Field Placement Policies

Field Placement Time Commitment

It is important to understand that field placements may  operate on a schedule that differs from New York University's academic calendar. When students are engaged in their field placement experience, they are required to adhere to the work and holiday schedule of their field placement site, rather than the university's schedule. This means that students may not be permitted to take time off for NYU's spring break, winter recess, or other university holidays, as well as personal vacations during the term.  Students must maintain consistent and consecutive attendance based on the supervisor's and field placement's schedule.  There should not be any gaps in your attendance during the term. Consistency in attendance is crucial for clinical growth and helps establish a trusting and productive relationship between the student clinician and their clients.  Field placement schedules are determined by the supervisor, and assignments may require students to begin outside of the academic calendar (e.g., before the term start date).- If a student is unavailable to adhere to the  supervisor’s schedule, they risk not being selected for the field placement. This can affect timely placement participation and the accrual of direct contact hours. The Clinical Field Placement Team is under no obligation to accommodate student’s personal schedules when identifying field placement opportunities.  If students are concerned about the field placement and practicum course schedule interfering with their personal schedule or a planned life event, the student will be referred to their Student Success and Academic Advisors to discuss an alternate Plan of Study (POS).  Requests for a later start date, early end date, and mid-term schedule adjustments to include multiple  days  off will not be accommodated.  Please see below for time commitments specific to each field placement experience and the Absence Policy. 

A field placement is a term-long experience at a minimum of 12 weeks in length. The typical NYU term is approximately 15 weeks in length.  Any adjustments to the typical field placement timeline can only be determined and approved by the Clinical Field Placement Team (CFPT) in conjunction with the assigned field placement supervisor. 

Field Placement III

In Practicum III, students will be placed for a term-long, full-time experience (approximately 15-weeks) either in a mixed (pediatric and adult) setting, or a pediatric focused setting based on field placement availability for the target term.  Students must arrange their schedules so they are available to spend two full days a week at the field placement and expect to be there for the field placement’s full working hours each day. As mentioned above, the weekly attendance should be consistent and consecutive based upon the supervisor and field placement schedule.  Any adjustment to the field placement the established schedule requires prior approval from the Clinical Field Placement Team in conjunction with the field placement supervisor. Students must participate at their field placement until their end date regardless if the number of hours earned have surpassed the suggested 75 direct contact hours.  It is beneficial for students to surpass the suggested hours to further their clinical experience and to maximize their direct contact hour accrual  opportunities to facilitate  timely graduation; all direct contact hours accrued across the Practicum Sequence (I-V) count towards graduation requirements.

Field Placement IV and V

The full-time field placement experience includes mostly full-day work experiences.  Therefore, students must arrange their schedules so they are available to spend anywhere from three to five days a week for one full term (approximately 15 weeks) at their advanced Practicum IV and Practicum V field placements. Please note that the minimum schedule must be three days per week.   

Direct contact hours can vary based on client census, cancellations, supervisor absences, etc. and therefore, cannot be guaranteed.  In some cases, students may have to extend their Plan of Study to meet all direct contact hours requirements if the hours are not met across the Clinical Practicum and Field Placement Sequence.  Students should maximize their direct contact hour accrual and proactively discuss their needs with their field placement supervisor(s).  As soon as students are placed for Practicum IV and V, it is recommended that students review their direct contact hour needs and discuss the following with their supervisor(s): 

• Starting their field placement before the start of the term, if the supervisor’s schedule allows.

• Establishing a supervisor-approved plan to attend their field placement at a higher cadence (e.g. 4-5 days per week) during the term length to maximize clinical opportunities from the start of their placement.

Students are unable to extend their placements beyond the term end date, unless this has been discussed and approved by the Clinical Field Placement Team. 

Absence Policy

To maintain the integrity of the field placement experience and ensure that all students meet the Department of CSD’s and ASHA’s clinical requirements, students must follow the field placement’s student absence policy.  If the field placement does not have an absence policy, students will adhere to the NYU CSD’s absence policy detailed below: 

1. Notification of Absence:

   • Students must notify their field placement supervisor as soon as they are aware that they will be absent and include the expected duration.  At the start of the placement, students should inquire about the supervisor’s preferred method of communication to relay absences (e.g., by email, phone).

   • It is suggested that students schedule appointments (medical or other) outside of their field placement obligations. Only unforeseen personal illness documented by a health provider, death of an immediate family member, observance of religious holidays or pre-approved extenuating circumstances will be considered as an excusable absence and a reason for missing a seminar course or clinical experience. 

