Speech-Language Pathologist Resume Guide

A strong speech language pathology (SLP) resume shows an employer four things at a glance: the credentials you hold or are working toward, the clinical settings and populations you have served, the assessment and treatment skills you can use on day one, and your education. Whether you are a recent graduate with a master’s in speech pathology looking for a Clinical Fellowship or an experienced speech pathologist changing jobs, the same core sections apply. Only the emphasis changes.

This guide covers what to include in each section, tips for new graduates and experienced job seekers, a sample resume outline, common do's and don'ts, and resources to help you get started.

Is a Resume Important for Speech-Language Pathologists?

Yes, a resume is essential whether you are a recent speech pathology school graduate or a current practitioner. Your resume and cover letter serve as your introduction to an employer. A hiring manager doesn't know your personality or skills yet. They only have what you submit.

Some employers also sort applications with applicant tracking system (ATS) software, which compares the words on your resume with the job posting before a person reviews it. To give your resume the best chance with both software and people, use the same terms the job description uses for the skills and credentials you actually have, choose standard section headings such as "Experience" and "Education," and avoid tables, text boxes and graphics that software may not read.

The time your resume spends in front of a reader is limited. The steps below will help your speech language pathology resume match the job description and make it easy to see why you are a good candidate.

10 Resume Tips for Recent Speech Pathology School Graduates

If you recently graduated with a degree in speech pathology, you may be hesitant to send out your resume for the first time. There’s no need for that concern. Your SLP resume is your first impression and your chance to stand out in the application process. If you are still in your program, see what speech pathology students should do before graduating to build experience you can list. Following a few tips as you craft your resume may help you get closer to securing an interview.

Keep your format simple.
Be concise.
Arrange sections with your most recent experiences at the top.
Emphasize academics if your work or extracurricular experience is limited.
Highlight SLP projects, certifications and training, including your clinical practicum or internship.
Match your skills to the jobs for which you are applying.
Keep all sections organized.
Include honors, awards and activities.
Remove redundant points.
Proofread more than once or have someone else look over your resume to ensure it is free of errors.

10 Pieces of Resume Advice for Experienced Speech Pathology Job Seekers

Seeking a new position? If so, it's time to get your speech language pathology resume ready. Depending on the length of time you have been at your current position, formalities of a resume may have changed. To help make sure you optimize your resume, here are a few suggestions:

Put your current credentials near the top, including your CCC-SLP, state license and any school credential.
Focus on unique sections of the population you may have worked with or uncommon methods you have learned or applied.
Include both hard and soft skills.
Make sure the information you include is up-to-date and relevant.
Keep your sections in chronological order with your most recent experience at the top.
Include SLP projects, publications, certifications or training.
Explain previous positions through the lens of your achievements, such as your caseload size or the progress you tracked, not just lists of tasks.
Edit your resume to only include the most relevant information.
Include relevant keywords that are in the job description.
Send a cover letter with your speech language pathology resume.

It is important that all speech pathology job seekers incorporate keywords and action words to highlight specific tasks and achievements. Including them helps your resume match the job posting and draws the employer's attention to your experience. If you are not sure what constitutes an action verb for your resume, here are a few:

Assessed
Administered
Diagnosed
Implemented
Collaborated

To use these action verbs, combine them with keywords (common terms used in speech pathology job postings) such as:

Articulation and phonology
Language intervention
Dysphagia
Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC)
Individualized education program (IEP)

Always use an action word at the beginning of a bullet point when describing your job duties, for example: “Administered standardized language assessments and wrote evaluation reports for a pediatric caseload.”

Parts of an SLP Resume

Whether you are a new graduate or an experienced clinician, a speech language pathology resume is built from the same core parts. New graduates usually lead with clinical practicum experience and education; experienced speech pathologists lead with credentials and professional experience.

Contact information

Include your full name, phone number and email address. You may include your address. Most employers are fine with just a phone number and email.

Summary

Use this section (three to five sentences) to highlight skills or any unique SLP experience. In place of the word "Summary" as your headline, consider a title that sums up your credentials. This is an opportunity to stand out and show your passion, commitment or other important feelings about speech therapy.

Licenses and certifications

List each credential you hold with the issuing body and its expiration date, and keep the national certification and the state license as separate lines. The Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP) is ASHA's national certification; your license is issued by your state, and licensure and school credential requirements differ from state to state, as ASHA's state-by-state practice requirements show. If you work in schools, add any credential your state education agency issued. Other certifications employers ask for, such as CPR, belong here too.

If you are a new graduate, show where you are in the process. Under ASHA's 2020 certification standards for the CCC-SLP (effective January 1, 2020), applicants must pass the Praxis Examination in Speech-Language Pathology and complete a Clinical Fellowship (CF) of at least 36 weeks of full-time professional experience (35 hours a week, for a minimum of 1,260 hours) or its part-time equivalent. You can list "Clinical Fellowship: begins month, year" or "Praxis Examination in Speech-Language Pathology: passed month, year" so an employer can see your timeline.

Experience

This is the section where you include relevant experience, especially clinical practicum placements, internships or volunteer work. For each placement, include the site name, setting (for example, school, hospital or outpatient clinic), location and dates. Then list bullet points that name the populations you served (pediatric, adult or geriatric), the disorder areas you treated and the assessments you administered. Make sure to only highlight your best accomplishments.

