Things to know about grad school
A few days ago I was asked to record a podcast about Grad school (shout out katie from IG). As I started thinking about ALL the things I would tell someone before, during, and after grad school, I realized I am one person. With one perspective. So I opened this question up to SLPs near and far and came up with 10 things to know about grad school including challenges we faced and what we’ve learned. Thank you so much to my very own grad cohort and SLPs via the IG uniersie for responding to my CTA (call to action) and helping with this one!
ENJOY/Trust THE PROCESS/journey/adventure
Nicole (My fellow UoR alum) says that “Graduate school is hard but so rewarding if you’re truly doing what you love. It’s finally school that is 100% applicable to what you want to do (okay maybe 95% applicable).”
Emily (AKA one of my amazing grad school co-clinician) says I think the biggest thing that l have kept in mind is that it’s okay if my interests shift while getting exposed to new things! I was highly set on doing AAC when I entered and wanted to do a research thesis. While learning more, I got very excited about doing NICU work and I had to work to not feel guilt about changing my mind! I agree… don’t succumb to tunnel vision. If i had done that, I wouldn’t even be an SLP let alone working with my favorite population.
I say if you aren’t enjoying it, then figure out what you can do to promote that enjoyment or decide what really brings you joy. Sure, there are challenges, so get excited about LEARNING from those challenges.
“He who must not be named” says . Grad school only teaches you like 50%. Rest is on you bruh.
Angelica: Agrees with “he who must not be named” and says don’t expect to know everything when you finish grad school, cause part of our profession is that it’s constantly evolving, and we need to always be ready to learn more.
My friend Kari reminds us that “Comparison is the thief of joy. Some of us might be more apt to search for “gram-worthy” therapy spaces and materials and some of us are more apt to lean toward the “grab and go” low prep therapy.... So use other people’s strengths to your advantage but don’t feel like you’ve done things wrong either way”.
And let me just tell you guys who follow me on IG…. that grid is 1/10 of the depiction of what I really am like IRL. I enjoy putting together a pretty puzzle and telling my story through those photos with pretty edits. But as a therapist I’m the opposite and as I grow I hope to share more of the chaos behind the therapy scenes with you.
BE OPEN TO LEARNING FROM OTHERS AND OTHER PERSPECTIVES
**ASK QUESTIONS Lauren (From IG) and myself have a mutual feeling about this one. Lauren says that you shouldn’t ever feel bad asking questions, in class, in the clinic. Those professionals will help you more than you know. I Agree Lauren! For me, it wasn’t until my second semester that I realized how important this was. I was struggling in the more challenging classes but figured I could “teach myself” when I got home when I didn’t understand something in class. I was worried about what my fellow classmates would think if I asked dumb questions. NO QUESTION IS DUMB. And the community I found after asking for help was amazing. Our professors forced us to work together, thank goodness. They encouraged questions and taught us to love the conversation that might start due to your question. That’s where some really great learning can take place. SOLIDIFY THOSE SKILLS PEOPLE.
My friend Nicole says “ My first time working with a client was so scary and I prepped so much (every session in grad school takes 1000x longer to prep than real life). I also looked to my peers and professors. They gave me a perfect balance of encouragement and push to help me become a better clinician. They helped me realize it’s okay not to be perfect - in fact I shouldn’t be otherwise graduate school is a waste of time.” When we look to others, and trust in their support, we can find ways to embrace the imperfections. If you are striving for perfection all the time, you might miss some really great opportunities to learn new ways to do things and grow.
When we are open to asking questions and learning from others, we gain so many new perspectives which can help us solidify our thinking and skills as well as teach us to keep our minds open when we are working with a variety of cultures and backgrounds.
COLLABORATION/RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHERS
This one was mentioned by EVERYONE who responded to me and it is so important. We were not meant to do life alone friends. For me, collaboration in grad school gave me foundational skills on how to collaborate in life and with my teachers. I’m still learning a lot about this because every colleague has a different perspective and way of doing things. Collaborating in grad school sure made comprehensive a hell of a lot more fun at the very least ;).
Nicole reminded me of the importance of having meaningful relationships in grad school with this statement: “I continue to look to my professors and cohort for advice even after a couple years into my career. I’m lucky and work with another SLP directly but so many SLPs don’t have that luxury. They rely on the relationships they formed in graduate school to help them through hard decisions and cases. So my biggest takeaway from graduate school is that relationships are everything (and to foster relationships you need communication so I guess communication is everything and why this job is so important!).”
Angelica says, “Don’t do it alone! You need a good support system, and who better than the people that are going through the exact same thing you are?!”
Lauren says”Make a good group of friends, they will help you study, work on group projects and bounce clinic ideas between one another”.
Shelby reminds us to use what we have in the world today. SOCIAL MEDIA is a huge resource for us (or it can be). Shelby says “ Following SLPs on insta would’ve been so helpful, I had no idea this community existed until this year.”
Shelby also recommends to “ Find your SLP girl gang because they will get you through take all the opportunities you can get, do the thesis, and make sure you take at least one day of the weekend (aka Saturday) for yourself without any speech related things.”
Roxanna says A big one for me is get a good group of girls together to study and destress with! It took me a while to get mine and once I did, it was a game changer!
