Skip to main content

Speech and Language Therapy BSc(Hons)

2024-25 (also available for 2025-26)

It’s not too late to apply for September.
It’s not too late to apply for September.

Start date

16 September 2024

Duration

3 years full-time

Entry requirements

A Level - ABB

BTEC - DDM

See full entry requirements

Places available (subject to change)

30

About the course

Reasons to study

  1. You’ll participate in teaching and learning opportunities developed alongside the Public Partnership Group, which is made up of service users and carers with lived experience of Speech and Language Therapy.
  2. You’ll put clinical and professional capabilities to the test, including eating, drinking, and swallowing competencies throughout practice-based learning. This will encompass various age groups and settings. 
  3. To acquire essential skills that reflect the multidisciplinary ethos of the profession, you’ll study interprofessionally, with learners from other healthcare professions. 

Speech and language therapists work alongside children and adults who have difficulties with speech, language and communication, eating, drinking, and swallowing. Through holistic assessment and management, speech and language therapists collaborate with the individual, their family and/or carer to provide person-centred care that encompasses health, wellbeing, participation, and quality of life.

This Speech and Language Therapy (SALT) course has been co-developed by practising speech and language therapists with extensive clinical experience. Service users and carers, who are part of the University’s Public Partnership Group, have also contributed to this course and will continue to be involved in developing your clinical and professional capabilities, through planning and assisting with teaching and simulation sessions.

Why study Speech and Language Therapy BSc(Hons)

This course is accredited by the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) and regulated by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). Through three overarching themes, you can develop interdisciplinary knowledge and the core capabilities to undertake holistic assessment and management of individuals with a range of speech and language therapy related difficulties. Those themes are clinical and professional skills, underpinning knowledge, and underpinning clinical knowledge.

The course integrates theory with practical skills in a balanced mix across both paediatrics and adults. Practice-based education, which includes placements, will incorporate all age groups in a variety of contexts and environments. The degree emphasises life-long transferable skills for graduates to implement in a variety of related career pathways too, in, for example clinical, research, leadership, and education.

To acquire essential skills that reflect the multidisciplinary ethos of the profession, you’ll study interprofessionally with learners from other healthcare professions. You’ll also benefit from specialist clinical teaching facilities and world-leading research facilities via the University’s new Daphne Steele Building, which will open in 2024 on the site of the National Health Innovation campus.

Following successful completion of the course, you might go on to work in healthcare, as an allied health professional, as a speech-language pathologist, a therapist, or another relevant role.

Students on this course may be eligible to receive a non-repayable grant of at least £5,000 each year – find out more on the NHS Learning Support Fund website.

Not quite ready to start Speech and Language Therapy BSc(Hons)? Successful completion of our Health Foundation Pathway leading to a BSc(Hons) Degree will equip you with the foundation knowledge to study Speech and Language Therapy.

Course detail

Core modules:

Biomedical Sciences for Speech and Language Therapy

You’ll have the opportunity to acquire basic knowledge on general anatomy, physiology and biological processes relevant to speech and language therapy, alongside an introduction to audiology and the audiological management of hearing impairment. You’ll learn about the major systems of the human body, the anatomical structures and neurological control relevant to the human communication system and swallowing in both children and adults. You’ll also study basic principles of and approaches to hearing and hearing loss.

Clinical and Professional Capabilities 1

You’ll be introduced to the clinical and professional capabilities of speech and language therapists and provided with the opportunity to develop your knowledge, understanding and practical skills related to the profession. You’ll participate in two placements during the year. The placements will provide the opportunity for you to start developing an understanding of the speech and language therapists role, as well as the breadth of settings they work within and the range of potential service users.

Fundamentals of Speech, Language and Communication 1

This module provides the opportunity to gain foundation knowledge from a range of disciplines of relevance to speech and language therapy. You’ll be introduced to theoretical issues in linguistics. You’ll also learn about the milestones, features and theories of typical development of speech, language and communication from birth to school age. Your development as a holistic practitioner will be further enhanced through an awareness of social and cognitive models of psychology, changes and adaptations of an individual across the lifespan, as well as socio-cultural influences.