New graduates can also note their supervised clinical hours. Under the same ASHA 2020 CCC-SLP standards, applicants must complete at least 400 clock hours of supervised clinical experience, with 25 hours of guided clinical observation and 375 hours of direct client/patient contact. Listing your completed hours shows an employer you are on track for certification.

Education

This section is fairly straightforward. Include the school(s) you attended, degree(s) earned and any honors. If you have room on your resume, highlight your clinical practice at school. New graduates often include their graduation date on their SLP resume. As you get older, you may want to remove the date to remove the possibility of age discrimination.

Skills

Group your skills so a reader can scan them quickly. Clinical skills might include specific standardized assessments you have administered, treatment approaches, AAC devices, dysphagia management, IEP development or documentation and electronic medical record systems you have used. Add languages you speak and soft skills such as collaboration with teachers, families and other therapists, but only list skills you can describe in an interview.

Employment

For new graduates, you may have work experience that doesn’t directly translate to your SLP degree. If your resume looks empty, consider adding an “additional employment” section for other work you’ve done outside of speech therapy. Be sure to include your hire date, title and length at position. List job responsibilities using bullet points, keywords and action words. Additional work history can display soft skills like organization, critical thinking or good communication.

SLP Resume Example for a New Graduate

Use this outline as a starting point and replace each line with your own details. It follows the order most new graduates use; experienced speech pathologists can move Licenses and certifications and Professional experience above Education.

Name and contact line: Jordan Lee, M.S. · City, State · phone · professional email
Summary: Two to three sentences naming your target setting (for example, school-based or medical), the populations you have served and one or two clinical strengths.
Licenses and certifications: Clinical Fellowship: begins month, year (CCC-SLP expected month, year) · Praxis Examination in Speech-Language Pathology: passed month, year · State license or provisional license, if issued, with expiration date · CPR certification with expiration date
Clinical experience: Each practicum placement with site, setting, dates and supervised hours, followed by two to four bullets on populations, disorder areas and assessments, starting with an action verb
Education: M.S. in Speech-Language Pathology, university name, month and year · B.S., university name, month and year · honors
Skills: Assessments you have administered · treatment approaches · AAC · documentation systems · languages
Professional memberships (optional): National or state speech-language-hearing association memberships

Speech Therapist Resume Do’s and Don’ts

Along with resume advice comes a few do’s and don’ts. While they may seem a bit much, paying attention to these details may help your resume get past a tracking system and into human hands, where it can make an impression.

Resume Do's

Do use action words such as managed, developed and achieved.
Do optimize for applicant tracking systems by using keywords and action words, but don't go overboard.
Do ensure your resume is free of spelling and grammatical errors.
Do tell the truth about everything you include.
Do keep it to one page if you are a new graduate; experienced speech pathologists should keep it to two pages at most.
Do use digits instead of spelling out numbers.
Do start with a template.

Resume Don'ts

Don't include confidential information, including any client or patient details.
Don't use more than two fonts.
Don't ignore the employer's file instructions. Send a PDF to preserve formatting unless the job posting asks for a Word document.
Don't include obvious hard skills like Microsoft Word. Instead, highlight a skill that separates you from the rest.
Don't use overused phrases with little evidence like detail oriented or hard worker.
Don't use more than two lines per bullet point.
Don't forget to check your spelling.
Don't include “References Upon Request.”

What to Include in Your Cover Letter vs Resume

While both a speech therapy resume and cover letter are evidence of your skills and qualifications, there are a few distinct differences between the two formats in what to include. Your resume is an overview of your background and work experience, whereas a cover letter is an introduction. Your cover letter should explain why you personally are ideal for this specific job.

A typical resume is a list of sections that include relevant information such as dates of employment, job titles and education. A cover letter is written in a letter format complete with a salutation, body and a closing. It can be tempting to repeat your work history in your cover letter but that is not advised. Cover letters are supplemental documents that give an employer additional information they couldn’t get by just scanning a resume.

As a general rule, write your resume without personal pronouns: start each bullet point with an action verb and leave out "I." Write your cover letter in the first person, but avoid the excessive use of “I” statements.

SLP Resume FAQs

How long should an SLP resume be?

One page is enough for most new graduates. Experienced speech pathologists with several positions, specialty certifications or supervisory roles can use a second page, but keep only the most relevant information.

How do I list my Clinical Fellowship on my resume?

Before your Clinical Fellowship starts, list it under Licenses and certifications with its expected start date. Once you begin, list your CF position under Experience like any job, with the employer, setting and dates, and keep the expected date you will apply for your CCC-SLP in your credentials section.

Should a school-based SLP resume be different?

Lead with the experience a school district looks for. Add IEP development and collaboration with teachers and families to your skills, and list any state education credential you hold.

Is a resume for SLP grad school different from a job resume?

Yes. A graduate school application resume emphasizes your coursework, observation hours, research, volunteer work and related jobs rather than clinical practicum and credentials.

Speech-Language Pathologist Resume Resources

Here are a few online resources to help you start your resume.

ASHA Career Portal: The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association's career site lets you search jobs, clinical fellowships and externships, upload your resume for employers, and join its Career Corner community, where members share resume and interviewing tips. ASHA also posts its career fair schedule on its Career Portal events page.

Microsoft Word resume templates: Free, customizable resume templates for Microsoft Word, including templates designed for applicant tracking systems.