Jobs for the Major
How this major affects a job search
While your friends studying things like sociology, history, or anthropology have no idea what they want to do with their lives, you have a mission. You are going to help people who need it. You understand that communication is at the core of what we are as a species, and you're bringing that to less fortunate folks.
You're pretty great, honestly.
What you might not have considered is that your degree is a bit more versatile than you thought. There are lots of different things you could conceivably do with it. They all have to do with speech disorders, though. None of these are about building giant robots.
Common Career Fields
Speech Pathologist. This is the job you were likely thinking of when perusing this major. You will be diagnosing, then working to cure or prevent disorders in speech and/or swallowing—the same parts control both actions. That seems like a mistake on evolution's part, but we're not going to bring it up.
Audiologist. This is the cousin of the speech pathologist. The audiologist concentrates on sound, and other parts of the ear, which include balance. Sometimes this comes with an accompanying speech disorder, because we learn how to speak through hearing. If we can't hear how everyone else speaks, we won't be able to speak like everyone else. Makes sense, right?
Special Education Teacher. Many communication disorders come with other handicaps, both physical and mental. Someone who is adept at communicating with people affected by these disabilities can make an excellent teacher for them. Not only that, someone with this degree could help with any speech disorders these folks might have. Teaching and healing all at once. That's bound to be worthwhile.
School Administrator. (Master's encouraged) While not having a direct connection to the major, this is nonetheless a good possible destination for a student. You've learned all about communication disorders, and in a sense, how to educate based on that. You're also used to dealing with people who have a difficult time making themselves understood, so other people should be a breeze. You have extensive training and experience dealing with students already, and that's exactly what you'll need.
Counselor. Not everyone can express their problems the way they can express anything else. Even the most glib among us can become tongue-tied when we're talking about something truly important. Seeing as your major already gives you counseling work, and it's all about getting people to open up who are having difficulties doing that, it seems like a natural fit to us.
Consultant. Not every condition is permanent. In fact, if you're concentrating on certain communication disorders that are relatively more treatable, there's a good chance you're going to move along down the road after each person who now has the gift of speech thanks to you. You're probably going to need a cowboy hat and a horse, but we're fairly certain that's a perk, not a price.
Speech and Hearing Therapist. This is much like the speech pathologist and the audiologist, but it ends up splitting the difference and being more hands-on. You'll be working directly with people with communication disorders. Some of them will have problems speaking, others hearing, and some of the others might have brains that work a bit differently than everyone else's. This is where you will really be in the trenches of your chosen vocation. Healing people and being awesome.
Current unemployment of the major
N/A (figure not available). Job growth positive (source).Percentage of majors who get a higher degree after college
N/A (figure not available)Stats obtained from this source.