Introduction to Clinical Management in Speech and Language Therapy

This module introduces you to the service user’s journey within speech and language therapy, as well as principles of assessment, diagnosis, management and intervention. Focusing on disorders and conditions affecting fluency, voice and the development of speech sounds in children, you’ll consider factors that influence clinical decision-making from referral to discharge. You’ll also gain basic knowledge and understanding of a range of models and theories of the causes of disorders and conditions affecting fluency, voice and the development of speech sounds, as well as their impact on the health, wellbeing and participation of an individual.

Introduction to Descriptive Linguistics

This module introduces you to the structure of language as a system. You'll be able to explore the basics of linguistic description, using mostly, but not only, the English language to illustrate. The module focuses on the fundamental linguistic concept of ‘levels’ of language, starting from the smallest (sounds) and building up to sentence structure. Emphasis is on the development of practical skills in analysing language structure. This module will be assessed by a mixture of coursework assessments and formal examinations.

Professional Development and Research 1

This module involves a multidisciplinary learning approach, where you'll work with occupational therapy, physiotherapy and podiatry students. You'll have the opportunity to explore lifelong learning and continuing professional development that underpins the essential skills needed in order to understand registration requirements for your specific professional and regulatory body.

Entry requirements

ABBat A Level . General Studies and Critical Thinking are excluded. No specific subjects are required but subjects including Sciences, English Language, Psychology and/or Foreign Languages provide a good foundation for Speech and Language Therapy.

128 UCAS tariff points from a combination of Level 3 qualifications, excluding General Studies and Critical Thinking.

Distinction at T Level

DDM in BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma.

  • NCFE CACHE Technical Level 3 Extended Diploma/Level 3 Extended Diploma at grade B.
  • Access to Higher Education Diploma with 45 Level 3 credits, 30 at Distinction, 15 at Merit.
  • 128 UCAS tariff points from International Baccalaureate qualifications.

In addition, five GCSEs or equivalent Ofqual regulated qualification at grade C/level 4 or above, including Maths, English and a single Science covering Biology, Chemistry and/or Physics (Double/Dual Award Science grade CC or above; grade 4 for those sitting their GCSEs from 2017 onwards).

If you do not have the appropriate qualifications for direct entry to this degree you may be able to apply to our Health Foundation Pathway leading to a BSc(Hons) Degree.

Offers will be subject to an interview and references. Please note all the information provided in support of your application may be checked and must be verifiable as a true record.

Should you meet our admissions criteria, you'll be offered an individual interview, typically of no longer than 30 minutes. At present, the interview will likely be carried out using a virtual platform unless there are exceptional circumstances in which an alternative format may be provided. The interview panel may involve members from the University/programme academic team, practising Speech and Language Therapists, service users and/or carers and Placement Educators. Questions will be based on the Values Based Recruitment Framework (HEE, 2016) that will enable you to demonstrate your personality, attributes and skills, whilst ensuring that your individual values and behaviours align with those of the NHS Constitution (NHS, 2015). This is particularly important as future healthcare professionals. Some questions have been set by service users and/or carers to ensure that we include what matters to them when selecting our learners. In addition to considering your interview, we will also review your personal statement which you submitted to UCAS. You may therefore want to include information that illustrates your awareness of Speech and Language Therapy as a profession and what has motivated you to choose this as a career. Whilst we appreciate that not everyone will have gained prior experience in this area, showing your commitment and engagement, such as undertaking a relevant reading, listening to a podcast and/or attending a webinar is welcomed. Evidence of interpersonal/teamwork is also beneficial.

You also need satisfactory enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and occupational health clearances prior to registration on the course. We arrange these as part of the application process. You'll be required to sign a self-declaration at the start of each year and at the end of the course. All police contact during the course must be reported to the course leader as a matter of urgency and may lead to suspension or termination.

