Male SLPs?

[Integralpix]

How many male speech-language pathologists work in the hospital setting? Is it considered "weird" for men to do so? I shadowed an SLP and was surprised to find that her job included holding and feeding preemies in the NICU. Would people have an adverse reaction to a male doing this? Do you think there would be an unwritten closed-door policy regarding hiring male SLPs for the hospital setting? An advisor for the local SLP program told me that 90% of the profession is made up of women. And that most of the men who do enter the field usually wind up in research and teaching. Why is this?

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[Rosemary]

I think that's a great question and one I have often wondered, because for many aspects of the profession there is nothing innately feminine other than that it is a "caring profession." I think that SLP positions working in the NICU are relatively rare (someone can correct me if I'm wrong) so if it was something you weren't comfortable with, or were concerned that others wouldn't be, there are many other hospital positions available. I am an undergraduate student now and I've had two male classmates, and after the one of the guys graduated last year I've really missed him. He seemed more laid back than the rest of us. I have no idea if this is true, but I've seen people write on other message boards that sometimes admissions committees look favorably on male applicants b/c they're a minority in this field. I wish you the best!

 

[RemiJP]

How many male speech-language pathologists work in the hospital setting? Is it considered "weird" for men to do so? I shadowed an SLP and was surprised to find that her job included holding and feeding preemies in the NICU. Would people have an adverse reaction to a male doing this? Do you think there would be an unwritten closed-door policy regarding hiring male SLPs for the hospital setting? An advisor for the local SLP program told me that 90% of the profession is made up of women. And that most of the men who do enter the field usually wind up in research and teaching. Why is this?

I think it's just the opposite - men are welcomed into any aspect of the profession which interests them. I don't think there is an unwritten policy against hiring men in the hospital setting. I agree that admissions committees would look favorably upon male applicants! Within communication disorders there are certain disorders (autism, TBI) which disproportionately effect boys/men. There have been many times I've thought that some of the boys I've worked with would really benefit from having a male therapist.

Infant feeding and swallowing is a growing area of our profession and I think men would be welcomed to apply for positions that include work with this population. You see lots of male neonatalogists (MDs) afterall! I have NO idea why there aren't more men in the profession. There are two men in my 1st year grad class out of 25, one is going on for an MS/PhD (out of six going this route).