Licensure Requirements

Speech-language pathologists must hold a master's or doctoral degree to be eligible for certification, licensure, and practice as a speech-language pathologist. National certification is obtained through the Council for Clinical Certification in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CFCC) of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA), which establishes the standards for certification. The CFCC awards the Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP), a nationally recognized professional credential.

Requirements for the CCC-SLP include earning a Master’s degree from a program accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation. In addition to coursework and practicum requirements, standards for the CCC-SLP include passing the Praxis II® Exam in Speech-Language Pathology and completing the equivalent of 36 weeks (full time) of professional experience (the "Clinical Fellowship") post graduation. The Praxis II® Exam is administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS).

Midwestern University Master’s Degree in Speech- Language Pathology is designed to meet the educational requirements to become a licensed speech language pathologist in the following states and territories: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina,  North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming.

The MWU Glendale SLP program has not made a determination that its Master of Science Program curriculum meets the territorial educational requirements for licensure or certification in the following territories: Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands.

Each student should check the additional licensure requirements for the state, district or territory in which they intend to pursue employment.

Speech-language pathologists must be licensed to practice in Arizona pursuant to the requirements of the Arizona Practice Act, Chapter 17, Articles 1-4, Sections 36-1901 through 36-1940. Passing the Praxis II® Exam is a requirement for licensure in most states, including Arizona.

The Arizona Department of Education requires that speech-language pathologists working in the public schools obtain the Speech-Language Pathologist Pre-K through 12 Certificate. This credential is necessary to work in Arizona public schools. The requirements for this certification include a master's degree in SLP, at least 250 hours of supervised clinical practice by an SLP-CCC, and a passing score on the Praxis II® Exam in Speech-Language Pathology.