As a big fan of Greek mythology, Sarah Gosnell, MS ‘19, suspected Salus University would be a good fit for her. Salus is the Roman goddess of safety and well-being (welfare, health and prosperity) and from which the University took as its name.
In addition, Gosnell had dyslexia when she was younger and had several sessions with speech therapists, which she found quite interesting. So, it was no surprise she ended up at Salus, pursuing her Master of Science degree in Speech-Language Pathology (SLP).
After graduating from West Chester University in 2017 with a degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders, she took some time and worked at a language service company that provided interpreters. But she soon set her sight on continuing her education at Salus.
“Salus provided me with hands-on experience at a much earlier rate than other SLP programs in the area,” said Gosnell, a native of Doylestown, Pennsylvania. “During the first semester we were seeing patients and really starting to learn about what comprises speech and language.”
The students received practical experience right from the beginning. “I thought that was extremely helpful. And, then the department supported us and let us know this is what your cases are and what day-to-day life is going to be like. You have to adapt and get used to this,” she said.
Not long after her graduation from Salus, the pandemic hit. Gosnell said she went a little “COVID crazy” and needed to get out of Pennsylvania. Once the COVID restrictions associated with her job began to ease a bit, she took the opportunity to head south, where she landed in a school district pre-kindergarten program in Georgia. There she worked with children with varying degrees of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), language disorders in a classroom setting, and all within a speech-language rich environment.
After two years in that position, she’s ready to return to Pennsylvania.
“This was a great two-year experience and I’ve learned so much,” said Gosnell. “They do things a little differently down here. While pre-K and three to five early intervention is typically done through the counties in Pennsylvania, in Georgia it’s done through the school district.”
Although she hasn’t yet secured a job in Pennsylvania, Gosnell might pursue her doctorate and maybe switch from working with preschoolers to working with school-aged children.
And, as a big football and hockey fan, she might explore opportunities in sports medicine as well. “I’d love to try working with traumatic brain injuries. I know that, especially with football, head injuries are going to come up a lot more as time goes on,” she said. “But I read recently that the sport with the largest amount of head injuries and traumatic brain injuries is hockey so there is a need for speech therapy among hockey players.”
When she’s not being an SLP, Gosnell likes to hike and try different painting and cross-stitching projects to keep her hands busy.
She not only has a high regard for the SLP program at Salus, but that she was also extremely well prepared.
“The hands-on experience was extremely important. Being a visual learner is great, but being in that environment and having a chance to learn as you’re doing something is such a valuable asset,” said Gosnell.
