6 Best Speech-Language Pathology Jobs

As a speech-language pathologist, you can work with patients to diagnose and treat a range of communication and swallowing disorders.

With a projected job growth rate of 18%, an average salary of $89,290, and the ability to work with different populations, speech-language pathology is a rewarding career path. These professionals require a master’s degree and work in a variety of environments, although over half of all speech-language pathologists have jobs in educational settings, according to the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA).

In addition to speech-language pathology, there are several related careers you can enter if you’d like to work in the field. Read on to explore six speech-language pathologist jobs and find out if this field is right for you.

Speech-language pathology encompasses many different roles, from audiologists to language specialists. You can even work in a private practice, running your own clinic. The following will highlight a few of these roles, including salary and the minimum education needed.

As a school speech-language pathologist, you would work in educational settings to help students with learning strategies in both general and special education classrooms.

While collaborating with other educational professionals, you would write reports on students and participate in annual review conferences. You’d also create Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSPs) and IEPs.

In colleges and universities, you can teach and conduct research as a university-based speech-language pathologist. You may also work with patients at university clinics and affiliated healthcare facilities.

Thirteen percent of speech-language pathologists have jobs in hospitals, according to ASHA. These include acute care, rehabilitation, and psychiatric hospitals, which offer speech and language services.

You would diagnose and treat communication and swallowing disorders. You’d also provide counseling services and educate other healthcare professionals about cognitive communication and swallowing disorders.

Almost 19% of speech-language pathologists work in private practice. In these settings, speech-language pathologists manage their own offices and can set their own schedules and determine their target populations and caseloads.

Working independently would allow you to tailor therapy to meet your clients’ needs. You’d create treatment plans, conduct assessments, and provide personalized therapy in an office setting.

In a rehabilitation center, you’d work with patients who are recovering from a variety of communication and swallowing disorders that stem from medical events such as strokes and head injuries.

You’d collaborate with physicians, nurses, and other therapists to provide various therapies. These therapies include retrieval retraining, swallowing assessments, and cognitive communication therapy.

In a nursing home, you’d help elderly residents manage speech and swallowing challenges. Collaborating with an interdisciplinary team, you’d help develop treatment plans, conduct speech and language evaluations, and offer cognitive-communication therapy.

You can work from home as a speech-language pathologist, delivering remote therapy via digital platforms like Zoom, Skype, and Google Meet. These telecommunication technologies give you the flexibility to provide services to clients who live in rural or underserved locations, and those who prefer to receive services from home.

In a corporate setting, you can help employees communicate more clearly and effectively at work. You may address specific situations with employees or help them find effective ways to share their messages. You might specialize in developing professional speaking skills, such as speech-giving and accent training.

As a government-employed speech-language pathologist, you might serve in a role at a government health agency, where you could conduct research and make policies to improve public health outcomes related to communication disorders.

The job outlook for speech-language pathologist careers is excellent. According to BLS, the field is projected to grow 18% from 2023 to 2033, much faster than the average growth rate for all occupations.

This growth is fueled by an aging baby-boomer population and growing awareness of speech disorders in people of all ages. There’s also a greater demand for speech-language pathologists in healthcare settings.

According to the BLS, salaries are healthy. While wages vary based on experience and location, these professionals earned a median annual salary of $89,290 in 2023. The top earners brought home a median salary of $129,930.