   • In rare instances, when students anticipate an unavoidable scheduling conflict (e.g. doctor’s appointments, field placement interview, etc.) that will impact their attendance at either the NYU clinic and/or field placement, the student must submit a written request to their immediate clinical supervisor and/or field placement supervisor.

2. Documentation:

   • For absences due to illness or other unforeseen circumstances, students may be required to provide documentation, such as a doctor’s note or other relevant evidence, to their field placement supervisor.

3. Planning for Absences:

   • Students with formal field placement accommodations that may impact attendance at their field placement that were established through the Moses Center should discuss potential absences and create a plan with their field placement supervisor and the CFPT in advance. This plan should outline how to handle absences and how missed time and assignments will be made up.

4. Make-up Days:

   • Students are responsible for making up any missed days to ensure they fulfill the required field placement clinical learning expectations and direct contact hours. The make-up schedule should be coordinated with the field placement supervisor, and the CFPT should be kept informed if there are any changes to the student’s expected end date.

5. Excessive Absences:

   • Excessive absences, even if documented, may jeopardize a student’s ability to meet their clinical competencies and complete their field placement successfully. In such cases, a meeting with the CFPT and field placement supervisor will be required to determine student support which may include extending the placement period or providing a Practicum Success Plan (PSP).

6. Impact on Evaluation:

• Excessive absences and overall communication regarding these absences may impact a supervisor’s evaluation of students’ clinical and professional competencies (i.e. midterm and final evaluation completed by a student’s supervisor on CALIPSO).  Best practices, including timely communication and adherence to the make-up plan, will be assessed.

7. Support and Resources:

6. • Students experiencing difficulties that impact their attendance should seek support from the CFPT, Academic Advising, and/or the Moses Center. These resources can assist and help create strategies to manage and mitigate the impact of absences.

NYU policy permits members of any religious group to excuse themselves from clinical and academic obligations without penalty when required for compliance with their religious obligations.  The policy and principles to be followed by students and faculty may be found here: The University Calendar Policy on Religious Holidays.

Summer Field Placements

Field placement schedules and availability are typically limited over the summer due to school closures, supervisor vacations, low patient census, and frequent cancellations, etc. The Clinical Field Placement Team will make reasonable attempts to find field placements that can accommodate student field placement needs; however, direct contact hour accrual may be impacted and field placement timelines may be less than the standard of a minimum of 12 weeks in length. It is the student’s responsibility to discuss their hour needs with their supervisor(s), exercise flexibility to maximize all clinical learning opportunities, and track their direct contact hours to  ensure they are meeting the clinical hour requirements. Students should refer to the Time and Attendance policy for suggestions regarding scheduling cadence when in Practicum IV and V.   

Unexpected Endings

Field placement supervisors are not obligated to complete the student’s field placement to the end date or ensure direct contact l hours if the experience is shortened for any reason (e.g. a supervisor resigning from a site before completion of the term, student or supervisor illness, emergencies, etc.). These situations will be reviewed by the CFPT on a case-by-case basis and a plan of action will be determined in collaboration with Academic Advising. 

Travel Liability 

NYU’s professional liability insurance does not include coverage of students traveling to and from field placement sites in a field placement supervisor’s personal or company-owned vehicle.  Therefore, students are strongly discouraged from traveling with their field placement supervisor in the same vehicle. Students are encouraged to independently travel to and from all experiential learning and field placement experiences, including team meetings, and/or conferences.  

Telepractice

The Department of CSD supports the use of telepractice in accordance with ASHA’s 2020 Standards and Implementation Procedures for the Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (Refer to Standard V-C):

• Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) allowances for graduate student telepractice while being telesupervised: 

  • Supervisors and students are responsible for researching your state's rules and regulations surrounding telepractice and how/when hours can be earned.  

  • Field placement supervisors may telesupervise more than 1 session delivered via telepractice that is taking place at the same time 

  • Field placement supervisors must be available 100% of the time to each session

    • The student clinician is able to connect with the field placement supervisor in real-time to troubleshoot

    • The supervisor is available to jump into the session at any given point

• Field placement supervisors must provide no less than 25% direct supervision of the total contact time with each client/patient (similar to in-person supervision requirements)

  • Supervision should ideally begin at 100% supervision and scale back to no less than 25% of the time over the course of the supervisory experience based on student clinician and client needs in order to meet ASHA requirements.

