How to Become a Speech Therapist in Oregon

Oregon is filled with opportunities for speech-language pathologists (SLPs) to practice in clinics, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, home health care, and even independent practices. In recent years, SLPs practicing in Oregon have expressed concern about the shortage of qualified SLPs working in Oregon’s school system, especially in rural school districts throughout the state. Because of this shortage, many children with communication handicaps are diagnosed late or not at all, and never receive the structured help that they need.

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To combat this shortage of SLPs in the school system, the Oregon Department of Education began offering a Speech-Language Pathology Scholarship Program. Through the scholarship program, graduate SLP students receive scholarships in exchange for the agreement to work in a rural Oregon school district for at least two years after they graduate.

You’ll be able to take advantage of this scholarship program by choosing from three in-state schools that are accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation, or any number of accredited online programs available to students in the state.

Speech-language pathologists practicing in Oregon are connected through a vibrant network of dedicated practitioners. You might choose to connect with other SLPs through the Oregon Speech-Language & Hearing Association (OSHA), or the Oregon Speech Pathology Academy. Both organizations offer opportunities for practicing SLPs to earn continuing education requirements and network with other practitioners in the state.

Through the OSHA’s annual conference, you might learn about collaborative service delivery for school-based SLPs, partnering with parents to improve autism intervention, exploring telepractice, and teaching phonemic awareness. The Oregon Speech Pathology Academy, on the other hand, meets more frequently than the OSHA and offers 18-24 professional development hours per year.

You’ll earn your license from the Oregon Board of Examiners for Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology. Follow the steps in the guide below to begin your journey to becoming a speech therapist in Oregon:

Earn a Master’s Degree in Speech-Language Pathology from an ASHA-Accredited Program
Apply for a Conditional License and Begin a 36-week Supervised Clinical Fellowship
Pass the National SLP Exam and Consider Earning the CCC-SLP Credential
Apply for Licensing and Begin Practicing as a Speech-Language Pathologist
Renew Your License Every Two Years and Complete Continuing Education Requirements

 

 

Step 1. Earn a Master’s Degree in Speech-Language Pathology from an ASHA-Accredited Program

You’ll need to earn your graduate degree from a program accredited by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Society. You’ll be able to choose from many online programs, and three in-state programs.

Whether online or traditional, SLP graduate programs only accept highly-qualified students. Admission departments look for:

  • A GPA of at least 3.0
  • GRE scores in the 30th percentile
  • An undergraduate degree in SLP or volunteer hours in an SLP clinic

If you don’t have a background in SLP, you’ll need to complete prerequisite courses, often including:

  • Speech Science
  • Anatomy and Physiology of Speech
  • Audiology Fundamentals
  • Language Development
  • Neuroanatomy of Speech, Hearing, and Swallowing
  • Introduction to Clinical Methods and Observation

After completing prerequisites, you’ll move into core coursework, which usually includes:

  • Language Disorders in Children
  • Speech Sound Disorders
  • Seminar on Diversity
  • Fluency Disorders
  • Clinical Methods and Observation
  • Communication and Aging
  • Counseling Across the Lifespan
  • Aphasia
  • Dysphasia
  • School Age Language & Literacy Disorders

You’ll also be required to complete a variety of electives, which usually focus on specializations within SLP. They might include:

  • Advanced Issues in Speech Sound Disorders
  • Special Topics in Communication Disorders
  • Motor Speech Disorders
  • Research & Evidence Based Practice
  • Acquired Brain Injury
  • AAC and Severe Disabilities
  • Progressive Neurological Communication Disorders

You’ll also need to complete a clinical practicum of at least 400 clock hours before graduating. Usually competed during your last year of study, the practicum will help you gain hands-on experience under the supervision of a licensed SLP. The first 25 hours of your practicum will be observational, as you shadow your supervisor. The next 375 will be made up of direct clinical interaction with patients.

You’ll also be required to complete a thesis or capstone project through your graduate program. The capstone usually focuses on an area of research within SLP.