Placement providers for this course may require you to have received a number of vaccinations, unless medically exempt, and provide evidence of these. As a student on a course with a clinical or healthcare placement, we strongly recommend that you complete any courses of vaccinations required under current guidelines for your future profession. Failure to do so may result in your inability to undertake a placement in certain clinical settings, therefore impacting upon your academic progression, and may result in academic failure of your course.

Other equivalent qualifications that suggest the student has an equal opportunity of succeeding on the course eg a relevant Access Course, previous professional qualification and/or degree.

If your first language is not English, you will need to meet the minimum requirements of an English Language qualification. The minimum for IELTS is 8.0 overall with no element lower than 7.5, or equivalent. Read more about the University’s entry requirements for students outside of the UK on our Where are you from information pages.

For further information please see the University's minimum entry requirements.

Placements


Practice education is an important and compulsory part of the course. You’ll be required by the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) to successfully complete assessed clinical and professional practice through single day and block weekly placements throughout the three years in a range of health, social and third sector care settings, typically within the West Yorkshire region. Please note that you may be required to travel for/during your placements, with associated costs.

You might incur additional costs associated with practice-based learning such as travel and accommodation. To support these costs including costs which are in excess of your usual daily travel to and from University, you may be eligible to access the NHS Learning Support Fund. Where it is not possible or practical for you to travel to your practice placement from your normal University address, you may be able to claim the costs of taking temporary accommodation.

You’ll be provided with placement opportunities working with both paediatric and adult services across a variety of service user groups. You’ll have opportunities to participate in simulated practice, enabling you to develop your skills in a safe and controlled environment, which will also contribute to the total number of practice education sessions required. You’ll also have the opportunity to participate in our Telehealth and Teletherapy Practice. For more information visit our placements page.

Your career


Upon successful graduation and subject to course approval, you’ll be eligible for registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) and for membership with the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT).

You could work within the NHS, education settings, independent practice, charities and medico-legal firms, including overseas/international locations. Alternatively, you could decide to specialise in a particular area and/or undertake a qualification in advanced clinical practice. You may also have the opportunity to undertake research or work in leadership, management and higher education settings.

 

* Whilst this is a new course and therefore no graduate statistics for this specific course are available, 90% of graduates from the subject area go on to work and/or further study within fifteen months after graduating (HESA Graduate Outcomes 20/21, UK Domiciled).

90% Graduates employed*

Student support

At the University of Huddersfield, you'll find support networks and services to help you get ahead in your studies and social life. Whether you study at undergraduate or postgraduate level, you'll soon discover that you're never far away from our dedicated staff and resources to help you to navigate through your personal student journey. Find out more about all our support services.

A wide range of resources are also offered within the School of Human and Health Sciences, which provides you with support in a variety of areas. These include:

Student Hub: a one stop shop for students, studying within the School. Their services include offering advice on extenuating circumstances, extension requests, course progression, suspension and welfare support, organising appointments with academic staff and signposting to other support networks.

Academic Skills Development Team: support students to develop their academic skills and build their confidence in order to improve their grades. The team provide support with academic skills including essay writing, being critical, reflective writing, numeracy, research skills, presentations and group work skills; as well as personal development for example time management.

Learning Technology Support Unit: helps students with any problems they experience with the University’s Brightspace Learning System, including logging on or difficulties experienced when accessing and using modules, and with the PebblePad platform, which is used by students when they go out on placements.

Important information

We will always try to deliver your course as described on this web page. However, sometimes we may have to make changes as set out below.

Changes to a course you have applied for

If we propose to make a major change to a course that you are holding an offer for, then we will tell you as soon as possible so that you can decide whether to withdraw your application prior to enrolment.

