I Chose Salus
Speech-Language Pathology
My name is Carly Schlessinger and I am a first-year Speech-Language Pathology student in Salus University’s College of Education and Rehabilitation. I went to The Ohio State University for my undergraduate degree and earned a bachelor’s in Human Development and Family Science. Because I wasn’t a speech and hearing major, I took an extra year after graduation to complete the prerequisites for this program.
I initially wanted nothing to do with the speech pathology field. The summer before my junior year, during an internship at a skilled nursing facility, my supervisors allowed me to observe all of the therapy rooms. I was eager to observe until they told me to observe a speech treatment session. After saying ‘no’ twice, I finally agreed to observe and loved it.
The aspect of this program I am the most impressed with is the Speech-Language Institute, the program’s on-campus clinical facility. We are all assigned two six-hour clinic blocks where we work with clients on their speech and language goals. This semester, I am in clinic on Monday evenings from 2:00-8:00 p.m. and Wednesday mornings from 8:00 a.m. -2:00 p.m. In addition to the coursework, the clinic has given me hands-on experience working with clients and supervisors, and is truly shaping me into the clinician I hope to become.
A typical day looks like this:
6:30 a.m. From experience, I know that I need to set three to four alarms each morning to ensure I can wake up with enough time to sufficiently get ready for the day. It is my goal to wake up and get out of bed around 6:30 a.m., although that doesn’t always happen. When I finally get out of bed, I make myself a quick breakfast, get dressed and pack my school bag while watching mindless TV shows on Netflix.
7:35 a.m. Although it is my goal is to leave my apartment around 7:20 a.m., realistically, I know I am heading to school around 7:35 a.m., which still gives me plenty of time to get a good parking spot and to situate myself before class starts. Having an unrealistic goal time for leaving my apartment ensures that I show up to school on time every day.
8:00 a.m. Class starts and we typically sit in the same room, same seats for two or three consecutive classes (depending on the day). Thankfully, we do get breaks during our classes to stretch our legs and walk around.
1:00 p.m. Once class is over, I either head to lunch with some classmates or I head to the clinic to prepare for my upcoming sessions with clients. I try to be out of the clinic by 2:00 p.m. because some of the cohort (fellow classmates) report for clinic and the space is needed.
2:00 p.m. Depending on the week, I head to the library/learning resource center in hopes to claim a study room for those of us who want to stay after to study for the quizzes/ exams we have coming up. There are times when we end up staying late, which isn’t so bad when we use Grubhub to have dinner delivered!
4:30 p.m. When I can, I try to make it to a 4:30 p.m. cycle class at a gym near my apartment. This gives me the break I need and it allows me to feel like I was at least a little bit active during the day.
6:30 p.m. Once I get back to my apartment, I shower, make dinner, meal prep for the next day and relax. By ‘relax’ I mean switching from Twitter to Instagram to Snapchat (on repeat) until it’s time to work.
7:30 p.m. Now it’s time to see just how many assignments I can cross off in my planner. Whether I am studying, doing homework, or prepping for clinic, I am trying my best to be productive until my eyes have trouble staying open.
10:30 p.m. When the clock says 10:30 p.m., I know it’s time to put the schoolwork away. I use this time to get my school bag organized and to get ready for bed. After getting in bed, I make sure all of my alarms are set for the next day, watch some more Netflix, and catch up on social media until I fall asleep and have to do it all again the next day!
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