How to Become a Speech Therapist in Maryland

One of the best parts of becoming a speech-language pathologist (SLP) is that as you prepare for your career, you’ll have the chance to gain face-to-face experience working with all kinds of patients suffering from communicative disorders — school children, adults, multilingual patients, and more. Despite its size, Maryland is overflowing with exactly these kinds of opportunities.

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At Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, fellowship students can work in the ICU, the neurological outpatient unit, in acute care, or with the pediatric team. Closer to DC at the University of Maryland, a team of experienced researchers works on everything from the effects of sports-related concussions on speech to the development of new language-processing algorithms that would revolutionize hearing aid technology.

But no matter where you study or work, you’ll more than likely find yourself in close contact with the Maryland Speech-Language Hearing Association (MSHA). Along with hosting large regional seminars and offering scholarships to SLP students, the MSHA leverages its resources to lobby the Maryland Legislature for reforms that would make SLP services more accessible to all.

To carve out your own place in this values-driven, community-oriented network,  you’ll have to become a licensed speech-language pathologist through the Maryland Board of Audiologists, Hearing Aid Dispensers & Speech-Language Pathologists. The process involves these steps:

 

Earn a Master’s Degree in Speech-Language Pathology
Complete a Period of Post-Graduate Supervised Clinical Experience
Pass the National SLP Praxis Exam
Apply for Licensing and Begin Practicing as a Speech-Language Pathologist
Keep your License Current and Complete Continuing Education Requirements

 

 

Step 1. Earn a Master’s Degree in Speech-Language Pathology

When it comes to speech-language pathologist licensing, Maryland takes its cues from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), America’s leading authority on all things speech-language pathology. As such, the first thing you’ll have to do is earn a Master of Speech-Language Pathology from an institution accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation (CAA), the college accreditation arm of ASHA.

Prerequisites and Admissions

Before starting a CAA-accredited master’s program, you’ll need to make sure you’ve completed prerequisite courses in a few areas:

  • Statistics
  • Physics or chemistry
  • Social or behavioral science

Fortunately, a wide variety of classes can help you meet this requirement. For instance, everything from anthropology to economics counts towards the behavioral/social science requirement. Classes you took in undergrad or received AP credit for are fair game. If you still need to fill in some gaps, many SLP programs offer prerequisite classes online and on-campus.

SLP graduate programs are typically selective. Admissions departments generally look for GPA scores of 3.0 and higher. You may also need to submit GRE scores, but the majority of programs have moved towards making this optional.

Master’s Program Core Coursework

While you’ll have to take at least 36 credit hours of classes related directly to speech-language pathology, neither ASHA nor Maryland’s regulatory board say you have to take any specific classes. Instead, you’ll take classes based on ASHA’s Scope of Practice in Speech-Language Pathology.

Scope of Practice outlines the skills and knowledge a competent SLP should have. Each school approaches these topics a little differently, but your coursework will revolve around:

  • Domains of Speech-Language Pathology Service Delivery
    • Collaboration
    • Counseling
    • Prevention and Wellness
    • Screening
    • Assessment
    • Treatment
    • Modalities, Technology, and Instrumentation
    • Populations and Systems
  • Speech-Language Pathology Service Delivery Areas
    • Fluency
    • Speech Production
    • Spoken and Written Language
    • Cognition
    • Voice
    • Resonance
    • Feeding and Swallowing
    • Auditory Habilitation and Rehabilitation
    • Etiologies of Communication of Swallowing Disorders (oral anomalies, developmental disabilities, etc.)
    • Elective Services (dialect modification, preventative vocal hygiene, etc.)
  • Domains of Professional Practice
    • Advocacy and Outreach
    • Supervision
    • Education
    • Research
    • Administration and Leadership

However, even though you can earn a Master of Speech-Language Pathology in just two years, you won’t spend all of your time on the fundamentals. You’ll get the chance to take electives on more specialized topics like fluency disorders, advanced counseling techniques, and craniofacial anomalies.

The Practicum Experience

In addition to taking classes, you’ll also complete a supervised practicum before you graduate. During this formative, invaluable experience, you’ll get to apply what you learn in class with actual clients. In most programs, you’ll work part-time while also taking classes.

ASHA and the state of Maryland aren’t too particular about how practicum hours are structured. However, ASHA regulations say practicums should be at least 400-hours long. 375 of those hours need to be spent working directly with clients and families. 25 should be dedicated to guided observation.

 

 

Step 2. Complete a Period of Post-Graduate Supervised Clinical Experience

Once you earn your Master’s in Speech-Language Pathology, you’ll need to accrue 1,260 post-graduate supervised clinical hours. This period is often referred to as a clinical fellowship.

