About the Department
The Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders is home to undergraduate and graduate training programs that explore the basic and clinical aspects of human speech, language and hearing and their impairments. Our undergraduate program has been successfully preparing students to meet the licensing requirements of the Ministry of Health since 2001. Our graduate program has been providing in-depth focused training in advanced audiology and speech and language pathology since 2010.
Our faculty members are senior scientists and clinicians maintaining active research and clinical programs. Researchers in the department are exploring processes that underlie hearing and language and their development and are actively engaged in programs intended to improve the standard of care and rehabilitation in those areas. They regularly publish their works in leading professional journals and receive external research supports from various funds. Our clinical faculty is dedicated to the training and clinical education of our students and to community service. Many of them also hold senior positions in health, rehabilitation and outreach organizations.
We actively strive to fulfill three goals: Providing first-rate education in all areas related to Human Communication and associated disorders such that our graduates meet the requirements of all employers in the health and education sectors; advancing basic and clinical research in Communication Sciences and Disorders; and serving the general and professional communities.
Undergraduate Education
The overall goal of our BA program is to train entry level practitioners (audiologists and speech pathologists) in the field of Communication Sciences and Disorders. We aim to provide our students with the level of knowledge, competence, and expertise needed for entry into the profession as reflective and ethical practitioners. Our study program is built on the twin foundations of a basic science background and comprehensive clinical education. The basic sciences course of study strives to provide up-to-date knowledge in the areas of speech, language and hearing sciences, and related areas such as psychology and neuroscience as well as foundational knowledge in research methods and statistics. The clinical studies aim to foster the development of core clinical competence in the various sub-areas of communication disorders via in-class and field instruction by practicing speech, language and hearing professionals.
The department offers a single major BA program, meant to take 3.5 academic years. The program offers core theoretical studies complemented by an extensive clinical training program.
Graduate Education
The department offers MA degrees in Communication Sciences and Disorders in one of two specialties – auditory sciences (audiology) and communication, language and cognition (SLP). In each specialty we provide advanced academic training in the form of classes and seminars and advanced clinical training and supervision.
Students can pursue a thesis track by designing and conducting a research project under the supervision of one of our senior faculty members, or a non-thesis track with more focus on course work and clinical tutelage.