The most important aspect of my personality that has brought me this far is my outgoing nature, and my eagerness to build my life upon interpersonal reactions and relationships. It is this trait that has granted me many opportunities in life, and has led me down a number of different academic and professional avenues, each one providing new insight about who I am and what motivates me. Without these skills, I would not have had the ability to enjoy such a diverse life, and now I seek to help others overcome their own communication barriers. It is critical that we be given the tools to develop ourselves as social beings from a young age, and this is an idea that I want to uphold in my career as a speech language pathologist.
For this reason, I have chosen to focus on speech, language, and communication disorders as the specialization behind my Master’s program in Speech Language Pathology at Buffalo State College.
I didn’t reach this conclusion by always knowing it intuitively. Rather, I came to this realization through a life of varying experiences and learning opportunities. When first pursuing an advanced education, I was motivated by the idea that I wanted to learn something safe and widely applicable, for the sake of my own financial stability. That led me to earning my Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, suggested by the belief that this degree would allow me to find success as a businesswoman.
While an undergraduate student, I worked at a bank where I applied my skills in a practical environment. While this job was providing me the financial security that I had desired, it did not feel like the right fit for who I was, and who I was becoming. My mindset and priorities shifted dramatically throughout my undergraduate career.
Financial success ceased to be my prime motivation. Instead, I searched for a field that would fulfill my inner passions as an altruist; my true calling. I wanted to be in a position where I could have a direct positive impact on the lives of those in need. I wanted to be a source of inspiration and hope for those in my care, helping individuals overcome whatever challenges they may face in their life. It was in this period of time that an interest in speech language pathology began to come to fruition.
When considering a new direction for my life, I reminisced back to my childhood spent listening to my parents debate the meanings and origins of words. I grew up surrounded by dictionaries, immersed in the exploration of communication and language. This upbringing is what molded me into an outgoing and intellectually curious individual. Today, I am finding those pages of my life acting as a guiding light towards a specific interest in speech language pathology.
After doing diligent research of the field, I recognized it to be a fascinating blend of science and education, and something that would feed my sensibilities as an imaginative and curious teacher and learner. Thus began my journey to mold these aspirations into my reality. I sought out opportunities to learn more about this field via practical experience, and began observing at the Buffalo Speech & Hearing Clinic. I also attended a clinic at La Salle University Speech-Language Hearing Community Clinic where I have recently completed my program in Pre-Speech Language Pathology. I managed to obtain a cumulative 45 clinical observation hours under the supervision of numerous speech language pathologists between these two educational experiences.
These opportunities helped me tremendously in seeing the monumental impact this field can have on the lives of those who need it. Watching students improve their language skills and their ability to communicate their thoughts and ideas was the adrenaline rush I have been in search of for most of my adult life. At that point I knew, without a doubt in my mind and my heart, that my life’s purpose was to help those in need regain control over their life, by equipping them with the tools and insights of speech language pathology. This fits with the lifelong sympathy I have harbored for those facing communication disorders, and I want to use a career in speech language pathology to help them overcome these barriers and find their own life’s purpose.
A specialization in communication disorders and rehabilitation will make me an important figure in the lives of so many who need and deserve advocacy. Speech disorders are not impossible to overcome, but those struggling with these issues are too often left behind because no one is willing to help them. I want to help individuals who struggle with the use of social communication, aiding both adults and children in a hospital or school setting. My career interests are robust, and I hope that I can treat clients throughout their lifespan. This includes early intervention language and feeding for infants, K-8 language learning differences, autism, and pediatric speech sound disorders.
I also hope to aid those who have suffered diseases or injuries which have impaired their cognitive functions. A traumatic brain injury, for instance, can have effects that go far beyond physical changes. Conditions such as aphasia, motor speech disorders, dysphagia, cerebral vascular accidents, and other acquired language and neurocognitive disorders can completely alter the direction of one’s life, and adapting to a new normal derived from a change in brain function can be incredibly difficult. These individuals need advocates who will work to both steer them back to where they were before their injury, and help them acclimate to the changes they must now face. I am passionate about specializing in the treatment and management of these neurological profundities, and this will be what guides me throughout this program.
If I could answer one research question about these disorders, I would want to know what is most effective in restoring brain function to where it once was. I want to be able to make life changing differences for those whom I can help, and having a greater understanding of what tools we have to reverse these neurological changes, and how effective they are, will enable me to do so. I find this research question unique and fascinating, because I believe it is a two-tiered approach that utilizes both science and teaching. A greater scientific understanding of neurology and how it affects speech and language holds the key to creating evidence-based treatment options for these patients.
However, at the same time, the strategies we employ when teaching and managing these patients are equally important. The brain is such a complex organ, and it can be exercised in very specific ways depending on how we address these patients. It is imperative that experts be able to utilize management strategies that are specifically tailored to the needs and understanding of a particular patient. There is no one-size-fits-all answer to these challenges, but that is why I find the field so engaging and exciting. Improving our communication is key to living a fulfilling life, and no other specialty has the scope to address this critical aspect of human nature than speech language pathology. I hope to become a speech language pathologist who can provide comprehensive and individualized care to those seeking my help, and this program at Buffalo State College is absolutely imperative to that goal.
