Undergraduate Course Requirements

The BA in speech and hearing science requires nine core courses offered by the department and six cognate courses offered by other departments. Students may choose cognate courses that also fill the College of Liberal Arts General Education Program requirements. The requirements are as follows:
 

003:015 Introduction to Speech and Hearing Processes and Disorders	3 S.H.
003:110 Phonetics: Theory and Applications	3 S.H.
003:111 Basic Acoustics for Speech and Hearing	3 S.H.
003:112 Anatomy and Physiology of Speech Production	4 S.H.
003:113 Introduction to Hearing Science	4 S.H.
003:116 Basic Neuroscience for Speech and Hearing	3 S.H.
003:117 Psychology of Language	3 S.H.
003:118 Language Development	3 S.H.
003:185 Hearing Loss and Audiometry	3 S.H.
031:001 Elementary Psychology	3 S.H.
103:100 Introduction to Linguistics	3 S.H.
One of these:
07P:025 / 22S:025 Elementary Statistics and Inference	3 S.H.
22S:101 Biostatistics	3 S.H.
07P:143 / 22S:102 Introduction to Statistical Methods	3 S.H.
22S:030 Statistical Methods and Computing	3 S.H.
One of these (may be satisfied through APP or math placement test):
22M:015 Math for Biological Sciences	4 S.H.
22M:016 Calculus for Biological Sciences	4 S.H.
22M:025 Calculus 1	4 S.H.
One of these:
002:002 Introduction to Animal Biology	4 S.H.
002:010 Principles of Biology 1	4 S.H.
One of these:
29:008 Basic Physics (preferably with lab)	3-4 S.H.
29:011 College Physics	4 S.H.
004:007 General Chemistry 1	3 S.H.
One of these:
031:013 Introduction to Clinical Psychology	3 S.H.
031:050 Psychology of Aging	3 S.H.
031:063 Abnormal Psychology: Health Professions	3 S.H.
042:108 Basic Aspects of Aging	3 S.H.
One of these:
031:014 Introduction to Child Development	3 S.H.
07P:106 Child Development	3 S.H.
Transfer students must complete a minimum of 15 semester hours in departmental courses at The University of Iowa.
Students have the opportunity and are encouraged to obtain supervised clinical observation, a prerequisite for participation in clinical practicums at the graduate level. This requirement is satisfied by completion of independent observations or required observations made for elective departmental courses. Additional information is available under the Special Opportunities link.

Special opportunities

Introduction to Professional Practice in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology
During the academic year, a period of one to two hours on Fridays is reserved for 3:300 Introduction to Professional Practice in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology ("Proprac"). Enrollment is for 0 s.h. credit. This course provides a forum for discussion of a wide variety of topics related to the general practice of speech-language pathology and audiology (e.g., case studies, certification / licensure requirements, presentations by professionals from related fields such as reading, genetics, psychology). This course is open to department majors with junior or senior standing and can be repeated for multiple semesters. This is an excellent opportunity for students to get an introduction to clinical issues.

Proseminars
The period from 12:00 to 1:00 on Fridays during the academic year is scheduled for professional seminars (typically called "Proseminar"). An announcement of the nature of the Proseminar is posted prior to the meeting. Proseminars provide an opportunity for students, faculty, and guest speakers to present research projects and other information of general interest (e.g., magnetic resonance imaging; revisions of ASHA's certification requirements). All faculty and doctoral students are expected to present at Proseminar at least once per year. Master's students are encouraged to present--especially those who doing theses. Undergraduate honors students present their projects near the end of the spring semester. Attendance at Proseminar by undergraduates is strongly encouraged.

Undergraduate Research Practicum
This is a formal course registration (3:096) available to any student. It involves assisting faculty with their research and has at least two purposes. From the student's point of view it provides a unique opportunity to learn about research in our discipline. From the faculty member's point of view, it provides welcome assistance in his/her research. Please note that this is not intended to give students the opportunity to pursue independent study. If this is your goal, then registration in 3:186 (Problems) is more appropriate.

Honors Program
This program provides students the opportunity to gain independent research experience with a faculty mentor, gain experience presenting research ideas, and working closely with the faculty in the department on an individual level. In order to be eligible for this program, students must have GPAs of 3.5 or better in the fall semester of their junior year. Students with qualifying gradepoint averages will be contacted by the Department in the Fall semester of their junior year. During the spring semester of their junior year, participants enroll in 3:097 Honors Seminar which provides an introduction to research philosophies, research design and implementation, and a chance for the student to critically evaluate existing research literature. In addition the seminar will provide an overview of the department's research facilities and exposure to potential thesis advisors. By the end of the Spring semester of the junior year students will have selected project areas and thesis advisors. During the senior year, honors students will also meet on a regular basis with the Department's Honors advisor to discuss progress on their projects. During the spring semester honors students will present their projects during a special session of the Department's weekly Proseminar at the end of the spring semester of their senior year. As final recognition of the completion of the Honors Program, the diplomas of Honors students bear a special honors notation. (University of Iowa Honors Program.)

Sherman Scholars
This program is named after Dorothy Sherman, a speech pathologist and professor in the Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology (now the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders) from 1951 to 1972. It provides scholarship opportunities for outstanding majors who have achieved junior or senior standing. An endowment provided by Dr. Sherman's estate provides support for expenses for research projects and travel to professional and scientific meetings. Dorothy Sherman had a strong commitment to undergraduate education which is reflected in the enriched academic experiences afforded to the students in the Sherman Scholars program. Specifically, students in the program take 3:099, Topics in Hearing, Language, and Speech Processes and Disorders (1 S.H.), for each fall and spring semester that they are designated as a Sherman Scholar.

Participation is by invitation from the department's Admission and Appointment Committee. Each spring, a group of sophomores (typically two to four) is invited to participate for their junior and senior years. Additional junior-level students may be invited to participate when in their senior years.

Observation Hours
Students must complete 25 hours of clinical observation before they can begin to work with clients themselves at the graduate level. So that you will be eligible to begin clinical practicum when you enter your graduate program, you must have documentation that this requirement has been completed during your undergraduate program. You will find that some of these hours can be obtained as a part of assignments for some undergraduate classes. Another option is to do independent observations and most students complete all or a portion of their observations in this way.

Undergraduate Four-Year Plan
The following checkpoints list the minimum requirements students must complete by certain semesters in order to stay on the University's four-year graduation plan. (Courses in the major are those required to complete the major; they may be offered by departments other than the major department.)

Note: The major requires specific math and science competencies that may be satisfied with courses approved for the General Education Program.

 

____	Before the third semester begins: at least one quarter of the semester hours required for graduation.
____	Before the fifth semester begins: three courses in the major and at least one-half of the semester hours required for graduation.
____	Before the seventh semester begins: nine courses in the major and at least three-quarters of the semester hours required for graduation.
____	Before the eighth semester begins: 12 courses in the major.
____	During the eighth semester: enrollment in all remaining course work in the major, all remaining General Education courses, and a sufficient number of semester hours to graduate.