• All clinical educators and graduate students must ensure that telepractice and telesupervision are completed in accordance with HIPAA, FERPA, and prevailing local, state, and/or federal regulations

  • ASHA State-by-State

• Students must log all hours in CALIPSO according to each modality (e.g., telepractice).  Additionally, they are responsible for monitoring their direct contact hours to ensure hour accrual is in accordance with ASHA's 2022 telepractice guidelines detailed above.

Telepractice Guidelines For Graduate Students Initiating Their Graduate Program On Or Before December 31, 2022:

As per ASHA’s Council for Clinical Certification in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CFCC) all students who begin their graduate program at a CAA-accredited or CAA-candidacy program on or before December 31, 2022, may engage in telepractice and telesupervision using the 2022 guidelines below for the entirety of their graduate academic and clinical practicum experience.  Graduate student clinicians may engage in service delivery through telepractice as outlined below:

For purposes of ASHA certification, one of the following must be provided on site and in person: 

• (a) at least 50% of supervised clinical practicum between January – June 2022 

OR 

• (b) a cumulative 125 hours of supervised clinical practicum across the graduate program

Telepractice Guidelines For Graduate Students Initiating their Graduate Program On Or After January 1, 2023:

As per ASHA’s Council for Clinical Certification in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CFCC) Standard V-C all students who begin their graduate program at a CAA-accredited or CAA-candidacy program on or after January 1, 2023, may engage in telepractice and telesupervision using the guidelines below for the entirety of their graduate academic and clinical practicum experience.

At the discretion of the graduate program and when permitted by the employer/practicum site and by prevailing regulatory body/bodies—and when deemed appropriate for the client/patient/student and the applicant’s skill level—the applicant may provide services via telepractice. The clinical educator/supervisor who is responsible for the client/patient/student and graduate student should be comfortable, familiar, and skilled in providing and supervising services that are delivered through telepractice.  Graduate student clinicians may engage in service delivery through telepractice as outlined below:

• A minimum of 250 hours of supervised clinical practicum within the graduate program must be acquired through on-site and in-person direct contact hours 

Please review the additional resources, which provide guidance surrounding telepractice:

• ASHA CoronaVirus Updates: telepractice section

• Telepractice: Overview

• Telepractice: Ethical Considerations

• NYU Telepractice Guide created by the Clinical Education Team  

Withdrawal and Termination

Students who are terminated from their field placement by their supervisor, the Department of CSD, or abruptly self-terminate (i.e., stop attending their field placement prior to their committed end date or prior to the term ending, for any reason without Clinical Field Placement Team (CFPT) consultation and approval must immediately alert the Director of Field Placement Programs or a member of the CFPT and schedule a meeting for further discussion.

Students terminated from their off campus field placement for the reasons listed below, will earn an “F” in their Practicum course and will be placed on academic probation. Students who formally withdraw from their off campus field placement and associated Practicum course, without prior approval from the CFPT will receive an “F” for that term and will be placed on academic probation.  Please note: if a student is notified that they will be receiving an “F” in their Practicum course for any of the following reasons, withdrawal from the course will not be permitted, even if the timing is such that the withdrawal deadline has not yet passed:

• Failing to meet the clinical competencies set forth by the Council for Clinical Certification in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CFCC) despite implementing a Personal Support Plan (PSP) **

• Not meeting the requirements of their practicum due to unsatisfactory attendance and/or participation of the field placement

• Engaging in behaviors that compromise client safety, well-being and care 

• Refusal to adhere to field placement guidelines and agreed-upon protocols, and failure to respond when needed

• Disorderly, disruptive, or antagonizing behavior that interferes with the safety, security, or health of the community

• Negatively impacting field supervisor’s productivity

• Not attending the Practicum course or completing assignments

Students cannot officially or unofficially withdraw from Practicum III (Speech@NYU only), Practicum IV or Practicum V course at any point without the approval from the Director of Field Placement Programs as well as their Academic Advisor.  If the student’s request to officially withdraw from the field placement (Practicum III (DE)-V) and corresponding Practicum course is not department approved, students will receive an “F” on their transcript and will not be permitted to “Withdraw” from the course to receive a “W”. 

If they would like to contest their grade, students are able to complete the Grade Grievance process as outlined in the MS Guide. 

The CFPT will review extenuating circumstances on an individualized basis, and may consult with relevant professionals (e.g., MS leadership, Student Progress and Awards Committee (SPAC), relevant university resources ( e.g. Student Affairs, Wellness Center, Moses Center), field placement supervisors, and the Academic Advising Team to determine appropriate next steps, such as the development of student support plans.  

