PhD Programs
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Frances J. Laven Scholarship
As co-owner of CAPCSD's first management company, Frances Laven was instrumental in organizing the Council's administrative and procedural foundations, beginning in 1989. From 2002 to 2013, Ms. Laven served as the Executive Director for CAPCSD and facilitated the growth of the Council and its many activities. As her duties continued to expand, she met her responsibilities with poise and an openness to the development of CAPCSD and its member programs. Her leadership exemplified outstanding service to both CAPCSD and the discipline of communication sciences and disorders. All who came into contact with her, particularly Board members, became enamored with her personal yet professional style in handling all CAPCSD issues, big or small.
The Frances J. Laven award was initiated in 2014 when Ms. Laven retired from her position with CAPCSD. Service was the focus of the award to reflect her tireless efforts in forwarding the efforts of CAPCSD and the discipline.
In honor of Frances Laven, CAPCSD is funding up to ten (10) student scholarships to recognize exemplary student service.
PhD Scholarships
CAPCSD is committed to addressing the PhD shortage in communication sciences and disorders and offers this scholarship program for students pursuing a PhD and who are committed to an academic career in communication sciences and disorders. These scholarships support PhD students in the dissertation phase of their doctoral program and applicants must intend to pursue an academic career in CSD. Funds may be used to support dissertation expenses and/or the applicant’s personal expenses incurred while completing the dissertation. The mentor's letter of support should confirm that the applicant will have passed to the candidacy stage (all but dissertation (ABD) requirements completed) by June 15, 2025 and will not defend their dissertation earlier than January 1, 2026. CAPCSD will fund up to ten (10) scholarships of $12,000 each for successful scholarship awardees.
Plural Publishing Research Scholarships
CAPCSD promotes research by students in communication sciences and disorders. In support of this goal, Plural Publishing has generously agreed to fund two (2) scholarship awards to support graduate student research.
One (1) master’s/AuD-level scholarship is intended for master’s/AuD-level students who are conducting research in speech-language pathology or audiology.
One (1) doctoral-level scholarship is intended for PhD students who are conducting research in audiology, speech-language pathology, or speech-language-hearing sciences.
Congratulations to Our Past Scholarship Recipients!
Hearing and Speech Sciences
Phd program.
The Ph.D. program in Hearing and Speech Sciences is administered through the Vanderbilt University Graduate School. The program emphasizes preparation for research and teaching careers in audiology, speech-language pathology, and hearing or speech science. Doctoral education and training is integrated with the federally-sponsored research programs of faculty members.
The aim of our Ph.D. program is to prepare doctoral students to become productive teacher-scholars within basic or applied areas related to communication sciences and disorders. Prior to the dissertation, students complete two research projects, a teaching practicum and approximately two years of coursework both inside and outside the department, tailored to individual needs and interests. The Ph.D. degree normally requires 72 graduate credit hours. A maximum of 24 semester hours of graduate-level transfer credit (e.g., from a masters degree) may be applied toward the doctoral degree.
Typically, students enroll in 48 credit hours during the first two calendar years (Fall+Spring+Summer sessions) of the program. Following the first two years of study, successful completion of written and oral comprehensive examinations and approval of a dissertation prospectus allows the student to be admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree. The remainder of the program is devoted to the dissertation.
Ph.D. student research projects typically result in presentations at national or international scientific meetings, as well as submission of papers to be considered for publication in leading journals in hearing and speech-language science. Graduates of the program have assumed faculty positions in colleges and universities in the U.S. and other countries.
In addition to the broad scope of research conducted within the Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, faculty maintain close ties with several other departments on Vanderbilt’s campus, including Otolaryngology, Psychology, Psychology, and Human Development, Neuroscience, Computer Science, Engineering, and Special Education. Faculty members from these departments are frequently members of doctoral students’ dissertation committees.
The Vanderbilt Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences is committed to recruiting, admitting, and training a diverse student body of future audiologists, speech-language pathologists, educators of the deaf, and researchers. Accordingly, we are continually working to establish and maintain equity and inclusivity in all areas of our educational mission. Our commitment to embrace and promote diversity, equity, and inclusivity is broad with respect to race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, nationality, disability, and differences, among others. This commitment is founded on our core belief in equality for all humans. Our goal is that our culture and the diversity of our department will reflect the diversity of the nation and the populations that we serve. Furthermore, we strongly believe that our focus to embrace diversity is a critical element in education that will prepare our future audiologists, speech-language pathologists, educators, and researchers to serve the populations with whom we work in all settings.
Please contact Dr. Michael de Riesthal ( [email protected] ) for additional information about our Ph.D. program in Hearing and Speech Sciences.
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COMMENTS
Unless otherwise noted, individual student scholarships are open to any AuD, PhD, or AuD/PhD student in audiology who will be enrolled at a U.S. university when the grant is awarded except those graduating in December of the current application year for Fall semester scholarships.
The Academy has many research grants and scholarships for audiology students, including outside funding. Learn more here.
There are many PhD Programs for audiology across the United States. View a comprehensive list of these programs and websites here.
Current and prospective audiology students can pay for their degree with audiology scholarships. Keep on reading to learn more about the top opportunities, as well as deadlines, award amounts, and eligibility requirements.
The scholarships target both prospective professionals and academics in audiology, speech-language pathology, and hearing/speech/language science. CAPCSD has distributed over $1 million dollars of scholarship support.
The Ph.D. program in Hearing and Speech Sciences is administered through the Vanderbilt University Graduate School. The program emphasizes preparation for research and teaching careers in audiology, speech-language pathology, and hearing or speech science.