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Program handbook

Description

Speech pathologists are responsible for the assessment and treatment of children and adults with communication and related disorders, for example delayed speech and language development, cleft palate, swallowing disorders and stuttering.


Program learning outcomes

On successful completion of the program students will have:

  • The graduates from The University of Newcastle will be distinctive having experienced a unique program in Australia where links to education and the arts, humanities and the social sciences have exposed them and given them the opportunity to study non-professional courses. Having been based in a small metropolitan city with close community relationships, graduates will develop and maintain a holistic framework, which is reflected in their approach to professional practice. Graduates will have experienced flexible learning opportunities allowing students to choose electives based on personal interest
  • Graduates will be competent to take on the full range of communication and swallowing disorders because of their comprehensive experience across all areas of professional practice (CBOS Units 1-5). They will seek out new experiences independently to develop their professional competence further (CBOS Unit 7). The program provides a wide variety of experiences for all graduates and subsequently ensures entry-level competence across all range indicators through a combination of the academic and clinical program assessment tasks
  • Graduates will offer a high quality service to each individual because of their ability to understand, integrate and develop different theoretical models, incorporate evidence-based practice principles to understand how the nature of each individual's difficulties relate to general principles of communication, swallowing and learning (COMPASS® Generic Competencies Units 1 & 3, CBOS Units 1-5)
  • Excellent verbal and non-verbal communication skills are required for building effective partnerships and establishing rapport with patients, care givers, health professionals, other sectors and stakeholders, and the media. In this regard, having the program located in the School of Humanities and Social Science is a distinct advantage. Graduates will have developed their verbal and written skills to a high standard and will be able to educate others about speech pathology, including those with communication and swallowing difficulties, their carers, colleagues in both speech pathology and allied professions, and the general community (COMPASS® Generic Competencies Units 2 & 4, CBOS Units 5, 6 & 7). Clinical placements provide students with opportunities to directly gain interdisciplinary team experience and to develop an understanding of the complementary roles of other professionals prior to graduation (CBOS Unit 6)
  • Graduates will have the skills to meet the different challenges that arise across clinical contexts. They will have explored and reflected on their own values and those of the individuals they treat in a holistic way and reflected in their approach to professional practice. They will have gained experience in a wide range of settings and will be able to select and create innovative models of service delivery which best meet the needs of individuals, employing institutions, and the community (COMPASS® Generic Competencies Units 1 & 4, CBOS Units 3-7)
  • Graduates will be able to deal with rapid change and with the challenges of the future. They will remain up-to-date in all professional areas, and on the cutting-edge of theoretical and professional innovation (all CBOS Units). They will contribute to the profession through engagement with research, teaching and service activities. They will be able to self-evaluate and reflect on their effectiveness with a forward-looking focus, and this ability will ensure their continuing development of competence throughout their professional lives (COMPASS® Generic Competencies Units 1 & 3, CBOS 7)

Details

Information correct as atMar 19, 2024 9:00 pm
Program code12318
AQF level

Level 8 Bachelor Honours Degree

Locations and UAC codes
Mode of delivery
  • Face to Face
Duration
  • Australian students - 4 years full-time.
  • International students - 4 years full-time.
Selection Rank
LocationSelection Rank
Callaghan Campus75.00-

Find out more about Selection Ranks

Recommended studiesHSC Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics and Advanced English or equivalent.
Term typeSemesters
Fees
  • International students - AUD40,410 (indicative annual fee, 2024)
    Indicative annual fees are based on a full year full time load (80 units) Find out more about fees
Relevant University rules and policies
CRICOS Code029748F

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Admission information

Admission requirements

Eligibility for admission to this program is based on applicants meeting the minimum selection rank, or satisfying the requirements for an approved admission scheme.

The University of Newcastle accepts a range of qualifications to determine eligibility for admission. These include, but are not limited to, Australian or overseas senior secondary qualifications (such as the HSC), prior tertiary studies, prior TAFE/VET studies, and completed enabling programs.

