Education jobs in speech pathology are easy to find and customize. Licensed pathologists can control their schedule with part-time work, travel the country as a visiting pathologist or work with students with special needs. Here are some of the many job opportunities for speech pathologists.
Autism Specialist
Children with autism don’t have physical difficulties preventing them from speaking, but many students with this condition struggle to express themselves clearly. This may be due to social barriers like shyness or social awkwardness. It can also be caused by behavioral factors; some young children with autism don’t learn to speak until well after their peers. Speech language pathologists can help children with autism overcome many different types of speech issues. Most autism-focused jobs take place in school settings, although pathologists may choose to work directly with families through home visits.
Bilingual or ESL Speech Pathologist
Not all speech pathologists in the education system work in English. Children born in foreign countries need help, too. Bilingual speech pathologists can command a premium wage because of their ability to help many different clients. Some schools will only hire pathologists who speak Spanish, Hmong or Arabic. This doesn’t mean that pathologists who only speak English are unable to find work. According to the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the demand for speech pathologists will grow almost 20 percent in the next decade. As with many healthcare jobs, the supply of practitioners is higher in urban areas, so employers in big cities can be pickier. Monolingual speech language pathologists looking for education jobs may need to relocate to suburban or rural areas to find work.
Part-Time Pathologist
Although most speech and language pathologists work 40 hours per week, part-time options are increasing. Temporary education jobs in speech pathology are common because schools need to cover staff who take parental leave, become ill or quit before the school year is completed. Some schools also hire pathologists for 20 to 30 hours per week on a long-term basis. This is a great way for working parents to balance their careers with family obligations.
Traveling Speech Pathologist
Most speech pathology work occurs in a school or office setting. Traveling speech language specialists still see patients in traditional settings but travel between job sites. Some pathologists stay in the same city and travel between different schools, but most traveling speech pathologists embrace the road and accept short-term contracts in cities around the world. These positions rarely offer benefits like health insurance or retirement account matching but usually pay a premium hourly or weekly rate. Pathologists might cover for a teacher on short-term disability one week then practice in a nursing home undergoing a short-term employee shortage the next week. Travel work is a fun way to find education jobs in speech pathology that are off the beaten path.
Higher Education Speech Pathology
Someone has to teach the next generation of speech pathologists. Working as a lecturer or professor in speech pathology offers an education-based career field with a high income potential. Some pathologists get the best of both worlds by working part-time as a school pathologist and part-time as a clinical instructor for graduate students.
Related Resource: Top 20 Best Master’s in English Language Learning Online 2018
This is a growing field with many options. New education jobs in speech pathology are added to the workforce every year.