During your clinical fellowship, you’ll learn how to complete clinical and diagnostic procedures and work with a variety of patients to gain experience with different ages, populations, and disabilities.

While similar to practicums, clinical fellowships are structured a bit differently and come with a few important regulations.

Earning Your Limited License and Getting Started

Before starting your clinical fellowship in Maryland, you’ll need to apply for a limited license through the Board. You’ll submit proof of your degree and a plan for supervision (name and qualifications of your supervisor, where you’ll be working etc.) through their website.

You can find a clinical fellowship provider through your university, through a clinic in which you worked during your graduate practicum, or by browsing opportunities posted on job boards like SLPJobs.

Timeline

According to Maryland regulations, you’ll need to start your fellowship within two years after earning your degree. Since you’ll be done with classes at this point, you might want to follow ASHA’s recommended full-time schedule of 36 hours per week spread out over nine months (36 weeks).

If not, ASHA says it’s ok to work part-time and extend your fellowship. The state of Maryland, though, says part-timers need to stick to one of four timelines:

  • 24 months working 14 to 16 hours per week.
  • 18 months working 17 to 20 hours per week.
  • 15 months working 21 to 24 hours per week.
  • 12 months working 25 to 35 hours per week.

Clinical fellowships are generally split up into three sections, dictated by your supervisor. You’ll receive feedback after each segment and your supervisor may tailor your clinical fellowship plan to the specialty populations your wish to serve.

Activities

Both ASHA and the state of Maryland say 80% of your clinical fellowship hours should be spent working directly with clients. This can include conducting screenings, assessments, consultations, and providing treatment. The other 20% is often spent doing administrative tasks or attending in-service or training meetings.

 

Step 3. Pass the National SLP Praxis Exam

After you’ve completed your clinical fellowship, you’ll be eligible to apply for the National Exam in Speech and Language Pathology. The exam is offered through Praxis, and you can easily register online.

To register, you’ll need:

The exam will cover basic scientific topics that you learned during your core coursework, and clinical and diagnostic procedures that you’ll have completed in your clinical fellowship. Some of these topics include feeding and swallowing processes and therapeutic measures, voice resonance and fluency, speech and production mechanisms, motor speech, receptive and expressive language, social and behavioral aspects of communication and speech, and hearing processes.

If you’d like to study for the test with test-prep materials, you may review free practice questions or purchase a Praxis practice exam.

You can take the exam at home with a virtual proctor or at a testing site in Maryland. They’re located in:

  • Baltimore
  • Bethesda
  • Bowie
  • College Park
  • Columbia
  • Frederick
  • Frostburg
  • Hagerstown
  • Hanover
  • Hyattsville
  • Woodlawn
  • Nottingham
  • Salisbury
  • Towson

It usually takes a few weeks to hear back from Praxis about your exam scores. Once you’ve confirmed that you’ve passed the exam, you can move on to applying for licensure through the state board.

Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP)

Once you’ve passed the test, you’re eligible for a Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP) from ASHA. In Maryland, you’re not required to have this certification, but it can decrease the amount of paperwork you’ll need to submit for state licensure. CCC-SLP certification is the gold standard for speech-language pathologists across the country so it can also help you get licensed in other states, too.

To apply, you’ll need the following:

  • Official graduate transcript
  • Proof of completion of a clinical practicum
  • Passing score on the National Exam
  • Proof of completion of a clinical fellowship
  • CCC-SLP application

If you choose to pursue the CCC-SLP, at the end of your clinical fellowship you’ll need to submit a CF Report and Rating Form to ASHA through their website.

 

 

Step 4. Apply for Licensing and Begin Practicing as a Speech-Language Pathologist

Now that you’ve passed the SLP Praxis Exam, you may apply for full licensure through the Maryland SLP Board.

Nowadays, this process can be completed through the state Board’s online licensing portal. You’ll be asked to submit:

  • $150.00 fee
  • A passport photo
  • Supporting documents showing you’ve earned your degree and completed a clinical fellowship

If you earned ASHA’s CCC-SLP credential, you’ll have a lot less paperwork to submit.

You’ll also be asked to complete a Law & Regulations Examination. This is to ensure that you are familiar with Maryland laws as they relate to speech-language pathologists. It consists of 42 true or false questions and four short answer questions. If you need assistance looking up Maryland laws, you may review Maryland’s SLP Rules and Regulations.

It may take several weeks to hear back from the board and be issued your license. In the meantime, you can explore your job prospects:

Consider Joining the Clinic That Provided Require Professional Experience

An easy way to get started in your career is to apply for a full-time position at the clinic where you completed your clinical fellowship. If you have a good relationship with your clinical fellowship supervisor, they may act as a reference for you.

Start Your Own Practice

With your CCC-SLP credential and license from the state of Maryland, you may start your own, independent practice and begin taking on clients.