For further information on the pathways that are available to you, please refer to:

 

 

English Language Requirements

All Applicants must demonstrate that they meet the University’s English proficiency requirement. Further information regarding English language proficiency requirements can be found at the English Language Proficiency for Admission Policy here.

  • IELTS Overall Minimum: 7
  • IELTS Sub Test Minimum: 7

Credit transfer

If you wish to apply for credit for studies completed at another institution, or if you are changing programs within the University and wish to transfer your credit to the new program, visit the University's credit website for more information on applying for credit.


Compulsory program requirements

This degree requires students to participate in placements in NSW services or facilities, including NSW Health facilities. During placement, students will be subject to the policies and procedures of the placement facility.  Clinical placements commence in second year of the program. Clinical placements typically involve attendance from 8.30am to 5.00pm, and vary in intensity (e.g. one day a week for 20 weeks, two days a week for 10 weeks, and so on), and may occur during or between semesters (mid or end year). Students can expect to relocate for up to 12 weeks during fourth year, e.g. Hunter area, Central Coast, Sydney, rural NSW. Students must meet all the Speech Pathology Placement Requirements including a National Criminal Record Check, NSW Working with Children clearance and meet all the NSW Health Verification requirements .

Post-admission requirements

  • NSW Health Verification Requirements

    Mandatory NSW Health Verification Requirements must be met. More information is available here.

Compulsory program requirements - Review of progress

In addition to meeting the University's overall requirements for academic progression, students must satisfactorily complete the following courses to progress in their program.

SPTH4080 - Professional Practice 1

SPTH1080 - Introduction to Speech Pathology

SPTH4090 - Professional Practice 2

SPTH3080 - Professional Practice

SPTH2080 - Professional Practice


Professional recognition

Speech Pathology Association of Australia

The program is accredited by the Speech Pathology Association of Australia, the professional association of speech pathologists, and is recognised in Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States of America.


Academic requirements for program completion

Total units required

320 units

Program duration

4 years full-time.

International students studying this program on campus are required to enrol full time to comply with their student visa requirements and complete their study in the standard minimum program duration. International students requiring enrolment advice should review the program plan corresponding to the semester and year of commencement and can contact their Program Advisor at ProgramAdvice@newcastle.edu.au

Program requirements

The program requires the successful completion of 320 units.

Students are required to complete:  

Core Courses - 300 units   

  • 300 units of Core Courses; and one of the following:
    • Ungraded Honours pathway - 20 units of Electives; or
    • Graded Honours pathway* - 20 unit Compulsory Course - SPTH4440 Speech Pathology Honours Thesis; or
    • International Stream^ - 20 units Compulsory Course - SPTH4420 International Speech Pathology.

Students must successfully complete all core 1000, 2000 and 3000 level courses in the program (SPTH, HUBS, LING, PSYC, STAT) prior to enrolling in SPTH4080 Clinical Practice.  Students cannot concurrently enrol in SPTH4080 and SPTH4090.

Students must complete a minimum of 40 units at each level (1000, 2000, 3000, 4000) with no more than 120 units at the 1000 level.

Students must only complete courses that form part of the program.   

Students may elect to undertake one of the following options in place of the 20 units of Electives in the Ungraded Honours pathway:

Graded Honours* project in Speech Pathology :

Graded Honours is available to those students who meet and maintain the eligible requirements.  Students must apply and have permission from the School to complete this pathway.  For selected admission into graded Honours for the Bachelor of Speech Pathology (Honours) program, high performing students are those considered to have achieved the following minimum criterion:

  • a GPA Overall above 5.5, calculated in accordance with University policy on all courses above the 1000 level taken prior to entry into graded Honours; and
  • a GPA above 5.5 for all courses above the 3000 level taken prior to entry into Graded Honours (at the end of Semester 1) in the year of application (3rd year).

