Apply for a PhD in Communication Disorders and Sciences

Application Deadline

Application deadline is January 15 each year for admission into the fall program.

University of Oregon College of Education CDS PhD students

Prerequisites

While the communication disorders and sciences doctoral program is designed to meet the needs of students entering from a variety of specialty areas related to speech-language pathology, swallowing, and brain injury rehabilitation, most applicants have:

  • Master’s degree in communication disorders
  • Certificate of clinical competence
  • Research area of interest upon admission

Application Instructions

Prior to submitting your application, you should have contact with a UO faculty member in your area of specialization and have identified a potential doctoral mentor.

To apply to the communication disorders and sciences doctoral program, you must submit the following with your program application to the Division of Graduate Studies. The application opens September 15 with a deadline of January 15 each year for admission into the following fall doctoral program.

Three letters of recommendation from individuals familiar with your academic background and your aptitude for doctoral work in speech-language pathology. 

The letters should specify in detail your capabilities for doctoral study.

Résumé/curriculum vitae describing all relevant educational, work, and research experience.

Statement of purpose describing your research interests and professional goals. Your statement should a) clearly describe your area of interest and why this research is important or significant, b) share how your research interest aligns with your potential faculty mentor(s), and c) discuss your reasons for pursuing a doctoral degree. Please also use this opportunity for the admissions committee to get to know you better by specifically describing how you are prepared to conduct doctoral study within our program. Statements should be approximately 2 pages.

Academic transcripts for all your previous undergraduate and graduate degrees.   
Students for whom English is not their native language must also pass the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) with a score of:

  • 600 or above for the paper version
  • 100 or above for the online version

Optional:

  1. Is there anything we did not ask you that you feel is important for us to know when reviewing your application? Please limit this response to no more than 1/2 a page.
  2. Do you have any research-related writing that you would like to share with the admissions committee? This could include, for example, a thesis, journal article, poster presentation, or research-related course assignment.

NOTE: Scores for the GRE are not required.

Prior to admissions decisions, all applicants will be invited for a remote interview with their potential mentor and other members of the admissions committee and/or CDS faculty.

Program Application

You will need to apply to the University of Oregon's Division of Graduate Studies. Applications open September 15, and are due by January 15 for entry into the program the following fall.

Access the Program Application

Nonrefundable Application Fee: $70 (Domestic Students)/$90 (International Students), paid by credit card or eCheck. You will need to pay the application fee before you are able to submit the application. Fee waivers and discounts are available to students that qualify. 

International applicants seeking program nomination for an international application fee waiver must have a completed UO Division of Graduate Studies Online Graduate Application and then submit a request to the program via email no later than one month before the initial application deadline. At that time, the applicant must have all components of the application completed, uploaded, and ready to submit for the request to be considered. There are limited opportunities for this waiver. Applicants will be notified if their request is approved within 1 week of the deadline to request.

Financial Supports  
UO College of Education Scholarships (due by Feb 9)   
UO Scholarships  
Financial Aid (priority deadline March 1)   
Division of Graduate Studies Funding and Graduate Employment

Please contact the CDS Academic Program Coordinator  at cds@uoregon.edu if you have questions.