You might also consider going into practice with another SLP partner if you’d like to take on a larger number of clients.

Pursue Job Openings in Maryland

Speech-language pathologists have the opportunity to work in hospitals, clinics and private practices throughout the state of Maryland, fulfilling vital roles for patients with communicative disorders A few Maryland employers that hire SLPs are:

  • Flagship Rehabilitation
  • Community Services for Autistic Adults and Children
  • HCR Manor Care
  • University of Maryland
  • Loyola University Maryland
  • Howard County General Hospital
  • Baltimore County Public Schools
  • Johns Hopkins Hospital
  • Kennedy Krieger Institute
  • Anne Arundel Medical Center
  • Baltimore Orthopedics & Rehabilitation
  • Mary’s Hospital
  • Human Touch Home Healthcare

 

 

Step 5. Keep your License Current and Complete Continuing Education Requirements

You’ll need to renew your Maryland SLP license every two years through Maryland’s online renewal system.

Upon renewal, you’ll be asked to submit proof of completion of 30 continuing education hours. If you’re newly licensed, you may have to complete a smaller number of continuing education hours, depending on the Board’s discretion.

The Board doesn’t maintain a full list of approved providers, but classes and other opportunities offered through ASHA or the Maryland Speech-Language Hearing Association typically qualify.

If you wish to pursue continuing education credits through other providers, which may include universities in the state or online courses, you can send an approval request to the Board.

 

 

Speech-Language Pathology Salary in Maryland

The average SLP salary in Maryland weighs in higher than the national average at $95,310, or $45.82 an hour. The highest-earning SLPs in the state make $130,970 and up.

Maryland’s large interstate metro areas are home to some of the biggest speech-language pathology networks in the country. Metro Philadelphia is home to 3,540 SLPs, while metro DC is home to 2,370.

All in all, there are 2,720 SLPs in Maryland. With 1,140 SLPs, Baltimore is home to most of them.

When it comes to projected job growth, Maryland is also above the national average. By 2030, the state’s SLP workforce is expected to grow by an astounding 21%. That’s equivalent to an average of 280 new job openings for SLPs every year.

While many speech-language pathologists find jobs in schools, private clinics offer another avenue for employment. Some of the clinics in Maryland that focus primarily on providing SLP services are shown below:

  • Annapolis: Erica L. Prentice, MS
  • Bel Air: The Maryland Therapy Network
  • Damascus: Nancy Thorner, CCC-SLP
  • Lanham: Connections Therapy Center
  • Lutherville-Timonium: Learning and Therapy Center
  • Potomac: Sharon Coale, MS

Speech Language Pathologist Salaries in Maryland’s Workforce Regions

The top three areas with the highest average SLP salaries in Maryland are metro DC, rural Maryland, and California-Lexington Park.

To help you plan your own career trajectory, browse the areas listed below to compare the entry-level (10th percentile), average, and high-end (90th percentile) SLP salaries:

Metro DC:

  • Average: $104,320 annually, $50.16 hourly
  • Entry-level: $66,940 annually, $32.18 hourly
  • High-end: $146,590 annually, $70.48 hourly

Rural Maryland:

  • Average: $100,360 annually, $48.25 hourly
  • Entry-level: $54,220 annually, $26.07 hourly
  • High-end: $145,130 annually, $69.77 hourly

California-Lexington Park

  • Average: $97,760 annually, $47.00 hourly
  • Entry-level: $64,850 annually, $31.18 hourly
  • High-end: $145,600 annually, $70.00 hourly

Metro Philadelphia:

  • Average: $94,170 annually, $45.27 hourly
  • Entry-level: $63,590 annually, $30.57 hourly
  • High-end: $122,700 annually, $58.99 hourly

Salisbury:

  • Average: $93,020 annually, $44.72 hourly
  • Entry-level: $62,900 annually, $30.24 hourly
  • High-end: $135,620 annually, $65.20 hourly

Cumberland:

  • Average: $91,590 annually, $44.03 hourly
  • Entry-level: $60,450 annually, $29.06 hourly
  • High-end: $123,870 annually, $59.56 hourly

Baltimore:

  • Average: $91,530 annually, $44.01 hourly
  • Entry-level: $59,990 annually, $28.84 hourly
  • High-end: $127,300 annually, $61.20 hourly

Hagerstown:

  • Average: $84,620 annually, $40.68 hourly
  • Entry-level: $47,750 annually, $22.96 hourly
  • High-end: $119,310 annually, $47,750 hourly

2023 US Bureau of Labor Statistics salary figures shown here for Speech-Language Pathologists. Job growth projections are from the US Department of Labor-sponsored resource, CareerOneStop. Figures are based on state data, not school-specific information. Conditions in your area may vary. Data accessed March 2025.

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