Further information on Graded Honours and the Experience of Interest application form can be found in B Speech Pathology (Honours) - Graded Honours Information and on the 12318 Speech Pathology (Honours) program Blackboard site.

International Stream ^:

The International Stream is an opportunity for students to develop clinical skills and experience through various Speech Pathology International placements.  SPTH4210 and SPTH4420 together with completion of one of the final year clinical placements internationally (SPTH4080) form the International Stream of the Bachelor of Speech Pathology (Honours) degree.  SPTH4420 involves the advanced study in the field of speech pathology internationally.  Students undertake an individualised learning program (ILP) arranged in consultation with the course coordinator.  Students must apply and have permission from the School to complete the International Stream, through the submission of an Expression of Interest (EOI) International Stream application form .  Further information on the International Stream can be found on the 12318 Speech Pathology (Honours) program Blackboard site.

 

 


Program planner

Current students program planner

Current students can plan their program using Program Planner.

Program Planner

Prospective student degree planner

If you're a prospective student considering studying this degree take a look at My Degree Planner to see what your study journey will look like.

Additional documents


Transition arrangements

2024 Commencing Students

For students who commence in 2024 and onwards the maximum time to complete the Bachelor of Speech Pathology (Honours) will be 6 years. For students who commenced prior to 2024, maximum time of completion will remain unchanged at 10 years.

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Transition Arrangements 2019

The following transition arrangements are in place for students who commenced the program prior to 2019.

SPTH1001 and SPTH1002

The last offering of SPTH1001 and SPTH1002 will be in 2018. From 2019, students will undertake SPTH2101 and SPTH2102 in place of SPTH1001 and SPTH1002. If you have not already completed SPTH1001 and SPTH1002 before 2019, then you need to complete SPTH2101 and SPTH2102 in 2019 or beyond.

SPTH2004, PSYC2300 and SPTH3001

The last offering of SPTH2004, PSYC2300 and SPTH3001 will be in 2020. Students who enrolled in the program prior to 2019 must successfully complete PSYC2300, SPTH2004 and SPTH3001 by the end of 2020.

Please follow the 2015 – 2018 Program Plan.  The above courses are not listed in the Program Handbook, they are only on the 2015 - 2018 Program Plans:

2015 - 2018 - B Speech Pathology (Honours) Program Plan - Graded Honours & International Pathway

2015 - 2018 B Speech Pathology (Honours) Program Plan - Ungraded Honours Pathway

Courses completed pre-2019 will count towards the 2019 program requirements.

From 2019 students are to complete the equivalent course if you have not already successfully completed the equivalent course in 2018 or prior.

For students who commenced the program prior to 2019 please refer to the 2019 B Speech Pathology (Honours) (12318) Transition Arrangements in the Additional Documents section for more details.


Program structure

Students can plan their program using Program Planner. It is recommended students review the program handbook in conjunction with using Program Planner.

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Core

Complete the following core courses to fulfil the requirements of this program.

CodeTitleTerm / Location Units
HUBS1107Neuroscience and Head and Neck Anatomy
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
HUBS1403Biomedical Science Part 1
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Central Coast)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Singapore)
10 units
HUBS1404Biomedical Science Part 2
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Central Coast)
10 units
LING1111How Languages Work: Linguistics and the Structure of Language
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
PSYC1010Psychology Introduction 1
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Central Coast)
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Online)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Online)
10 units
PSYC1020Psychology Introduction 2
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Central Coast)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Online)
10 units
SPTH1080Introduction to Speech Pathology
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
STAT1020Statistical Reasoning and Literacy
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
LING2006Phonetics
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH2001Fluency Across the Lifespan
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH2002Language, Literacy and Hearing
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH2003Complex Communication Needs
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH2080Professional Practice
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH2101Child Speech
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH2102Child Language
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
LING3008Introduction to Phonology and Morphology
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
LING3310Language and Meaning
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
LING3350Structure of English
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Online)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Online)
10 units
SPTH3002Swallowing Across the Lifespan
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH3004Voice across the lifespan
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH3080Professional Practice
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH3101Adult Speech
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH3102Adult Language
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH3103Holistic Practice Across the Lifespan
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH4030Professional Issues 1
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Online)
10 units
SPTH4035Professional Issues 2
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Online)
10 units
SPTH4080Professional Practice 1
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
20 units
SPTH4090Professional Practice 2
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
10 units
SPTH4210Research Review
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Online)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Online)
10 units

