About This Test
The Speech-Language Pathology test measures examinees’ academic preparation in and knowledge of the field. The examination is typically taken by examinees who are in or who have completed a master’s degree program. Recognized as the national examination in speech-language pathology, the test is one of several requirements for the Certificate of Clinical Competence issued by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). Some states use the examination as part of the licensure procedure. Examinees may obtain complete information about certification or licensure from the authority (ASHA, 10801 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852, or state or local) from which certification or licensure is sought.
The 120 multiple-choice test questions focus on content related to the major practice areas of basic human communication processes, phonological and language disorders, speech disorders, neurogenic disorders, audiology/hearing, clinical management, and professional issues/psychometrics/research. Case studies assess the candidate’s knowledge of possible applications to clinical situations and issues. Research articles are included to assess the examinee’s ability to synthesize information and to apply it to specific examples. The distribution of the test questions across the areas of practice was based on a national survey, commissioned by ASHA, of speech-language pathologists in a variety of employment settings.
The Speech-Language Pathology test evolves slowly in order to incorporate new developments in this rapidly changing field while still maintaining comparability of scores from one year to the next.