Speech Pathology students prepared for employment success

Where are they now? We catch up with three graduates from the first cohort of the Master of Speech Pathology, who tell us where they’re working now and how the UTS course set them up for success.

Louisa Wilson (M. Sp. Path)

Nash Speech Pathology

I work with children at Nash Speech Pathology, which is a private practice. Prior to lockdown, my job was focused on visiting schools and preschools in my area and supporting children in their classrooms or in small groups. Then one day a week I taught full-class lessons to Kindy and Year 1 children about language and literacy skills. During the lockdown, most of my client appointments have been online.

When I started at UTS in 2019, I really liked how practical the course was. My undergrad was very much lecture-based with a few tutorials, so it was really nice going to UTS and having such a hands-on experience. I just felt like it was really fresh and exciting and all the teachers were really enthusiastic.

The technology side of things definitely drew me to UTS. I felt that was really interesting, particularly the focus on augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). We used eye-tracking devices and some tablets with AAC apps installed. I also found the anatomy labs very important in understanding more about the brain, the head and neck, and the spinal column.

I had two child placements and then two adult placements but working with children is what I always wanted to do. I always really liked kids and I loved that early language skills are often play-based, so I was drawn to private practice with children and I’m very, very happy with that decision.

My degree taught me to be client-centred and to really think about the client and their families. The thing I love the most is the difference that you can make in people’s lives.

My degree taught me to be client-centred and to really think about the client and their families. The thing I love the most is the difference that you can make in people’s lives.

Louisa Wilson
Master of Speech Pathology, UTS

 

Natalie Gerrard (M. Sp. Path)

Talk About Speech Pathology

At the start of my degree, I 100% thought I wanted to work in a hospital but I’m actually in private practice with children called Talk About Speech Pathology. I love working with kids and their parents.

My clinical placements at uni really allowed me to look at every single area of speech, which helped me narrow down what I wanted to do. I had placements in private practice, I had placements in hospitals, I had them in the community and I had them on the road as a mobile speech pathologist. I had a placement in the UTS Speech Pathology Clinic as well and got to experience delivering telepractice speech pathology services online. During COVID-19 lockdowns, most of my work moved online, so that particular placement actually really set me up really well for what I’m doing today.

Another thing I loved was how close-knit the course was. I never thought a lecturer would know me by name and be able to give me personalised feedback. That’s definitely something that stands out about UTS, and it means they can really tailor their feedback to you as an individual.

 

Sarah Orlovich (M. Sp. Path)

ALLSALT Speech Pathology

I did my undergrad degree in speech, hearing and language sciences. I always knew I wanted to do something in health and working with people, I just didn’t know what. When I stumbled upon speech pathology, I went ‘Yeah, this is for me!’

UTS is always up to date with the latest innovations. The teachers were really amazing. They treated us like colleagues more than students, and they made it a little more personal, which I like.

I think the most interesting thing was doing the practical aspects of it all. We did some roleplay-based learning in the UTS Speech Pathology Clinic – we had actors that came in and pretended to be clients with particular symptoms and we’d role play as their clinician and act as if it were a real-life scenario.  In our last semester, we did a subject about how to start a successful speech pathology business.  I also did a research project about 3D food printing for people with swallowing difficulties.

I now work in mobile private practice as a mobile speech pathologist doing community visits for adults and kids. I love it – you get a vast range of clients, and I just love how independent I am in my day-to-day work. Of course, it can be a bit scary when you first start out, particularly if you’re like me and you’re working on your own. But everything I learned in my degree has helped.

Learn more about Speech Pathology at UTS.