This interview summarizes the career of Bethany Shoaf, a licensed speech-language pathologist. She discusses the education required to enter the field, important personal qualities, typical career paths and hiring procedures, her daily work activities, and opportunities for advancement. Overall, she finds the work rewarding but also mentions challenges in working with difficult families and professionals at times. She emphasizes the importance of an open mindset and flexibility within this broad field.

1. C O N D U C T E D W I T H B E T H A N Y S H O A F –
L I C E N S E D S P E E C H - L A N G U A G E
P A T H O L O G I S T
I N T E R V I E W E R : E R I N M O O R E
Informational Interview

2. Information
 Name: Bethany Shoaf
 Official Job Title: Speech-Language Pathologist
 Place of Employment: Washington County Public
Schools; self-contractor at Basic Concepts
 Date of Interview: October 22, 2015

3. Question 1
Q: What training or education is required in order to
become a speech-language pathologist?
A: You need a master's degree, typically master of arts
or science.

4. Question 2
Q: What personal qualities or abilities are important to
being successful in this field?
A: A strong background in speech and language
coursework is important. Even more important is
having good clinical skills- having intuition when
working with clients as well as their families. I find it
important to be open-minded, flexible, and creative. It
is also extremely beneficial to understand the
importance of working on a multi-disciplinary team.

5. Question 3
Q: How did you get this position? What are common career paths for
an SLP?
A: I was advised by my college professor to keep an open mind when it
came to my first job. I initially took a job with a Pediatric home-health
practice in North Carolina. After 3 years and looking to relocate, I
contacted my former internship supervisor (who, by that point was
working for the school system) and she gave me the contact
information for my now supervisor. I find that many SLPs I
know have a different "path" that got them to where they are. It is one
of the great things about the field- there are so many avenues to
explore professionally (adults vs. pediatric, early intervention vs.
rehabilitation, etc.). My advise would be: if a particular area interests
you (i.e. swallowing disorders), get a good experience in that early. Or,
make sure to keep up with continuing education if you're interested in
many things. Since all I've done is pediatric assessment, treatment,
etc., it would be hard for me to take a position with a geriatric facility
without some "re-training!"

6. Question 4
Q: What are typical hiring procedures?
A: I've found that SLPs continue to be in high need. There
are often job postings on a company's website. It is also
good to reach out to companies who may not be advertised
as "hiring," as they are sometimes interviewing but depend
on the applicant that is inquiring. The application/resume
can be sent ahead of time or brought to the interview. I
think employers prefer to have it ahead of time for
preparation if possible. For me, once I interviewed it took
less than a week to get offers.

7. Question 5
Q: If you were starting out again, would you do
anything differently?
A: Not really- the only thing I wish I could have done
differently is kept up with my "adult" training-
specifically acute care, swallowing treatment, etc., just
in case I ever decided to switch things up!

8. Question 6
Q: What do you do on a typical day at work?
A: Most days include speech treatment (individual and
group sessions- both in my "speech classroom" and push-in
to the students' classrooms). I have been spending a lot of
time assessing and screening students this year. A good bit
of time is also spent in meetings and doing consultative
services (creating adapted materials, collaboration with
teachers, etc.). I have a full day of IEPs 2-4 days per month
and try to leave (almost) a full day a week for case
management, medical billing, etc.

9. Question 7
Q: What part of this job do you find most challenging?
Most satisfying?
A: Seeing the progress is the most satisfying- even if it's
one tiny little thing that no one else might think is a big
deal. It sometimes takes a while to get there and so it's nice
to see it pay off with perseverance. And I love my ASD
students! Learning more about autism has really become
one of my favorite things! The most challenging thing for
me is the occasions when there are difficult families and
other professionals to work with. It is sometimes hard to
maintain patience when that happens!

10. Question 8
Q: How many hours do you typically work each week?
Are the hours flexible?
A: 40 hours per week for the school system. I have less
flexibility given that I only have one school. I would
say I spend at least 5-10 hours per week outside
of/after work doing work related things. And I have an
hour that I work per week for Basic Concepts.

11. Question 9
Q: Are you ever required to travel for this job?
A: I do not currently have to travel as I am in one
school. On a rare occasion, I will go to another school
to assess a student for another SLP or do some
consultation.

12. Question 10
Q: Is there a demand for more speech-language
pathologists?
A: Yes! Always!

13. Question 11
Q: What is the “corporate culture” here, i.e. is it formal,
informal, do people work independently or together, do they
come early, stay late, etc.?
A: I have a very large school- a primary school (grades pre-k
through 2nd with 700+ students and at least 30 teachers.)
Despite it being a huge school, I feel it is close knit- with
supportive administration and teachers who are eager to work
with me to help their students. I do feel though, that the school
system in general is much too "political" at times and not really
for the kids. Within my county, I have monthly speech
department meetings where we collaborate and have
professional development. We also operate as 3 "speech
regions" within our county- so I can reach out to my region if I
need anything, and vice versa. So far, I've enjoyed the team
approach I've experienced.

14. Question 12
Q: Are there any opportunities for advancement in this
field? Do you think the job will change over the next 5 to 10
years?
A: There are many opportunities for growth- it is so
important to stay current with good practices and to be
willing to embrace new ideas. There are constantly CEU
activities that are available (live seminars, webcasts, etc.). I
don't think the field itself will change, just maybe how we
do things- i.e. AAC is always going to be a "thing" but I see
iPads and other technology being utilized more so than old
school communication devices.

15. Question 13
Q: What, if anything, do you wish you had known
before entering this occupation?
A: Just how broad of a field it really is! That if I have
interest in any particular area, to get experience in it
before I get too far along my career path.

16. Question 14
Q: What special advice would you give a person
entering this field?
A: Keep an open-mind! Not only when starting out
(this will expand you to thinking about what type of
job to pursue), but every day- being flexible will allow
you to adapt treatment to the client's needs, do
assessments that are meaningful, and just make each
day more interesting! Being rigid in thought or in
practice will not get you far at all!

17. Question 15
Q: In your opinion, is the most hiring done on an
internal or external basis?
 A: Most of the SLPs who I currently work with came
from out of the region, including several out of state.
But I do think it helps if you have some sort of tie
that could get your foot in the door. I'm not sure
where I'd be working without reaching out to my
former supervisor! But really, from what I've seen,
SLPs are in such high demand, employers aren't too
picky about where they come from.