SLP JOB TRANSITIONS: FROM SCHOOL-BASED TO RESEARCH

When I left my job as a school-based SLP in 2013, I had no idea what was next. I already had my own SLP business here with Pragnya Speech Center, which I was ready to tackle full-time. I was ready for a break from clinical work during my pregnancy. 

 

A few months into my new adventure, I got a text from one of my good friends who runs the Class Lab in Mumbai. She was getting ready to start a new study on shared book reading, which is my jam, and needed a Speech Therapist. My first question…, what the heck is a Speech therapy Pathologist, and why should I do this? Ok, two questions.

 

She explained the study more deeply, and I had no reason to say no. It was a part-time position that would let me work remotely and continue working on my business, PLUS I would be a published author once it was all said and done. So I jumped in head first an

d am so glad I did!

 

So, what were my responsibilities as the Speech therapy Pathologist?

 

· Creating materials for the study – this included choosing books, vocabulary words to target, scripts for the participants, and pre/post-tests

· Creating marketing resources – flyers and social media images

· Recruiting participants

· Managing participant intake – completing consent forms and questionnaires

· Organizing online data

· Participating in weekly leadership meetings

 

This position led to another part-time Speech therapy Pathologist position in a different study. It could have possibly led to a full-time Speech therapy Pathologist on a bigger study, but an opportunity to be an adjunct clinical instructor at FSU came along… and it was my dream job!

 

That’s a story for People always ask me how I got started in research, and the truth of my story is I kind of fell into it! But I highly recommend seeking out these opportunities because they exist in our field, and it’s a wonderful way to be still involved in our field and use your SLP powers differently.

 

How can you seek them out? Build relationships with your local university SLP program, volunteer for research studies, or reach out to those doing research that interests you. Who knows where you might land!

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