Graduate student clinician vs speech therapist

The differences between graduate student clinicians and speech therapists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a graduate student clinician and a speech therapist. Additionally, a speech therapist has an average salary of $70,411, which is higher than the $59,667 average annual salary of a graduate student clinician.

The top three skills for a graduate student clinician include motor speech disorders, patients and autism. The most important skills for a speech therapist are patients, home health, and rehabilitation.

Graduate student clinician vs speech therapist overview

	Graduate Student Clinician	Speech Therapist
Yearly salary	$59,667	$70,411
Hourly rate	$28.69	$33.85
Growth rate	21%	21%
Number of jobs	39,709	57,509
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 80%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	2	2

What does a graduate student clinician do?

Graduate student clinicians can be a nurse practitioner, pharmacist, or doctor whose primary job is to work with patients and assist patients in managing their medical condition or illness. They perform varied duties and responsibilities that include maintaining a good relationship with patients, discussing the treatment progress to patients, and documenting patients' medical history. Additionally, they are also responsible for assisting physicians on non-surgical procedures, updating the medical information of patients on charts, and giving diagnostic tests.

What does a speech therapist do?

Speech Therapists work with patients across multiple age groups to facilitate the treatment of speech and language disorders, such as stammers and stutters. They work with people who cannot produce speech sounds or cannot produce them clearly.

Graduate student clinician vs speech therapist salary

Graduate student clinicians and speech therapists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Graduate Student Clinician	Speech Therapist
Average salary	$59,667	$70,411
Salary range	Between $41,000 And $85,000	Between $52,000 And $93,000
Highest paying City	-	Richmond, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	Ohio's Hospice of Dayton
Best paying industry	-	Professional

Differences between graduate student clinician and speech therapist education

There are a few differences between a graduate student clinician and a speech therapist in terms of educational background:

	Graduate Student Clinician	Speech Therapist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 80%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Most common major	Communication Disorders Sciences	Communication Disorders Sciences
Most common college	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	Northwestern University

Graduate student clinician vs speech therapist demographics

Here are the differences between graduate student clinicians' and speech therapists' demographics:

	Graduate Student Clinician	Speech Therapist
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 9.7% Female, 90.3%	Male, 9.0% Female, 91.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 4.4% White, 77.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 9.6% Asian, 4.5% White, 76.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between graduate student clinician and speech therapist duties and responsibilities

Graduate student clinician example responsibilities.

Provide evaluation and treatment of communication disorders including autism, language disorders, and phonology disorders for preschool-age children through adult.
Participate in development and execution of treatment activities targeting expressive/receptive language, articulation, fluency, and AAC.
Complete bedside swallow evaluations, dysphagia management, and speech-language assessment and treatment for individuals within the inpatient acute care department.
Learned to use ArcMap (GIS software) on site and utilize as primary tool for analysis.
Work with patients that have tracheostomy tubes, ventilators, alternative means for communication, traumatic brain injuries, and strokes.
Participate and present information to parents and professionals at various IEP meetings.

Speech therapist example responsibilities.

Conduct individual and group therapy with individuals diagnose with speech and language impairment, learning disabilities, and autism spectrum disorder.
Conduct IEP meetings and provide documentation for Medicaid billing.
Provide services to children with developmental delay and autism.
Graduate student supervisor, and supervisor for CFY's.
Work under the supervision of an ASHA's certify SLP.
Instruct children in the proper use of assistive devices such as hearing aides.

Graduate student clinician vs speech therapist skills

Common graduate student clinician skills

Motor Speech Disorders, 15%
Patients, 11%
Autism, 10%
Dysphagia, 7%
Traumatic Brain Injury, 5%
Group Therapy Sessions, 3%

Common speech therapist skills

Patients, 29%
Home Health, 25%
Rehabilitation, 8%
Acute Care, 7%
Asha, 5%
Treatment Programs, 4%

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Graduate Student Clinician
Graduate Student Clinician vs Speech Therapist

Updated January 8, 2025

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