Speech-Language Pathology & Audiology

License Requirements

General Requirements

Any use of the title "Speech-Language Pathologist" or "Audiologist" within New York State requires licensure, except in certain "exempt" settings. These settings include:

• Federal, State or local governments
• Public or nonpublic elementary or secondary schools
• Colleges and universities

To be licensed as a speech-language pathologist or audiologist in New York State you must:

• be of good moral character;
• be at least 21 years of age; and
• meet education, examination and experience requirements.

You must file an application for licensure and the other forms indicated, along with the appropriate fee, to the Office of the Professions at the address specified on each form. It is your responsibility to follow up with anyone you have asked to send us material.

The specific requirements for licensure are contained in Title 8, Article 159, Section 8206 of New York's Education Law and Part 75 of the Commissioner's Regulations. Copies of the relevant sections of NYS Education Law and the Commissioner's Regulations are available upon request from opforms@mail.nysed.gov or 518-474-3817 ext. 320.

You should also read the general licensing information applicable for all professions.

Fees

The fee for licensure is $270.

Fees are subject to change. The fee due is the one in law when your application is received (unless fees are increased retroactively). You will be billed for the difference if fees have been increased.

• Do not send cash.
• Make your personal check or money order payable to the New York State Education Department.*
• Your cancelled check is your receipt.
• Mail your application and fee to:

  NYS Education Department, Office of the Professions
  P.O. Box 22063
  Albany, NY 12201

Partial Refunds

Individuals who withdraw their licensure application may be entitled to a partial refund.

• For the procedure to withdraw your application, contact the Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Unit at opunit3@mail.nysed.gov or by calling 518-474-3817 ext. 270 or by fax at: 518-402-5354.
• The State Education Department is not responsible for any fees paid to an outside testing or credentials verification agency.

If you withdraw your application, obtain a refund, and then decide to seek New York State licensure at a later date, you will be considered a new applicant, and you will be required to pay the licensure and registration fees and meet the licensure requirements in place at the time you reapply.

Education Requirements

You must have obtained a graduate degree in speech-language pathology or audiology from a New York State registered, licensure qualifying program, a program accredited by the American Speech Language and Hearing Association (ASHA), or the equivalent. To be considered "equivalent," your educational program must culminate in a graduate degree from a college acceptable to the Department. It must include a practicum and 60 semester hours of courses as specified below. At least 30 of the 60 semester hours must be at the graduate level.

• Basic Communication Processes: 12 semester hours
• Professional Areas
  • Speech-Language Pathology: 24 semester hours in speech-language pathology, including 6 in language, plus 6 semester hours in audiology
  • Audiology: 24 semester hours in audiology plus 6 semester hours in speech-language pathology
• PLUS 18 additional semester hours in the above or related areas
• Practicum
  • Speech-Language Pathology: A minimum of 300 clock hours, including:
    • at least 150 clock hours at the graduate level and
    • at least 20 but no more than 50 clock hours in audiology
  • Audiology: A minimum of 300 clock hours, including:
    • at least 150 clock hours at the graduate level and
    • at least 20 but no more than 50 clock hours in speech-language pathology

Experience Requirements

You must complete a minimum of nine months of supervised experience in speech-language pathology or audiology. (Any break in time, e.g., maternity leave or, in a school setting, summer break, should be compensated for in the ending date.) The experience cannot begin until after all requirements (including any examinations or completion of a thesis) for the graduate degree are satisfied.¹

Nature of Experience

Your experience should include direct clinical work with patients or students, consultations, record keeping, and any other duties relevant to clinical practice. At least two thirds of the experience should involve direct clinical contact with persons who have communication disorders. Time spent in academic teaching, research, or administrative activities that do not deal directly with patient management should not be counted as professional experience in this context. No partial credit can be given for unsatisfactory completion of supervised experience.

Part-time or Full-time Experience

The supervised experience must be completed within a two-year period with not more than two employers, and may be full-time or part-time:

Full-time: At least nine full months (e.g., September 10 to June 10) of continuous employment consisting of at least 30 hours per week.

Part-time: Continuous periods of employment of not less than six months, accumulated at the rate of not less than two days per week and consisting of not less than 15 hours per week with any one employer. Applicants employed part-time should contact the Board office to determine the total amount of time required under these conditions.

Supervision of Experience

Your supervisor should meet with and observe you on a regular basis to review and evaluate your experience and to foster your professional development. For additional information see the "Guidelines for Evaluating Applicants Experience" and Form 4A.

Supervision must be provided where you work by an individual licensed in New York State in the field for which you seek licensure. However, experience acquired in another state or in an exempt setting such as a public or nonpublic school may be supervised by a person holding the appropriate Certificate of Clinical Competence of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA).

To become licensed as a New York State speech-language pathologist or audiologist, you must complete experience as stated above. You are exempt from licensure for professional practice completed as part of this requirement. If your experience is just beginning, or has begun, an acknowledgement (Form 6 - Approval of Supervisory Plan) may be issued from the Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Board Office. If you and/or your employer wish to have a Form 6 issued, you must file an application for licensure, submit the fee, have your school document completion of your educational program, and submit Form 4A. Once the Office of the Professions has received and approved all this documentation, the State Board can issue the Form 6. It is acceptable to complete your experience outside New York State as long as your supervisor is certified by the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA).

If you have been practicing in another state and are no longer in contact with the supervisor you completed your experience with, you may request ASHA to submit your experience information ("CFY" Plan and Report) for consideration.

Examination Requirements

You must pass the Specialty Area test of the Praxis Series, Praxis II, administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) in your licensure area.

• New York State's acceptable passing score is 600.
• Examination scores must be sent directly from ETS. Request scores to be sent to agency code R7747.
• ETS retains scores for ten years. If your scores are no longer available from the testing service, they may be verified by ASHA. Contact ASHA at:

  ASHA
  10801 Rockville Pike
  Rockville, MD 20852
  Phone: 800-638-8255
  E-mail: actioncenter@asha.org
  Web: www.asha.org

The examination is administered at over 400 test centers throughout the nation. Schedule information and registration materials for the examination may be obtained directly from ETS by calling 609-771-7395, or writing to The Praxis Series, Educational Testing Service, PO Box 6051, Princeton, NJ 08541-6051 or on the Web at www.ets.org.