The Admissions Committee seeks to select students for admission to the Master of Arts in Speech-Language Pathology (MA) program to begin study in Fall 2025. All application materials are due by January 15.
The Admissions Committee will not be selecting students for admission to the Professional Doctorate of Audiology (AuD) program for the current cycle. We will begin accepting applications in 2025 to begin study in Fall 2026.
What does the University at Buffalo Department of Communicative Disorders & Sciences Admissions Committee look for in a graduate applicant?
The ideal graduate applicant demonstrates, via their application package, alignment with our department’s mission, values, and vision. While academic achievement (e.g., grade-point average) is an important component of a strong application, our admissions committee takes a holistic approach to reviewing applications, considering not only traditional academic metrics, but also an applicant’s experiences, personal attributes, and connection to the standards and values of our M.A. and Au.D. programs. We assess the entire application to identify qualities essential for success in graduate studies and the field of communicative disorders. Strong applicants showcase evidence of quantitative and research skills, critical thinking, interpersonal and collaborative abilities, resilience, ethical decision-making, and effective communication—key competencies that contribute to professional and academic success.
There are a set of required pre-requisites for the MA program.
There are no set required pre-requisites for the AuD program. All required prerequisite courses are completed during the first 2 years.
All materials must be uploaded in the CSDCAS web portal or sent directly to CSDCAS. Any admission documents or materials received in the department will be disregarded.
Customer Service is available Monday thru Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. EST
Phone – (617) 612-2030
E-Mail – csdcassinfo@csdcas.org
Submit your application in the CSDCAS web portal by January 15th
It is the student's responsibility to meet the deadline and to ensure receipt of all materials by CSDCAS. Timely filing will facilitate the admission process. Applicants who fail to submit the online application prior to January 15 will not be eligible to apply to the program until the following year.
Note: There is approximately a one-month lag between when application materials arrive at CSDCAS and when they are verified and made available to the Department's Admissions Committee for evaluation (beginning in early February). There is no guarantee that materials verified after early February would be reviewed by the committee.
Applicants must obtain and submit three academic/professional letters of recommendation.
Recommendations must be submitted online through the CSDCAS web portal. The website will provide detailed instructions on how to submit the letters.
Official transcripts should be mailed directly to CSDCAS at the address below:
CSDCAS Transcript Processing Center
P.O. Box 9113
Watertown, MA 02471
Non-Canadian International applicants are required to have all transcripts evaluated by World Education Services (WES). Transcripts and the WES evaluation report should be mailed directly to CSDCAS at the address above.
A personal statement or essay is required as part of the online CSDCAS application.
The essay should address topics such as motivation for entering the field, professional goals, and specific interest in attending the program at the University at Buffalo. Applicants are strongly encouraged to use the essay to provide context to their other application materials (e.g., low class grade) or to provide additional information that demonstrates your ability to successfully complete the program that may not be captured through the other application documents.
Applicants will be required to submit a written response outlining their interpersonal skills and experience, as well as their skilled analysis of a treatment graph. Instructions for both these tasks are located within the CSDCAS WebPortal.
In the online application, please enter your unofficial TOEFL score.
If admission is recommended by the department, you will be asked to provide your official TOEFL score to the university before formal acceptance.
In the online application, students can upload a CV or resume. This is not required.
If admitted to the department, international students will be required to submit the following information to the University. The department's offer of admission is contingent upon final review of the application by UB's International Office of Admissions and determination of eligibility to receive the official documents necessary for a Student Visa.
Consistent with recommendations from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, graduate students in speech-language pathology and audiology programs within the US must demonstrate adequate English language skills for clinical practice. See this link for more information: https://www.asha.org/siteassets/reports/ahc-language-proficiency.pdf
To be considered for admission to the UB programs, applicants must achieve a the following scores on the TOEFL or IELTS. The TOEFL is preferred, but we will accept the IELTS for students who can demonstrate a lack of access to the TOEFL
TOEFL=passing score of 83 and a score of 26 on the spoken section
IELTS= a score of 6.5 with a score of 7 on the spoken section.
To graduate from the UB programs, students must demonstrate successful attainment of all Knowledge and Skills Outcomes as determined by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the Council on Accreditation of Academic Programs. One of these is to have “demonstrated skills in oral and written or other forms of communication sufficient for entry into professional practice.”
Two required application fees must be paid prior to review of an application by the Admissions Committee:
Applications are due by January 15