If you are a speech-language pathologist looking to boost your continuing education units (CEUs), it can be difficult to know where to begin, especially if you are in your first three years of certification. No matter what state you are certified in, we’ve compiled a list of the six best practices that will help you make the right CEU choices.
1. Check Your Eligibility
First things first: are you eligible to earn CEU’s for the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA)? To be eligible, you must meet at least one of these criteria:
- ASHA Member (includes Life Member and International affiliates)
- ASHA Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC) Holder
- Licensed by a state or provincial regulatory agency to practice speech-language pathology (SLP) or audiology
- Credentialed by a state regulatory agency to practice SLP or audiology
- Credentialed by a national regulatory agency to practice SLP or audiology
- Engaged in a Clinical Fellowship, which is supervised by someone with their ASHA CCC
- Currently enrolled in a masters or doctoral program in SLP or audiology
One of these criteria must be met by the time you finish a CEU course for it to be added towards your certification.
2. Look for Approved Continuing Education (CE) Providers
It is important to remember that an ASHA Approved CE Provider will display the ASHA logo or brand block prominently near their course offerings. There are over 525 approved partners in the US providing over 28,600 CEU activities and courses per year. Whether online or elsewhere, look for the ASHA symbol to ensure you are pursuing an approved CEU course. You can also use the ASHA CEFind tool to search for an Approved Provider.
3. Understand What a CEU Is
A continuing education credit (CEU) is equal to 10 clock hours of coursework. This is the national standard time measure for CE activities as set by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET).
Be sure to check how a provider awards time spent for their courses. For instance, at PDH, we calculate time in half-hour increments. Therefore, 1.5 hours spent on a course is 0.15 CEU’s.
4. Make Sure You Are On the ASHA Registry
If you aren’t already, signing on to the official ASHA registry is well worth it, for a few reasons.
First and foremost, it is the only way to officially track your CEUs. Continuing Education providers cannot award ASHA CEUs though, at PDH, we do report your course completion directly to ASHA for you. Secondly, it is a low cost, convenient and stress-free way to document the required CE hours you need to maintain your certification. Finally, the ASHA Registry will provide you with one free updated transcript per year.
All of this for a small annual registration fee? Doesn’t get much better than that.
5. Calculate Your Costs
A variety of factors can determine how much a CEU will cost, such as:
- Which state you are in
- Type of course (community college, webinar, online written etc.)
- Whether you attend an event e.g. out-of-state ASHA convention
- Out-of-town seminars (sometimes multi-day)
Look carefully at your education needs and interests, and aim to attend events that are close to home. Also, do some research and take advantage of online offers. At PDH, we offer course bundles and package deals that bring your costs down, as well as percentages off when you purchase a certain amount of course material.
6. Manage Your Time Effectively
This part requires discipline, especially if you are pursuing online courses to get CEUs. The ASHA requirement to maintain certification is 3.0 CEUs, or 30 hours, every three years. While that may sound like a long time, it can go by quickly; you don’t want to be caught scrambling for CEUs at the end of the 36-month period. Be diligent in looking out for CEU material that interests you, and make time to complete those courses.
At PDH, we are proud to provide ASHA approved Continuing Education Courses that are engaging, informative and affordable for all. Our instructors are industry leaders with years of experience to share with you in the convenience of your home. Click to learn more about the Speech-Language Pathology Courses that we offer, and feel inspired to continue your education.