Bachelor of Speech Pathology

If you want a career that combines your desire to help people with an interest in language and communication, then a Bachelor of Speech Pathology may be the perfect choice for you.

Helping people overcome their communication challenges can be transformational. In this four-year degree, students are prepared with the right skills to diagnose and treat adults and children who have disorders affecting their speech and swallowing and to start changing those lives.

As a student, you will learn about phonetics and linguistics, audiology and neurology, as well as inter-professional subjects alongside students of other health disciplines in our state of the art facilities at our Gold Coast campus. Through hands-on experience in placement at hospitals, nursing homes or even at the University’s unique Health Clinic, you will gain skills to help you become an empathetic and innovative practitioner, able to help people with all aspects of communication.

Graduates may seek to set up in private practice, work in schools programs, in government agencies or even continue to research in the health and wellbeing industry.

Career Opportunities

Speech pathologists work in diverse settings including private practice, the corporate sector, schools, community health centers, nursing homes, mental health services, acute and rehabilitation hospitals, and in research centers. They work independently and also with other health and education specialists in interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary teams.

Professional Recognition

The Bachelor of Speech Pathology is accredited by Speech Pathology Australia (SPA), the national professional and accrediting body. Students and graduates of the Bachelor of Speech Pathology will be eligible for membership of Speech Pathology Australia.

Professional Placement

Students can complete up to 1,000 hours of professional placement in various settings throughout the four years of study. These settings include, but are not limited to, the SCU Health Clinic on campus, public hospitals, private practice, community health, rehabilitation centers, aged care facilities, schools and rural health locations.

Professional experience placements require students to fulfill certain pre-requisites prior to attending any placements. Before applying for this course, it is important that you understand what these requirements are.

Major Areas of Study

The Bachelor of Speech Pathology enables students to develop an understanding of the theoretical and practical components of speech pathology, with a focus on both general and specialist knowledge and skills. The course shares components with other SCU degrees such as the Bachelor of Occupational Therapy, Bachelor of Podiatry and the Bachelor of Clinical Sciences (Osteopathic Studies).

Arts and science-based units are included in the course, for example, phonetics and linguistics, audiology and neurology for speech pathology. Embedded throughout the course are principals of evidence-based practice, cultural competency, multi-modal communication and holistic perspectives of functioning.

Honors: The course includes an embedded allied health Honours program for eligible students, which can be studied concurrently during the Bachelor degree course.

Assessment methods

Assessment methods vary for each unit and may include multiple choice, short answer and essay style examinations, scenario-based case studies and reflective journals, presentations, written assignments, Vivas, object structured clinical examinations (OSCEs), practical skills testing and fieldwork performance evaluation.

Teaching methods

On-campus students experience a variety of teaching approaches including lectures, tutorials, online activities and video-linked or podcast virtual classes as well as clinical practice experience. The method of teaching may vary from unit to unit. There is an emphasis on learning-centered teaching.

Facts, figures, rankings and awards

Southern Cross University is a progressive, young and connected regional research university, with vibrant campuses in northern New South Wales and the southern Gold Coast. We offer undergraduate and postgraduate degrees and many are available in a dynamic online form. Whether studying on-campus, online, or both, we deliver exciting, contemporary and high-quality learning experiences.

Why SCU?

Times Higher Education Young University Rankings 20Bold, progressive and just 23 years of age – Southern Cross University is one of the Asia-Pacific’s Top 100 Universities and one of the world’s Top 50 Generation Y Universities .

Our contemporary campuses, with purpose-built state-of-the-art facilities, are located on the east coast of Australia, at the Gold Coast in Queensland, and in Lismore and Coffs Harbour in New South Wales. All are unique regions renowned for their natural beauty and ecological diversity, providing living laboratories for learning and creative hubs for artistic endeavour.

Branch campuses in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth are operated in collaboration with EduCo on behalf of Southern Cross University. The University also operates The Hotel School Sydney and Melbourne in partnership with Mulpha Australia. We also deliver degrees with collaborators in China, Papua New Guinea and New Zealand.

We have a large and diverse range of courses available online, offering interactive and immersive learning experiences wherever our students are.

Whether studying on-campus, online, or both, we deliver exciting, contemporary and high-quality learning experiences.

We aim to produce graduates who are career ready, world ready and digitally literate, and who experience an academic environment distinctive for its personal approach.

The University has a strong focus on industry and community collaboration to produce engaged teaching and research outcomes.

This connectivity is seeing Southern Cross University lead the $13.8m national Farming Together Pilot Program, partnering with the Northern Rivers Co-operatives Alliance and the Australian Government. The University has also introduced an important new Centre for Organics Research with the NSW Department of Primary Industries.

In the latest Excellence in Research for Australia report, Southern Cross achieved outstanding ratings of 'at world standard' or above in 24 research fields. In nine research fields, the University was evaluated at the highest possible classification of 'well above world standard'. This was achieved in the fields of Geochemistry, Oceanography, Environmental Science and Management, Zoology, Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, Crop and Pasture Production, Forestry Sciences, Nursing, Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

Campuses

Southern Cross University is a vibrant, contemporary Australian university with beautiful campuses on the Gold Coast, Lismore and Coffs Harbour.

Sydney, Melbourne and Perth branch campuses (International students)

Southern Cross University's branch campuses at Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth are conveniently located in the central business districts.

Studying at SCU Sydney, Melbourne or Perth gives international students the opportunity to complete undergraduate or postgraduate degrees in three of the world's most liveable cities. Southern Cross University collaborates with EduCo Sydney Branch Pty Ltd for the operation of the SCU Sydney, Melbourne and Perth branch campuses.