REFLECT
This one is HUGE for me! My favorite teacher in grad school had us do weekly reflections… not just about our clients, in fact hardly about them. Yes of course we were monitoring how our clients were meeting their goals but she also wanted us to be mindful regarding whether or not we were meeting ours and how we were growing as clinicians. As a very reflective person this resonated with me and kept me mindful. Mindful of my client’s needs as well as my own. It gave me an outlet to destress and reminded me that there is always room for growth. I think it also gave me permission to be open to laughing at myself and grow comfortable being goofy during clinics.
Celebrate small milestones. Every time a client smiles and shows enjoyment is fantastic. Or every “aha” moment you have, mentally pat yourself on the back for applying your newly learned skill.
ALLOW YOURSELF TO BE GOOFY/BEFRIEND THE ONES THAT WILL KEEP YOU LAUGHING
When in doubt, remind yourself to “Make things FUN”.
One of my fellow U of R alum reminded me of this when I asked for help with this post. One of the things that helped during grad school was to find the ones in my cohort who take life less seriously than me. They were serious about the program and becoming some of the best clinicians I’ve met, but they were always there to crack a witty joke when I least expected it and needed it the most. If you are this person, then be yourself and keep the silliness alive for your peers! I’ve learned from them and have taken a little of this into my own workplace now. A fun joke or pun during an IEP meeting can lighten the mood and be very helpful ;).
Learn to LOVE LEARNING FROM YOURSELF
Angelica says “ don’t be afraid to make mistakes or say the wrong answer, cause chances are you will be wrong...but it will end up helping you AND the rest of your peers who were maybe too shy to ask the questions!”
On a personal note, I had a harder time with this until after grad school. I think I started understanding that I could learn from myself and make mistakes. But it wasn’t until I started working in the preschool setting that I gave less worry to my mistakes. Now I tend to celebrate them more because I get way more out of them than I ever realized.
Find a mindfulness outlet ( few are listed below )
Lauren says “ Find something relaxing to do. It's hard and stressful but find a positive outlet you can look forward to!”
My friend Kari reminds us that self care is so important. She says “get in the habit now before the burnout comes so you have coping strategies when you need them!”. Friends, this is why I do improv. I highly recommend it.
Journaling
Yoga
Meditation
Solo study time to yourself
IMPROV ;)
Trust your creativity
I do partake in comedy improv now but learned back in grad school that I can improvise pretty well. I wasn't the one with the fancy games or activities. And I like to joke that I still am the one with the “knock off, DIY” versions of the things my colleagues find on TPT and at Lakeshore. Keeping it simple is great… just make it fun and you’re solid. Also, trust that even if you don’t know what to do AT ALL, that you will be fine because if you have fun, nobody will know the difference ;)
One of my cohort members says “ Learn to make anything fun—you don’t need that 100$ board game, when you can just as efficiently use a shiny coin and a styrofoam cup. Be creative.”
My friend Kari gives us a HUGE piece of advice in saying that “you should only buy on TPT what you know for sure that you will need. Other people’s lesson plans may not always work with your treatment style and it’s always good to challenge yourself and find unique ways to use what you already have.”
TIME MANAGEMENT
Shelby reminds us that “Time management and staying organized is so important !!!“
YES! Setting your priorities and trusting yourself to do so is key. We are all searching for balance and it’s important to figure out a way to organize yourself, quiet your mind, and create your own first, then lists! Remember, you are responsible for your time and how you decide what is of the highest priority. So trust yourself and hold yourself accountable for how you manage your time!
Be humble but assertive.
From my cohort member who will not be named (;)) “The real world is far more concerned with the financial nature of our profession, as opposed to our ability to actually benefit patients—don’t allow that predisposition to overcome you.”
When you do your clinicals and internships remember, fake it til ya make it (meaning stay confident in your decisions - doesn’t mean you can’t ask questions!). It’s okay to feel nervous- that reminds you that you take this seriously, that you want to learn how to do things “right”, and that you know you’re not the “smartest” person in the room. That’s a good place to be. When stating your decisions, reporting on client needs/present levels, and writing goals, use the above tips to help you. Ask your peers/professors to proof things, and then present them like you’re the freaking king/queen of the world.
Kari says “Be teachable. It may sound obvious but nobody wants to work with someone who isn’t humble. Don’t be afraid to admit when you don’t have the answer because it makes you very approachable and trustworthy”. Kari also reminded me that you may not always have the right answer and it’s more valuable to know how to find the right answer than to always have it.
One more thing from my friend and the goofiest guy in our cohort… “Starbucks. Will. Ruin. You. ....But seriously the grande green tea matcha latte with soy milk and light ice, is bomvvbbbbb. You should get it EVERYDAY just before work.”
Thank you all for helping me with this post! Huge shout out to Katie (@k ,, on instagram) for asking for this post/podcast! To the following people: You all are amazing SLPs and I am so grateful for your answers and support!
From my Grad Cohort:
Nicole
Angelica
Kari
“He who must not be named”
From the instagram world:
@laurengius
@emily_g_baum AKA my former co-clinician
@shelbytheslp
@roxy.slp Roxanna