Finding Financial Aid

A career in communication sciences and disorders (CSD) can be financially rewarding. Why not reward yourself by exploring the wide variety of financial aid available to students in audiology, speech-language pathology, and the related sciences?

On this page:

Types of funding
Getting started with your funding search
Funding opportunities

Types of Funding

Four different funding types are available to students:

scholarships
grants
loans
work-study programs

Each funding type has different requirements:

Scholarships and grants are forms of financial aid that students usually do not have repay.
- Scholarships may be based on academic merit, talent, a particular area of study, or membership in underrepresented minority groups.
- Federal grants include Pell Grants and Teacher Education for College and Higher Education (TEACH) grants.
Loans are allotments of funds that require repayment.
- They may be awarded by government agencies or private, for-profit organizations.
- You must repay the loan as well as interest that accrues.
Work-study programs, such as the Federal Work-Study Program, allows you to earn money to pay for school by working part time.

Funding sources include federal, state, and local governments; private agencies; foundations; and service organizations, such as fraternities and sororities. In some cases, financial aid is provided for specific groups of recipients, such as individuals from racial/ethnically diverse groups, those with disabilities, mature returning students, and gender-specific groups.

The federal government provides an overview on types of financial aid to help guide your search.

Getting Started

The sooner you begin to search and apply for financial aid, the better your chances will be to tap into all available funding sources. By starting now and searching thoroughly, you may well be able to complete your education debt-free.

Ask for advice. Consult with your high school guidance counselor, college/university career counselor, and/or the financial aid office.
Get specific. Research various sources of aid. Make a list of the requirements, applications, and deadlines. Apply early for the best opportunity.
Expand your search. Expand your search to include audiology, speech-language pathology, communication, health care, and science careers. Time spent on the Internet can pay big dividends.

Funding Opportunities

American Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation

Each year, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation (ASHFoundation) sponsors scholarship and grant competitions to graduate students and new researchers in CSD.

Undergraduate senior and graduate student scholarships are available annually for master’s or doctoral students studying audiology or speech-language pathology. One scholarship each gives priority to a student with a disability, an international student studying in the United States, a U.S. citizen who is a racial/ethnic minority, and an undergraduate senior who is a member of National NSSLHA. Please locate current information about all scholarships and grants on the ASHFoundation website.

National NSSLHA

Each year, National NSSLHA awards 10 scholarships to undergraduate sophomores and juniors in CSD programs. Six $1,000 scholarships are awarded to undergraduate juniors, and four $500 scholarships are awarded to undergraduate sophomores. Current eligibility and application information can be found on the National NSSLHA website.

Federal and State Education Programs

Federal loans tend to have lower, fixed-interest rates compared with private loans. For information about federal programs and student aid, visit the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA), which provides information on

financial preparation;
federal loan and grant programs;
applying for federal aid; and
estimating the aid you need.

You can also contact the department of education, the higher education agency, the special education agency, and the adult education agency in your state to learn about available financial assistance.