What does a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant do?

Assist speech-language pathologists in the assessment and treatment of speech, language, voice, and fluency disorders. Day to day that includes work like document clients' progress toward meeting established treatment objectives and Implement treatment plans or protocols as directed by speech-language pathologists.

What skills should a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant put on a resume?

O*NET rates Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Speaking, Social Perceptiveness, and Monitoring among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Adobe Audition, Biofeedback software, Bungalow Software Aphasia Tutor, ELR Software eLr Extra Language Resources, and Email software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Speech-Language Pathology Assistant work?

O*NET records 18 titles for this occupation, including Communication Assistant, Speech Pathologist Assistant, Speech-Language Pathologist Assistant, and SLPA. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 58% reported their level of education as "Associate's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Speech-Language Pathology Assistant resume example

A resume for a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant needs to show the work itself: assist speech-language pathologists in the assessment and treatment of speech, language, voice, and fluency disorders. Day to day that means work like this: document clients' progress toward meeting established treatment objectives; implement treatment plans or protocols as directed by speech-language pathologists. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

Communication Assistant
Speech Pathologist Assistant
Speech-Language Pathologist Assistant
SLPA
Speech Assistant
Speech Paraeducator
Speech Therapy Assistant
Speech-Language Assistant
Speech-Language Technician
Anatomic Pathology Assistant
Certified Pathology Assistant
Hearing and Speech Assistant
Language Assistant
Pathology Assistant
Speech and Language Pathology Assistant
Speech and Language Assistant
Speech Correction Assistant
Speech Pathology Assistant

What people in this job call themselves

Titles reported by people actually doing this work, which is often not the title on the job posting.

Speech-Language Pathologist Assistant (SLPA)
Speech-Language Pathologists Assistant (SLPA)
Speech-Language Pathology Assistant (SLPA)

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Document clients' progress toward meeting established treatment objectives.
Implement treatment plans or protocols as directed by speech-language pathologists.
Collect and compile data to document clients' performance or assess program quality.
Perform support duties, such as preparing materials, keeping records, maintaining supplies, and scheduling activities.
Assist speech-language pathologists in the remediation or development of speech and language skills.
Select or prepare speech-language instructional materials.
Assist speech-language pathologists in the conduct of client screenings or assessments of language, voice, fluency, articulation, or hearing.
Prepare charts, graphs, or other visual displays to communicate clients' performance information.
Test or maintain equipment to ensure correct performance.
Conduct in-service training sessions, or family and community education programs.
Assist speech-language pathologists in the conduct of speech-language research projects.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Document clients' progress toward meeting established treatment objectives, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Implement treatment plans or protocols as directed by speech-language pathologists, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Collect and compile data to document clients' performance or assess program quality, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Perform support duties, such as preparing materials, keeping records, maintaining supplies, and scheduling activities, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

Adobe Audition
Biofeedback software
Bungalow Software Aphasia Tutor
ELR Software eLr Extra Language Resources
Email software
KayPENTAX Multi-Speech
Language analysis software
Learning Fundamentals Speech Visualization
Micro Video Video Voice Speech Training System
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Office software
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Word
Propeller Multimedia React2

19 software entries are recorded in total.

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

Airflow measurement devices
Alternative computer keyboards
Circumaural headphones
Closed circuit television CCTV surveillance systems
Communications boards
Compact disk CD players
Compact stereo systems
Computer inkjet printers
Copy machines
Desktop computers
Diagnostic stroboscopes
Digital audio recorders

Skills an ATS reads for

Worth naming only if they are genuinely yours. Keyword overlap is one input to a resume's score, not a verdict.

Adobe Audition
Biofeedback

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Active Listening
02Reading Comprehension
03Speaking
04Social Perceptiveness
05Monitoring
06Service Orientation
07Complex Problem Solving
08Active Learning
09Critical Thinking
10Judgment and Decision Making

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

English Language
Education and Training
Therapy and Counseling
Psychology
Customer and Personal Service
Administrative

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

58%Associate's Degree
23%Bachelor's Degree
14%Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Medium Preparation Needed”. Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.

Common questions

What does a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant do?: Assist speech-language pathologists in the assessment and treatment of speech, language, voice, and fluency disorders. Day to day that includes work like document clients' progress toward meeting established treatment objectives and Implement treatment plans or protocols as directed by speech-language pathologists.
What skills should a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant put on a resume?: O*NET rates Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Speaking, Social Perceptiveness, and Monitoring among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Adobe Audition, Biofeedback software, Bungalow Software Aphasia Tutor, ELR Software eLr Extra Language Resources, and Email software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Speech-Language Pathology Assistant work?: O*NET records 18 titles for this occupation, including Communication Assistant, Speech Pathologist Assistant, Speech-Language Pathologist Assistant, and SLPA. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 58% reported their level of education as "Associate's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.