The Graduate Program in Communication Disorders meets the rigorous requirements for accreditation for speech-language pathology from the Council on Academic Accreditation (CAA) of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA).  It has been designed to lead to state licensure and the Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology issued by ASHA.  

The Master of Communication Disorders degree consists of 51 semester hours beyond the Bachelor’s degree, including credit for clinical practice.  Clinical practice consists of direct clinical experience supervised by the Communication Disorders faculty and/or clinical instructor.  Each candidate and the advisor will plan and design a program of study to ensure that professional requirements will be met.  

The successful student is expected to have demonstrated expertise and in-depth knowledge of the normal communication processes, development, and disorders thereof; evaluation procedures to assess the bases of such disorders; and clinical techniques that have been shown to improve or eradicate them.  In addition, competency must be demonstrated in the related areas of human anatomy and physiology, psychological dynamics, and research.

Admission Requirements

To be considered for admission to the M.C.D. degree program, applicants must meet the admission requirements of Graduate Admissions and the specific program requirements. However, meeting minimum requirements for admission to graduate study does not necessarily ensure acceptance into the M.C.D. program. The Communication Disorders (CD) program admits students on a competitive, space-available basis.

Applying to the MCD Program

Arkansas State University’s MCD program subscribes to the Centralized Application Service for Communication Science & Disorders Programs (CSDCAS). Applicants for admission to the A-State MCD program MUST apply online using the CSDCAS application. In addition, students who are accepted must also apply online to the A-State Graduate School. Transcripts must be sent to both CSDCAS and A-State’s Graduate School (see links below).

The deadline for submitting applications to CSDCAS is February 1st.

Applying to CSDCAS

To learn more about the CSDCAS application process and to get started, please go to https://csdcas.liaisoncas.org/ . If you encounter difficulty with CSDCAS, please contact their Customer Service at 617-612-2030 or send an email to csdcasinfo@csdcas.org.

Once a student applies through CSDCAS, the transcript information is verified by CSDCAS. This process takes time and depends both on the efficiency of CSDCAS and the speed with which your schools respond to the inquiries from CSDCAS. A-State will accept completed, verified applications from CSDCAS until February 1st.

If CSDCAS has not completed the verification process by February 1st, the application will not be considered, even if it was submitted by the March 1st deadline. Therefore, applicants are strongly encouraged to submit their applications well before the deadline to ensure that the verification process will be completed by the deadline. All prerequisites must be completed at the time of graduation.

Applying to the A-State Graduate School

To apply to the A-State Graduate School, simply complete the online application on their website. You will be prompted for the program in which you wish to apply for on the application.

Go to the A-State graduate school application >>

Transcripts/Immunizations

Official transcripts MUST be sent to both CSDCAS and A-State Graduate School. Please do not send transcripts to the A-State Communication Disorders Department unless specifically requested to. Transcripts and immunization records for A-State Graduate School should be sent to:

The Graduate School @ A-State
PO Box 60
State University, AR 72467-0060

A-State Graduate School can be contacted at 870-972-3029 or gradadmissions@astate.edu.

The application fee of $50 can be paid online (through your applicant account) or by phone to the Cashier’s Window at 870-972-3847.

A-State Transcripts

Students who have attended one or more of the A-State campuses (i.e. Newport, Beebe, etc.) must still request transcripts from them separately to be sent to A-State in Jonesboro. A-State campuses are independent of each other in regards to transcripts and can only be verified by the campus where the courses were actually taken.

Background Checks

Based on Arkansas law, students will be required to complete a background check AFTER they receive conditional admission into the program.

Arkansas State University’s College of Nursing and Health Professions works with Verified Credentials, Inc. to establish an acceptable screening procedure. The cost of the background check is between $50 and $100.

Background Checks for Students Newly Admitted into the MCD Program

Once you are accepted and have decided to attend graduate school at Arkansas State University, information will be shared with you so you can complete the background check.