Ungraded Honours

Electives 20 unit requirement

Complete 20 units of electives to fulfil the requirements of the program. Electives can be used to extend and complement your core studies with more courses in the same field of study, or from areas that might be of interest to you. Electives can be chosen from all courses available at the University that do not have any other conditions (such as a course requisite) applied to them.

20 units

International Stream

Choose 20 units from the following course list.

CodeTitleTerm / Location Units
SPTH4420International Speech PathologyNot currently offered20 units

Graded Honours

Choose 20 units from the following course list.

CodeTitleTerm / Location Units
SPTH4440Speech Pathology Honours Thesis
  • Semester 1 - 2024 (Callaghan)
  • Semester 2 - 2024 (Callaghan)
20 units

Suggested electives

Honours

All students who complete the requirements of the program will be eligible for ungraded Honours.

High performing students may be selected for admission into a graded Honours stream.

Students selected in the graded Honours stream are required to successfully complete 30 units of research courses by undertaking SPTH4210 Research Review (10 units) and SPTH4440 Speech Pathology Honours Thesis (20 units).

Students are advised to undertake SPTH4210 in the third year of their program, and the SPTH4440 in the fourth year of their program.

The criteria for the determination of class of Honours are detailed in the Bachelor Honours Policy [000990] located in the University Policy Library.

See Program Convenor for further information regarding eligibility for Graded Honours.


Additional information

Through the Pathways and Academic Learning Support Centre, students can access a free suite of NUPrep preparation courses as well as Academic Learning Support.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students can draw on the assistance and support provided by the Indigenous Student Support and Development service through the Wollotuka Institute.

During clinical placement students may be required to wear properly fitted respirators. Fit testing is the process to ensure the respirator fits the wearers face snugly, creating a seal to minimise airbourne particles travelling through gaps between the wearer's skin and the respirator. Students will need to arrange and pay for their own fit testing before attending their first placement and every subsequent 12 months.  


International students

All International Students enrolled in the program will be provided with an orientation to familiarise them with the rules, expectations, facilities and services offered by the University. Please visit our International Students website to find out more about the support services available to international students.


Additional support

AccessAbility provides advice and reasonable adjustments to Students with a medical or health condition or disability. If you require adjustments to undertake your program, contact the Student Support Advisors - AccessAbility before semester or early in the semester. They will work with the College or School to ensure that this happens in a timely manner.

Please note: All students must fulfil the inherent requirements of the programs and courses they are undertaking. While reasonable adjustments can be made, these adjustments cannot compromise academic integrity. It is the student's responsibility to check all the requirements of courses, and consider the effects of any medical condition or disability on their ability to complete course requirements. More information is available online.

Bachelor of Speech Pathology (Honours)

UAC Code , Program Code 12318

Selection rank
Duration (FT)(PT)
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CRICOS Code , Program Code 12318

Indicative fee1
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Admission info

Selection rank

Duration (FT)(PT)

Next start date

UAC Code

Program Code 12318

This criteria is based on a full-time domestic student attending Callaghan campus. Please select your criteria to personalise your study options and your circumstances.

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Indicative fee1

Duration (FT)

Next start date

English proficiency requirements IELTS overall minimum -
IELTS section minimum -

CRICOS Code

Program Code 12318

This criteria is based on a full-time international student attending Callaghan campus. Please select your criteria to personalise your study options and your circumstances.

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