Speech-Language Pathologists

Median salary

$97,870

Average salary

$98,170

Employment

183,390

Projected growth

15% growth

Annual openings

13,300

Typical entry education

Master's degree

What Speech-Language Pathologists Do

Assess and treat persons with speech, language, voice, and fluency disorders. May select alternative communication systems and teach their use. May perform research related to speech and language problems.

See full salary breakdown & percentiles →

Career Outlook

National employment outlook, 2024–2034.

Related work experience: None
On-the-job training: Internship/residency
Self-employed: 3.3%

Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.

How Much Preparation Does This Take?

Job Zone 5 of 5

Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed

Experience: Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience.
Education: Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).
Job training: Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.

Source: O*NET Job Zones.

Key Knowledge Areas

Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.

English Languageimportance 4.9/5
Education and Trainingimportance 4.2/5
Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 4.0/5
Psychologyimportance 4.0/5
Therapy and Counselingimportance 4.0/5
Administrativeimportance 3.6/5
Sociology and Anthropologyimportance 3.2/5
Medicine and Dentistryimportance 3.1/5

Work Environment

What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.

Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams5.0/5
Contact With Others5.0/5
Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team4.9/5
Physical Proximity4.8/5
Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals4.6/5
Freedom to Make Decisions4.6/5

Careers With Similar Skills

Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.

Musicians and Singers97% skill match
General Internal Medicine Physicians96% skill match
Exercise Physiologists96% skill match
Teaching Assistants, Postsecondary96% skill match
Nurse Midwives95% skill match
Self-Enrichment Teachers95% skill match
Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education95% skill match
Nurse Practitioners95% skill match

Transferable Skills

Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.

Social Perceptivenessimportance 4.1/5
Instructingimportance 3.9/5
Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.9/5
Service Orientationimportance 3.8/5
Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 3.8/5
Coordinationimportance 3.3/5
Time Managementimportance 3.3/5
Systems Analysisimportance 3.1/5

Software & Technologies

Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.

Hot Technologies

Other Software Used

Adobe Audition
Apple Logic Pro
Avaaz Innovations AphasiaMate
Avaaz Innovations Computerized Speech Research Environment CSRE
Avaaz Innovations Interactive Voice Analysis System IVANS
Biofeedback software
Bungalow Software Aphasia Tutor
Dropbox

Work Style

Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.

Empathy
Attention to Detail
Cooperation
Dependability
Social Orientation
Optimism
Sincerity

Career Interests

This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.

SocialHigh
InvestigativeHigh
ConventionalMedium
ArtisticMedium
RealisticLow
EnterprisingLow

This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.

Where This Career Is Most Concentrated

Metro areas where speech-language pathologists make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).