Rankings and Acceptance

After the deadline of February 1st, the CD Admissions and Credits Committee reviews all applications for minimum requirements and GPA’s. Applicants that do not provide evidence of meeting the minimum requirements are not reviewed further.

Qualifying applicants are then ranked and awarded points (based on ranking) from a pre-determined scale and are ranked individually by GPA-overall and GPA-in the major. Points for affective applicant items (resume, video submission, intent letter, and recommendation letters) are totaled and result in a folder score and subsequent ranking. Total applicant points are then ranked and the class is selected based on the number of students the program can accept.

Formal letters are emailed to all qualified applicants notifying them of acceptance status. Invited applicants must respond at their earliest convenience but no later than April 15th. In the event attrition is high, the committee selects replacements from the remaining qualifying applicant pool, and additional invitations are extended.

Notice: Admitted MCD students begin the program in the first summer term following admission. Upon successful completion of coursework, practicum, and comprehensive examinations or thesis, matriculation is completed 19 months later, graduating in December.

The Master of Communication Disorders degree program is accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation (CAA) in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology of the American Speech Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). This accreditation means that the master’s degree program has met or exceeded the rigorous standards set by the CAA. The CAA will continuously monitor the program to ensure that these standards are maintained.

For questions regarding application to the Master of Communication Disorders program please contact the Department of Communication Disorders at (870) 972-3106.

Applications for admission will be considered by the Communication Disorders Admissions and Credits Committee in the weeks following the application deadline.

To be eligible for consideration all applicants must have a complete application file and must meet the admission requirements of Graduate Admissions.

Applicants With Undergraduate Degrees in Majors Other Than Speech-Language Pathology. Applicants with undergraduate degrees in an area other than communication disorders will be considered for admission only after having completed a minimum of 15 semester hours of the 38 credit hours of undergraduate deficiencies specified by the CD program. Applicants must identify the specific year for which they are applying. Such applicants will be considered for admission only after indicating in writing that they understand admission for the targeted year is contingent on their provision of evidence (in the form of official grade slips or an official transcript) of having successfully completed all but one of the core specified deficiency courses. Such evidence must be received prior to the first day of classes for the targeted year. In the event documentation is not provided by that time, the admission decision will be considered null and void. The applicant may, however, re-apply for admission for a subsequent year.

Deadline for Receiving Applications

The graduate admission period is the first term of summer school annually, and applications for that admission period are due by February 1 each year.

The M.C.D. Degree

The Master of Communication Disorders degree is offered for the purpose of educating individuals to a high level of competence in the management of speech, hearing, and language disorders. This program provides graduates with the necessary academic and clinical practice requirements for ASHA’s Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC-SLP), licensure to practice speech-language pathology in the State of Arkansas, and the Speech Pathology Certificate issued by the Arkansas Department of Education. Programs will be individually designed to prepare initial entry candidates as well as those with prior training and experience.

Course Requirements

The Master of Communication Disorders degree consists of a minimum of 51 semester hours beyond the Bachelor’s degree including credit for clinical practice. Clinical practice consists of supervised, direct clinical experience approved and supervised by the faculty and licensed clinical supervisors. Each candidate and the adviser will plan and design a program of study to ensure that professional requirements will be met. Deficiencies in undergraduate preparation may be assigned as prerequisites. The successful student is expected to have demonstrated expertise and in-depth knowledge of the normal communication processes, development, and disorders thereof; evaluation procedures to assess the bases of such disorders; and clinical techniques that have been shown to improve or eradicate them. In addition, competency must be demonstrated in the related areas of human anatomy and physiology, psychological dynamics, and research.

Additional Requirements

All candidates for the M.C.D. degree must take the appropriate PRAXIS II Examination required for licensure in Arkansas and for the Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC). A copy of the scores must be sent to the Communication Disorders Program Director, College of Nursing and Health Professions, Arkansas State University, P.O. Box 910, State University, AR 72467-0910.