Speech Pathology License

Is there a national certification exam for speech-language pathologists?

In most employment settings SLPs are required to be nationally certified through the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). To become certified, one must have graduated from an accredited speech-language pathology master’s Speech Pathology License

degree program, have completed 400 supervised hours of clinical experience, completed a year-long Clinical Fellowship (CFY), and passed the computerized ASHA board exam. Upon meeting all the necessary requirements and passing the certification exam, the SLP-CCC credentials are granted which stands for Certificate of Clinical Competency. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are currently over 110,000 ASHA-certified speech pathologists nationwide.

Learn more about speech pathologist salary.

In addition to national certification, licensure is also requirement in most states. To become licensed, one must submit an application with transcripts and proof of passing the ASHA board exam. Sometimes having a state teaching certificate is accepted in lieu of or in addition to a state licensure in speech-language pathology.

Are continuing education units required in this field?

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association requires speech-language pathologists to obtain 30 continuing education credits every three years to maintain their certification status. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are also currently 41 states that require continuing education units to be submitted for licensure renewal. There can be a great deal of overlap between the continuing education units needed for certification and licensure.