The Clinical Doctorate in Audiology (Au.D.) degree will prepare you to become a skilled and experienced professional, trained in the areas of diagnostic and rehabilitative audiology. The Au.D. program provides opportunities for you to build on knowledge, leadership skills, problem solving strategies, and professional and ethical issues in audiology.
Completion of the Au.D. program requires four years, including three summer semesters for a total of 11 terms, of combined academic and clinical work. During the fourth-year externship, students are only charged for a total of three credit hours – one credit for the third summer term and one credit each for the fourth fall and spring semesters. The program curriculum includes study in areas such as:
- applied audiology
- cochlear implants
- vestibular and balance
- neuroscience
- pharmacology
- psychoacoustics
- speech perception
- electrophysiology
- pediatric audiology
- hearing conservation
- aural rehabilitation
- clinical instrumentation
- hearing aid technology
- amplification fitting/selection
- counseling, multicultural, ethical and legal business issues
- research procedures
You will gain extensive clinical experiences in the department’s clinics, as well as clinical sites outside of UNL. Off campus sites include private practices, V.A. hospitals, children's hospitals, speech and hearing clinics, rehabilitation clinics, and schools.
The Clinical Doctorate in Audiology culminates in eligibility for the Certificate of Clinical Competence in Audiology (CCC-A), awarded by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), and for Licensure in Audiology in most states.
If you hold a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university you will be eligible for the Au.D. program in Audiology. You don’t need an undergraduate degree in speech and/or hearing science, however, ASHA requires all students to take or show evidence of having taken coursework in math, science, social science, basic human communication processes and speech/language disorders. If you have not taken any of these courses in your undergraduate program it may add one to two semesters to your program.
The Au.D. program of study is designed to meet the changing standards for certification and accreditation that have been mandated by ASHA.
Accreditation
The Clinical Doctorate in Audiology (Au.D.) education program in audiology {residential} at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, 2200 Research Boulevard, #310, Rockville, MD 20850, 800-498-2071 or 301-296-5700.
Other Program Information
The clinical doctoral program in audiology was awarded accreditation on Oct. 1, 2004, and the program has maintained that status since then. Prior to that, the master's degree program in audiology was awarded accreditation on Oct. 31, 1975, and the program maintained that status until Dec. 31, 2006, when the CAA no longer accredited master's level programs in audiology.