Cancellation of a course you have applied for

Although we always try and run all of the course we offer, we may occasionally have to withdraw a course you have applied for or combine your programme with another programme if we consider this reasonably necessary to ensure a good student experience, for example if there are not enough applicants to ensure you have a good learning experience. Where this is the case we will notify you as soon as reasonably possible and we will contact you to discuss other suitable courses with us we can transfer your application to. If we notify you that the course you have applied to has been withdrawn or combined, and you do not wish to transfer to another course with us, you may cancel your application and we will refund you any deposits or fees you have paid to us.

Changes to your course after you enrol as a student

We will always try to deliver your course and other services as described. However, sometimes we may have to make changes as set out below:

Changes to option modules

Where your course allows you to choose modules from a range of options, we will review these each year and change them to reflect the expertise of our staff, current trends in research and as a result of student feedback or demand for certain modules. We will always ensure that you have a range of options to choose from and we will let you know in good time the options available for you to choose for the following year.

Major changes

We will only make major changes to the core curriculum of a course or to our services if it is necessary for us to do so and provided such changes are reasonable. A major change in this context is a change that materially changes the services available to you; or the outcomes, or a significant part, of your course, such as the nature of the award or a substantial change to module content, teaching days (part time provision), classes, type of delivery or assessment of the core curriculum.

For example, it may be necessary to make a major change to reflect changes in the law or the requirements of the University’s regulators; to meet the latest requirements of a commissioning or accrediting body; to improve the quality of educational provision; in response to student, examiners’ or other course evaluators’ feedback; and/or to reflect academic or professional changes within subject areas. Major changes may also be necessary because of circumstances outside our reasonable control, such as a key member of staff leaving the University or being unable to teach, where they have a particular specialism that can’t be adequately covered by other members of staff; or due to damage or interruption to buildings, facilities or equipment.

Major changes would usually be made with effect from the next academic year, but this may not always be the case. We will notify you as soon as possible should we need to make a major change and will carry out suitable consultation with affected students. If you reasonably believe that the proposed change will cause you detriment or hardship we will, if appropriate, work with you to try to reduce the adverse effect on you or find an appropriate solution. Where an appropriate solution cannot be found and you contact us in writing before the change takes effect you can cancel your registration and withdraw from the University without liability to the University for future tuition fees. We will provide reasonable support to assist you with transferring to another university if you wish to do so.

Termination of course

In exceptional circumstances, we may, for reasons outside of our control, be forced to discontinue or suspend your course. Where this is the case, a formal exit strategy will be followed and we will notify you as soon as possible about what your options are, which may include transferring to a suitable replacement course for which you are qualified, being provided with individual teaching to complete the award for which you were registered, or claiming an interim award and exiting the University. If you do not wish to take up any of the options that are made available to you, then you can cancel your registration and withdraw from the course without liability to the University for future tuition fees and you will be entitled to a refund of all course fees paid to date. We will provide reasonable support to assist you with transferring to another university if you wish to do so.

When you enrol as a student of the University, your study and time with us will be governed by a framework of regulations, policies and procedures, which form the basis of your agreement with us. These include regulations regarding the assessment of your course, academic integrity, your conduct (including attendance) and disciplinary procedure, fees and finance and compliance with visa requirements (where relevant). It is important that you familiarise yourself with these as you will be asked to agree to abide by them when you join us as a student. You will find a guide to the key terms here, along with the Student Protection Plan, where you will also find links to the full text of each of the regulations, policies and procedures referred to. You should read these carefully before you enrol. Please note that this information is subject to change and you are advised to check our website regularly for any changes before you enrol at the University. A person who is not party to this agreement shall not have any rights under or in connection with it. Only you and the University shall have any right to enforce or rely on the agreement.

The Office for Students (OfS) is the principal regulator for the University.

You may also be interested in...

Occupational Therapy BSc(Hons)

Study to become an Occupational Therapist through clinical placements, practical and theory sessions in our specialist facilities.

Find out more How to apply

Full-time

Undergraduate


Physiotherapy BSc(Hons)

Study with us on this career-focused Physiotherapy degree with small teaching groups, practical rooms and great links with healthcare providers.

Find out more How to apply

Full-time

Undergraduate