 

 

Step 2. Apply for a Conditional License and Begin a 36-week Supervised Clinical Fellowship

Next, you’ll need to complete a clinical fellowship. The Oregon SLP board refers to this period as Supervised Clinical Experience.

You’ll need a conditional license in order to practice during your clinical fellowship. You can fill out the conditional license application, include your graduate transcript and Praxis exam scores, and mail it to the Oregon board at:

Board of Examiners for Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology
800 NE Oregon St.
Suite 407
Portland, OR 97232

The supervised clinical experience will build off of the skills you learned during your practicum. You’ll perform clinical and diagnostic procedures, including screening, evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment. You’ll develop case histories and treatment plans with your supervisor and work with a variety of patient populations in order to gain experience with a diverse group of patients.

The Oregon SLP board requires that your supervisor hold a Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP).

You’ll compete 1,260 hours for a minimum of 36 weeks of practice. You might also choose to work part-time (15 or more hours per week), but you’ll still need to complete 1,260 hours in total.

80% of the hours will need to be in direct client contact, while the other 20% may be made up of administrative duties, consulting with your supervisor or families of patients, or developing treatment plans.

At the end of your clinical fellowship, you’ll need to fill out the CF Rating and Report Form and mail it to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association at:

2200 Research Boulevard #313
Rockville, Maryland 20850

Your conditional license will expire after a year, at which time you may apply for renewal if you haven’t completed your clinical fellowship.

 

 

Step 3. Pass the National SLP Exam and Consider Earning the CCC-SLP Credential

Next, you’ll need to register for the National Examination in Speech Language Pathology, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association’s qualifying exam.

To register, you’ll need to provide:

  • Official graduate transcript
  • Proof of completion of a graduate transcript
  • Proof of completion of a clinical fellowship

The test is made up of 132 questions, and you’ll need to score 162 out of 200 possible points to pass.

The test will touch on foundational topics that you covered in your graduate courses as well as clinical, diagnostic, and screening procedures that you learned through your supervised clinical experience. These topics will include:

  • Etiology of speech, including psychogenic and developmental factors
  • Evaluating factors that can affect treatment
  • Initiating and prioritizing treatment and developing goals
  • Determining appropriate treatment details
  • Generating a prognosis
  • Communicating recommendations
  • Establishing methods for monitoring treatment
  • Typical development and performance across the lifespan
  • Factors that influence communication, feeding, and swallowing

You may prepare for the exam by browsing the Praxis test preparation materials.

You can take the exam in any of the Praxis test centers located throughout Oregon, in the following cities:

  • Beaverton
  • Bend
  • Eugene
  • Forest Grove
  • La Grande
  • Medford
  • Portland

You may elect to pursue the Certification of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP) credential once you’ve passed the national exam. Offered through the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, the CCC-SLP is not required for licensure in Oregon, but is a highly respected, industry standard credential. You may apply through ASHA after you completed a graduate program and clinical fellowship and achieved passing scores on the national examination.

 

 

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

After receiving your passing scores on the national exam, you’ll be able to apply for licensing through the Oregon SLP board.

You’ll need to fill out the license application and include:

You can mail the application and documents to the Oregon board at:

Board of Examiners for Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology
800 NE Oregon St.
Suite 407
Portland, OR 97232

After receiving your license from the board, you may launch your career in one of three ways:

Join the Clinic that Provided Supervised Clinical Experience

You may contact your clinical fellowship supervisor to inquire about opportunities if you’re interested in working full time for the clinic that provided your supervised clinical experience.

Consider Opening an Independent Clinic

You might also consider opening an independent clinic or starting a partnership with another licensed SLP. This is a good way to reach specific patient populations, set a flexible schedule, or travel to clients who may not have access to transportation.

