How to hire a speech therapist

How to hire a speech therapist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step speech therapist hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a speech therapist job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new speech therapist
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a speech therapist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a speech therapist, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A speech therapist's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, speech therapists from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents speech therapist salaries for various positions.

   Type of Speech Therapist	Description	Hourly rate
   Speech Therapist	Speech-language pathologists (sometimes called speech therapists) assess, diagnose, treat, and help to prevent communication and swallowing disorders in patients. Speech, language, and swallowing disorders result from a variety of causes, such as a stroke, brain injury, hearing loss, developmental delay, Parkinson’s disease, a cleft palate or autism.	$25-44
   Graduate Student Clinician	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... Show more	$19-40
   Student Clinician	A Student Clinician is a healthcare practitioner who works as caregiver of a patient in a hospital or clinic. They integrate knowledge obtained in courses into the clinical practicum assignments.	$19-40

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Home Health
   • Rehabilitation
   • Acute Care
   • Asha
   • Treatment Programs
   • Language Disorders
   • Communication Disorders
   • Medicare
   • Speech Therapy
   • Test Results
   • English Language
   • Compassion
   • Language Therapy

   Check all skills

   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.

   More speech therapist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the speech therapist job description is a good way to get more applicants. A speech therapist salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a speech therapist in Tennessee may be lower than in California, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level speech therapist. Additionally, a speech therapist with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average speech therapist salary

   $70,411yearly

   $33.85 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level speech therapist salary

   $52,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 5, 2025

   Average speech therapist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$92,364	$44
   2	Virginia	$84,815	$41
   3	Missouri	$80,205	$39
   4	Pennsylvania	$75,219	$36
   5	New York	$71,981	$35
   6	Colorado	$71,978	$35
   7	Illinois	$70,876	$34
   8	Florida	$70,381	$34
   9	New Mexico	$69,177	$33
   10	South Carolina	$68,605	$33
   11	Texas	$66,350	$32
   12	North Dakota	$65,585	$32
   13	Oklahoma	$64,122	$31
   14	Nebraska	$61,954	$30
   15	Indiana	$58,968	$28
   16	Alabama	$58,744	$28
   17	South Dakota	$58,054	$28

   Average speech therapist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Ohio's Hospice of Dayton	$95,477	$45.90
   2	Aya Healthcare	$93,201	$44.81	5
   3	Therapy Source	$91,867	$44.17	94
   4	Chapters Health System	$89,468	$43.01
   5	Blue Sky Therapy	$89,348	$42.96
   6	Tenet Healthcare	$89,092	$42.83	124
   7	University Hospitals	$88,717	$42.65	4
   8	Encompass Health	$87,218	$41.93	873
   9	Sutter Health	$87,136	$41.89	64
   10	Favorite Healthcare Staffing	$86,914	$41.79
   11	Kaiser Permanente	$86,898	$41.78	126
   12	Highland Manor Nursing Ctr.	$86,555	$41.61
   13	ProCare Therapy	$86,433	$41.55
   14	Health First	$85,422	$41.07	3
   15	Ecumen	$85,185	$40.95	5
   16	Whidbey General Hospital	$85,065	$40.90
   17	Beacon Health Options	$84,913	$40.82	9
   18	Hackensack Meridian Health	$84,748	$40.74	36
   19	Memorial Hospital	$84,704	$40.72	1
   20	Fellowship Senior Living	$84,284	$40.52

4. Writing a speech therapist job description

   A speech therapist job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a speech therapist job description:

   Speech therapist job description example

   Our mission is clear. We bring to life a healing ministry through our compassionate care and exceptional service.
   
   At Mercy, we believe in careers that match the unique gifts of unique individuals - careers that not only make the most of your skills and talents, but also your heart. Join us and discover why Modern Healthcare Magazine named us in its “Top 100 Places to Work.”

   $10,000 Sign on Bonus!!!

   
   Overview:

   Under the general supervision of the Manager of Physical Medicine and according to standards of treatment, performs objective assessments as well as comprehensive individualized treatment programs for patients of all ages according to departmental policies and procedures regarding referral.

   
   Qualifications:

   Education: Master's Degree in Speech/Language Pathology.
   Licensure: Current Oklahoma licensure or eligible for Oklahoma licensure.
   Experience: One year experience.
   Certifications : Certification from American Speech and Hearing Association. BLS certified.
   Preferred Experience: Experience in caring for patients of all ages preferred.

   We Offer Great Benefits:

   
   Day-one comprehensive health, vision and dental coverage, PTO, tuition reimbursement and employer-matched retirement funds are just a few of the great benefits offered to eligible co-workers, including those working 48 hours or more per pay period!

   We're bringing to life a healing ministry through compassionate care.

   
   At Mercy, our supportive community will be behind you every step of your day, especially the tough ones. You will have opportunities to pioneer new models of care and transform the health care experience through advanced technology and innovative procedures. We're expanding to help our communities grow. Join us and be a part of it all.

   
   What Makes You a Good Match for Mercy?

   
   Compassion and professionalism go hand-in-hand with us. Having a positive outlook and a strong sense of advocacy is in perfect step with our mission and vision. We're also collaborative and unafraid to do a little extra to deliver excellent care - that's just part of our commitment. If that sounds like a good fit for you, we encourage you to apply.

   
   

   Mercy has determined this is a safety-sensitive position. The ability to work in a constant state of alertness and in a safe manner is an essential function of this job.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right speech therapist for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your speech therapist job on Zippia to find and recruit speech therapist candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit speech therapists, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new speech therapist

   Once you've selected the best speech therapist candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a speech therapist?