Program Overview
College of Natural and Health Sciences
Contact: Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders
Location: Gunter 1400
Telephone: 970.351.2734
Website: www.unco.edu/nhs/audiology-speech-language-sciences/
Advising Information:
Students must consult with their assigned major advisor each semester prior to registering.
To find your advisor, log into ursa.unco.edu; go to 'Student' tab and click 'View Student Information' link. If no advisor is listed, contact the major program for advisor information.
The program consists of three parts:
- Liberal Arts Curriculum (LAC) Credits
- Required Major Credits
- University-Wide Credits
Program Description:
The Audiology and Speech-Language Sciences undergraduate program offers a pre-professional bachelor's degree in audiology and speech-language sciences. Training focuses on a broad-based education with emphasis on: the sciences, anatomy and physiology, psychology, development of audition, language and speech, principles of hearing science, technical instrumentation and problem solving. Students learn about individuals with communication disorders due to head injury, stroke, ear disease, noise exposure, vocal disease and misuse, autism, developmental delays, brain injury, genetics and many other issues. Additionally, students will explore the science behind how we talk, formulate language, hear and process our auditory environment, as well as how to diagnose, treat, and prevent communication disorders. Students who have interests in medical fields, applied sciences, psychology, acoustics, music or education are encouraged to consider audiology and speech-language sciences.
The degree program can be modified to serve as an excellent undergraduate foundation for entry into master's degree programs in Special Education, Rehabilitative Counseling, Public Health or Gerontology. Students interested in pursuing this option should see their advisor.
Program Admission Requirements:
Academic Good Standing
Program Requirements:
- In addition to fulfilling the specified major requirements for the Bachelor of Science degree in Audiology and Speech-Language Sciences, a grade of “C-” or better must be earned in all of the Required Major Credit courses in order for the courses to count toward the major.
- In addition, the University requirement of a UNC cumulative grade point average of at least 2.00 for graduation must also be met.
- In accordance with University Policies, coursework earned more than 10 years prior to the date of matriculation to UNC may not be used to satisfy any major or minor requirements. Any exception to this policy is at the discretion of the academic program.
Degree Requirements — 120 Credits
1. Liberal Arts Curriculum — 31 credits
To complete the degree in 120 credits as outlined, the program recommends the below LAC courses that also count toward the 63-70 required major credits.
Any additional coursework completed outside of the recommended list below may extend the length of the program of study.
Written Communication — 6 credits
ENG 123 (3) or SCI 291 (3) is recommended to fulfill Intermediate Writing Course requirement and will fulfill both LAC and major requirements.
See Written Communication courses
Mathematics — 3 credits
STAT 150 (3) and MATH 124 (4) or MATH 125 (3) or MATH 127 (4) or MATH 131 (4) are recommended to fulfill Mathematics requirement and will fulfill both LAC and major requirements.
See Mathematics courses
Arts & Humanities, History, Social & Behavioral Sciences, U.S. Multicultural Studies [MS], and International Studies [IS] — 15 credits
To complete the LAC in the minimum number of credits, be sure to choose at least one course with an IS designation and one course with an MS designation.
ASLS 160 (3) is recommended to fulfill Social & Behavioral Sciences requirement and will fulfill both LAC and major requirements.
In addition, one course with either a PSY or SOC prefix from Social & Behavioral Sciences category is recommended to fulfill the additional course required for Arts & Humanities, History, and Social & Behavioral Sciences.
See Arts & Humanities, History, and Social & Behavioral Sciences courses
Natural & Physical Sciences — 7 credits
BIO 100 (3) and BIO 105 (1) or BIO 110 (4) and one CHEM or PHYS prefix course are recommended to fulfill Natural & Physical Sciences requirement and will fulfill both LAC and major requirements.
See Natural & Physical Sciences courses
See Liberal Arts Curriculum
2. Required Major — 63-70 credits
Take all of the following courses:
| ASL 101 | American Sign Language I | 3 |
| ASLS 160 | Introduction to Human Communication and Its DisordersLAB3 | 3 |
| ASLS 260 | Introduction to Phonetics | 3 |
| ASLS 266 | Normal Speech and Language Development | 3 |
| ASLS 267 | Anatomy and Physiology of the Speech and Hearing Mechanism | 4 |
| ASLS 343 | Fundamentals of Physiological and Biological Acoustics | 2 |
| ASLS 360 | Articulation and Voice Disorders | 3 |
| ASLS 365 | Language Disorders in Children | 3 |
| ASLS 370 | Basic Audiology | 4 |
| ASLS 469 | Clinical Processes in Speech-Language Pathology | 4 |
| ASLS 478 | Aural Rehabilitation and Amplification | 3 |
| BIO 100 | Exploring BiologyLAS1 | 3 |
| | and | |
| BIO 105 | Exploring Biology LabLAS1LASL | 1 |
| | or | |
| BIO 110 | Biology: Atoms to CellsLAS1LASL | 4 |
| BIO 245 | Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology | 4 |
| ENG 123 | College Research PaperLAW2 | 3 |
| | or | |
| SCI 291 | Scientific WritingLAW2 | 3 |
| LIB 170 | Audiology & Speech Language Sciences Library Research | 1 |
| MATH 124 | College AlgebraLAX1 | 4 |
| | or | |
| MATH 125 | Plane TrigonometryLAX1 | 3 |
| | or | |
| MATH 127 | Elementary FunctionsLAX1 | 4 |
| | or | |
| MATH 131 | Calculus ILAX1 | 4 |
| STAT 150 | Introduction to Statistical AnalysisLAX1 | 3 |
| | One course with either a PSY or SOC prefix | 3 |
| | One course with either CHEM or PHYS prefix | 3-5 |
Choose at least one option from Group A and one practicum from Group B that aligns with area of interest for graduate studies:
Group A:
Option 1
| ASLS 366 | Language Sampling Processes | 1 |
| ASLS 431 | Organically-Based Communication Disorders | 3 |
Option 2
Group B:
| ASLS 473 | SLPA Seminar and Field Experience | 4 |
| ASLS 474 | Clinical Practicum in Audiology | 1 |
| ASLS 483 | Entry/Primary Speech-Language Pathology Practicum | 2 |
3. University-Wide Credits — 19-26 credits*
Complete additional credits to achieve the minimum credits needed for any degree at UNC; for this program, that will typically be 19-26 credits.
*Note: Students who apply the recommended courses to both the liberal arts curriculum and the major requirements will have an increased number of university wide electives to apply to this degree. See your advisor for details.