Pursue Job Opportunities in Oregon

You may also consider working in one of the many clinics, hospitals, or schools through Oregon that hire qualified SLPs. A few of these employers include:

  • PPR Education Services
  • Kaiser Permanente
  • Oregon Health & Science University
  • Salem Hospital
  • Sensible Speech-Language Pathology
  • Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center
  • Infinity Rehab
  • Forest Grove School District
  • Life Care Centers
  • Southern Oregon ESD
  • Cumberland Therapy
  • Halcyon Rehabilitation

 

 

Step 5. Renew Your License Every Two Years and Complete Continuing Education Requirements

To maintain current SLP licensure through the Oregon SLP board, you’ll need to renew your license every two years with proof of thirty clock hours of continuing education credits.

You’ll receive a renewal notice and application in the mail at least 30 days before your license expires. With the application, you’ll also be required to certify that you’ve completed thirty continuing education credits.

The board accepts continuing education credits hosted by the following organizations:

Speech-Language Pathology Salary in Oregon

Oregon offers the ninth-highest average annual SLP salary of all states in the nation. Its annual average of $98,900 works out to $47.55 an hour.

And going far beyond that, top 10% SLP salaries in Oregon start at $128,700, or $61.88 an hour.

Within the state, Portland is the only place to offer an average SLP salary that breaks the six-figure mark. Just behind Portland, you’ll find Salem, Bend, Medford, and Corvallis. These five cities are also the places with the highest potential for salary advancement.

You can compare the following areas throughout Oregon, sorted here according to highest average salary. The range between the entry-level (10th percentile) and high-end (90th percentile) salaries is also provided:

Portland:

  • Average: $103,310 annually, $49.67 hourly
  • Entry-level to high-end range: $74,340 – $130,340 annually, $35.74 – $62.66 hourly

Salem:

  • Average: $98,360 annually, $47.29 hourly
  • $61,500 – $127,770 annually, $29.57 – $61.43 hourly

Bend:

  • Average: $96,910 annually, $46.59 hourly
  • $65,210 – $115,960 annually, $31.35 – $55.75 hourly

Medford:

  • Average: $94,690 annually, $45.52 hourly
  • $67,790 – $119,160 annually, $32.59 – $57.29 hourly

Corvallis:

  • Average: $92,820 annually, $44.63 hourly
  • $65,080 – $118,210 annually, $31.29 – $56.83 hourly

Rural Oregon Coast:

  • Average: $90,660 annually, $43.59 hourly
  • $59,630 – $115,250 annually, $28.67 – $55.41 hourly

Rural Eastern Oregon:

  • Average: $86,240 annually, $41.46 hourly
  • $62,050 – $108,810 annually, $29.83 – $52.31 hourly

Albany:

  • Average: $84,550 annually, $40.65 hourly
  • $54,410 – $110,860 annually, $26.16 – $53.30 hourly

Eugene:

  • Average: $83,880 annually, $40.33 hourly
  • $60,170 – $106,980 annually, $28.93 – $51.43 hourly

Rural Central Oregon:

  • Average: $80,880 annually, $38.88 hourly
  • $39,470 – $103,180 annually, $18.97 – $49.61 hourly

Exceptionally High Levels of SLP Job Growth in Portland

The field of speech-language pathology is growing as the population ages and experiences strokes and other disorders that call for SLP interventions. In addition, the large numbers of autistic and English Language Learner students routinely rely on SLP services.

The number of SLP jobs in Oregon is projected to increase by an impressive 28% over the decade leading up to 2030, significantly higher than the 19% national average for SLP jobs over that same period.

Currently, Portland leads the way for job growth in Oregon’s cities. Between 2019 and 2023 it’s already seen a 10.3% growth rate in SLP jobs.

Of Oregon’s total of 1,620 SLPs:

  • 1,070 work in Portland
  • 200 work in Salem
  • 130 work in Eugene
  • 80 work in Bend
  • 60 work in Medford

One source of jobs for speech-language pathologists is in private outpatient speech therapy clinics such as these:

  • Bend: Bend Speech & Language Clinic
  • Medford: The Speech Center Plus
  • Portland: Parkwood Clinic SW | Speech & Language Therapy
  • Portland: Portland Speech Clinic
  • Portland: The Hello Clinic
  • West Linn: Parkwood Clinic | West Linn

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 September 2024.

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