categories (graduate school prerequisite courses): | ||
| Statistics | ||
| Basic Statistical Methods | ||
| Introduction to Social Statistics | ||
| Introduction to Statistics | ||
| Biological Science | ||
| Biology and Society | ||
| General Biology 1 | ||
| General Biology 2 | ||
| Biological Psychology | ||
| Physics or Chemistry | ||
| Environmental Chemistry 1 | ||
| Introductory Chemistry | ||
| Physics of Everyday Life 1 | ||
PHYS 1020 | ||
| Light and Color for Nonscientists | ||
| Sound and Music | ||
| Energy and Interactions | ||
Graduating in Four Years
Consult the Four-Year Guarantee Requirements for information on eligibility. The concept of "adequate progress" as it is used here only refers to maintaining eligibility for the four-year guarantee; it is not a requirement for the major. To maintain adequate progress in the Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences students should meet the following requirements:
Recommended Four-Year Plan of Study
Through the required coursework for the major, students will complete all 12 credits of the Social Sciences area and all 12 credits of the Natural Sciences area of the Gen Ed Distribution Requirement.
| Year One | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall Semester | Credit Hours | |
| SLHS 2000 | Introduction to Communication Disorders | 3 |
| LING 2000 | Introduction to Linguistics | 3 |
| Gen. Ed. Diversity course (example: Diversity: US Perspective) | 3 | |
| Gen. Ed. Skills course (example: Lower-division Written Communication) | 3 | |
| Elective/MAPS course | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| PSYC 1001 | General Psychology | 3 |
| SLHS 2010 | Science of Human Communication | 3 |
| Gen. Ed. Skills course (example: QRMS - if going onto SLHS grad school, take statistics) | 3 | |
| Gen. Ed. Diversity course (example: Diversity: Global Perspective) | 3 | |
| Elective/MAPS course | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Year Two | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| LING 3100 | Language Sound Structures | 3 |
| SLHS 4560 | Language Development | 3 |
| Gen. Ed. Distribution course (example: Arts & Humanities) | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Biological Science course with lab | 4 | |
| Credit Hours | 16 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| SLHS 3106 | Hearing Science | 3 |
| Gen. Ed. Distribution course (example: Arts & Humanities) | 3 | |
| Gen Ed. Distribution course (example: Arts & Humanities) | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Year Three | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| SLHS 3116 | Anatomy, Physiology, and Science of Speech | 3 |
| SLHS 4502 | Language Disorders Across the Lifespan | 3 |
| Gen. Ed. Distribution course (example: Arts & Humanities) | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| SLHS 4704 | Audiological Evaluation | 3 |
| SLHS 4918 | Introduction to Clinical Practice | 2 |
| Gen. Ed. Skills course (example: Upper-division Written Communication) | 3 | |
| Elective: upper-division | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 14 | |
| Year Four | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| SLHS 4512 | Speech Disorders Across the Lifespan | 3 |
| Elective: upper-division | 3 | |
| Elective: upper-division | 3 | |
| Elective: upper-division | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| SLHS 4714 | Audiological Rehabilitation | 3 |
| Elective: upper-division | 3 | |
| Elective: upper-division | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 120 | |
Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the degree program, students can expect to gain the following specific knowledge and skills:
- An understanding of foundational knowledge of human communication sciences and its disorders.
- An understanding of how diversity impacts human communication disorders.
- The ability to critically analyze and communicate research in speech, language and hearing sciences.
- An ability to apply scientific evidence in the field of speech-language-hearing sciences to the analysis of real-world problems.
- A knowledge of the professional pathways available to graduates in the field of communication sciences and disorders.