Speech language pathologists play a vital role in helping clients improve their communication skills, which can be very important for maintaining job opportunities and relationships. However, there are alternative career options for speech-language pathologists, especially when you’re looking for a change or want to combine your passion for helping people with another field.
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Here are some of the most popular alternative careers for speech-language pathologists:
-Translator: If you’re bilingual or trilingual, you could translate documents from one language to another. You may want to start by working with a company that provides translations of medical documents, such as radiology reports or patient histories.
-Medical Coder: This is another option if you’re bilingual or trilingual. Medical coders do much of the same work as doctors and nurses—they review medical records, evaluate patient information and decide what tests should be ordered—but they don’t provide direct medical care themselves. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that jobs as medical coders will grow by 22% between 2016 and 2026 due to an increase in demand for healthcare services among an aging population at home rather than in hospitals or nursing homes.
Alternative Career Options For Speech Language Pathologists
Teaching
Teaching is another fun option for SLPs. It’s a great way to share your knowledge with others, and it can be done in a classroom setting or online. If you have an interest in education, teaching may be the perfect career path for you!
Teaching jobs are available at both university and online schools. You might consider becoming an adjunct professor or working as a private tutor if you don’t want to commit to full-time employment at one school. Teaching different courses will allow you to get creative by focusing on specific areas of interest and expertise that aren’t covered by traditional classes. For example, maybe you love writing about video games and want to teach those subjects at a local university; or perhaps your area of expertise is history and literature—in which case it might make sense for someone like yourself to teach English classes at an institution like Harvard University (one of America’s most competitive colleges).
Careers abroad
In the past, your options for working abroad were somewhat limited. However, in today’s globalized world, your career might take you to some exciting places! It’s imperative that you have cultural competence and language skills if you want to land a job abroad. Here are some examples of jobs you can get abroad:
- Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) – Most SLPs work with children who have language disorders or developmental disabilities and their families to help them reach their highest potential in areas such as speech and swallowing. They also work with adults who have problems communicating due to brain injuries or neurological disorders like stroke or Parkinson’s disease.* Medical Translator – For medical professionals who speak English as a second language, being able to translate medical terms into another language is essential—especially if they aren’t able speak with patients directly because they’re not fluent enough yet!
Speech language pathology research
Speech-language pathology research is the examination of factors that can contribute to speech, language and swallowing disorders. Speech language pathologists use this research to develop new therapies and interventions that will help patients recover more quickly.
Research can be done in a number of different settings, including universities, hospitals and private practices. There are also government agencies that offer funding for this type of research such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Research has been shown to benefit both patients and professionals in a variety of ways:
- Patients may experience faster recovery from their disorder by using therapies developed through research studies. They will also have access to better treatment options as SLPs expand their knowledge base through research efforts. This allows them to provide better care while reducing costs at the same time!
- The profession itself benefits because continuous growth allows people interested in becoming SLPs an opportunity for advancement within their field without having worry about losing jobs due to automation like many other professions might experience due to artificial intelligence systems/robots taking over tasks currently handled by humans (such as driving).
Publishing*
Publishing is more than just writing a book. To become a published author, you need to finish your manuscript, find an agent who will represent your work and help negotiate publishing contracts with publishers. Then there’s the publicity aspect of getting your book out there so people will buy it—and hopefully enjoy it!
Publishing requires a lot of hard work on their part, but if they have written a story that they believe in and want to share with others, this can be an extremely rewarding career option for them as well as for speech language pathologists who have experience working with children and families through speech therapy or other related fields.
Advocating for SLP services
If you are interested in advocating for speech language pathology services, there are several ways you can do so. You could:
- Speak to your state legislators about the importance of funding services.
- Contact your school board and express your concerns about the lack of appropriate speech language pathology services in schools.
- Run for office yourself! Running as a school board member or other elected official is an excellent way to advocate for SLP services on a local level. For example, if you run for a position on your local school board, you would be able to ensure that the needs of kids with communication disorders were being addressed by the district’s administrators and teachers. Your presence could also help prevent unnecessary cuts from being made; this happened recently in Connecticut when several SLPs lost their jobs due to budget cuts before public outcry caused those cuts to be reversed.* Join professional organizations like ASHA (American Speech-Language-Hearing Association) or NSSLHA (National School Language Hearing Association) which provide opportunities for networking with other professionals who share similar interests.* Write letters this article! The more people who know about our profession’s mission and need it filled someday soon(!),
Speaking*
Speaking is a great way to build your resume, so long as you don’t mind being in the spotlight. Speaking engagements can be anything from a keynote speech at an industry conference to providing training for clients at their workplace.
One of the most useful things about speaking engagements is that your audience does not need to be limited by location or time constraints. As long as there’s an internet connection and people willing to listen, you can hold live events anywhere! Your presentations might include:
- Keynotes at conferences
- Workshops or seminars on specific topics
- Training sessions with clients
Working with insurance companies
Working with insurance companies is a very lucrative way to earn money as a speech language pathologist. The field has grown significantly over the past few years, and it’s now one of the fastest growing careers in the nation.
However, there are some differences between working for public or private insurance companies. For example, public insurance deals with government-funded programs such as Medicaid and Medicare; whereas private insurers deal with health coverage plans that are issued by large corporations or employers (like Aetna or Blue Cross Blue Shield).
To get started in this career path, you’ll need excellent people skills and strong communication abilities—both written and verbal—since you’ll be handling customer service on a daily basis! You should also be able to work independently without supervision from others in order to effectively manage your workloads and deadlines without distractions from coworkers around you.”
Consulting for private practice or school district
As a consultant, you would be working for a district or private practice. This is the most common type of speech language pathology job. Consultants are often hired for their expertise in a certain area and may work with teachers on curriculum or assessment issues, or provide consultation services to parents of children who are struggling with communication disorders. You may be paid by the hour, as is typical in this field, or receive a flat rate per day/week/month depending on your skillset and experience level.
Consultants generally have flexible schedules because they only work when needed by the client organization (districts or schools).
You don’t have to stay in the same job your entire career.
You may feel like you have to stay in the same job your entire career, but that’s not necessarily the case. You can change jobs and careers at any time. There are many reasons why you might want to do this:
- You don’t like working with children anymore
- You want to work with adults instead of children
- You want more money or a better position within your current company
- The location where your current job is located is not ideal for you (e.g., too far away from family)
Any number of things can lead someone down the path toward changing their career path, and speech-language pathology is no different! If right now feels like a good time for you to make some changes in your professional life, there are many options available that will allow you to continue practicing as a speech-language pathologist while also allowing your unique skillset and talents shine through in other areas!
