Students in SIU’s communication disorders and sciences program work with young children on their speech and communication skills. (Photo provided)
April 29, 2025
SIU’s communication disorders master’s program earns perfect accreditation score
CARBONDALE, Ill. — Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s communication disorders and sciences master’s degree program recently received the maximum 8-year continuing accreditation by the Council of Academic Accreditation (CAA) of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA), and SIU earned a perfect report of verification, meeting all standards completely, according to Valerie Boyer, communication disorders and sciences associate professor and interim director of the School of Health Sciences.
The communication disorders and sciences (CDS) master’s degree program prepares graduates to become licensed and nationally certified speech-language pathologists, working with people who have communication disorders and/or swallowing disorders across their lifespans, and students must complete an accredited program in order to test for licensure and certification. The accreditation process involved a self-study and site visit, said Denise Croft, director of the Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders (CASD) and communication disorders and sciences (CDS) program director and assistant lecturer.
“It’s a wonderful way for our incredible CDS program to be recognized with this national designation,” she said. “I feel so grateful for the students we get to teach, the best team of faculty, my forever mentor Valerie Boyer, and for the opportunity to educate and train future speech-language pathologists.”
SIU’s program has a 100% job placement rate for students within a year of graduation. CDS graduates find employment in a variety of educational and medical settings, in private practice and other locales where speech therapy is needed.
The job outlook for CDS is expected to increase 18% in the decade ending in 2033, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. It’s also listed among the top three best health care careers and as one of the top 10 jobs overall on U.S. News & World Report’s annual Best Jobs list.
SIU’s master’s degree program, which currently has an enrollment of 45 students, is a six-semester program that incorporates extensive experiential learning.
SIU also offers a bachelor’s degree program in communication disorders and sciences, and as a bonus, any student who completes the bachelor’s degree program with a GPA of 3.5 or higher qualifies for automatic admission to the master’s program.
For more information about SIU’s program, visit the website or email denisecroft@siu.edu.