Students who are terminated or self-terminate will not be placed at another field placement for that term and cannot remain in the Practicum Course without a field placement. All direct contact hours earned at the field placement will not count towards graduation and the student will be placed on academic probation.  Students will need to consult with the Academic Advising Team as terminations may have additional financial and/or Plan of Study (POS) implications (i.e. class or term withdrawal, leave of absence, etc.) that will result in an extension in a student’s graduation timeline.

Two non-passing grades in any step in the Clinical Practicum and Field Placement Sequence will lead to a recommended dismissal from the program.  Students who need to delay the Clinical Practicum and Field Placement Sequence for more than two terms may be at risk for dismissal.

NYU’s CFPT reserves the right to terminate a student’s placement (without penalty) on their behalf as a result of the following: 

• Student is experiencing extenuating circumstances such as unexpected medical concerns, emergency family concerns, or unexpected life events which impede their ability to continue in their field placement (see Considerations). 

• Student is experiencing unsafe working conditions or student is participating in site activities outside the scope of a student clinician

• Supervisor is not following the ASHA recommended supervisory requirements

Considerations

Students who self-terminate prior to the end of the term due to an unexpected, extenuating medical, physical health concern, and/or personal circumstance that impacts their ability to remain in the field placement (Practicum Sequence III (DE), IV, and/or V)  will be granted a Withdrawal or an Incomplete for that term.  The field placement’s final grading outcome is based upon the student’s level of performance up to the point of self-termination (to be determined based upon attendance timeline and/or number of direct contact hours earned), the supervisor’s updated and/or final evaluation, and/or progress with a Practicum Success Plan (PSP), if applicable.  All direct contact hour approvals are determined by the field placement supervisor and based upon their assessment of the student’s clinical and professional practice competencies.

These decisions are made in collaboration with the MS Department Leadership. Students expressing concerns about their mental or physical health are strongly encouraged to connect with the Wellness Center and the Moses Center for Accessibility and Inclusive Culture for potential accommodations as additional support. Field placements may require a medical note for unexpected medical concerns or absences. Students might be asked to complete an individualized Practicum Support Plan for their needs before re-enrolling in the practicum course. Additionally, students are encouraged to consult with the Academic Advising Team to discuss any academic, financial, and/or Plan of Study (POS) implications that might extend their graduation timeline. 

Students who are considering withdrawing from the Practicum Course or self-terminating from their field placement once the term has begun for any reason should be aware of the possible financial implications. They should discuss these implications with the Academic Advising Team before making any decision.  Full-Time Equivalency (FTE) cannot be maintained if a student does not participate in the Practicum Course and corresponding field placement through the 7th week of the term and/or does not have enough credits to continue on a full-time track during the term.

The Moses Center for Student Accessibility and Inclusive Culture

The Moses Center for Student Accessibility and Inclusive Culture

The Department of CSD collaborates with the Moses Center for Student Accessibility and Inclusive Culture  to uphold New York University's commitment to provide equal educational opportunity and participation for students with disabilities. CSA works with NYU students to determine appropriate and reasonable accommodations that support equal access to a world-class education. 

Academic Accommodations

When seeking academic accommodations, students with hearing and visual, mobility, learning and attention, chronic illness, psychological and temporary needs are required to present the appropriate documentation and register with the Moses Center. If accommodations are required, the CSA  will alert the instructor at the start of the term.

Academic accommodations cannot be applied to clinical and field placement experiences (e.g. client documentation, etc.). For accommodations related to all aspects of the field placement experience and experiential learning, please explore clinical accommodations with your CSA representative and familiarize yourself with the Clinical Practicum and Field Placement Accommodations policy.

Clinical Practicum and Field Placement Accommodations

When seeking clinical practicum or field placement accommodations, students with hearing and visual, mobility, learning and attention, chronic illness, psychological and temporary needs are required to present the appropriate documentation and register with the Moses Center. 

If accommodations are required, the Moses Center will provide formal documentation that the student should use to communicate with their clinical and/or field placement supervisors and/or the Clinical Field Placement Team (CFPT) as appropriate. For accommodations required for a field placement, the student is to meet with a member of the CFPT to discuss their preferred method of discussing their accommodations. 

Eligible accommodations are supported after an analysis of the student’s disability-related needs, the University’s programs and curriculum, and the University’s legal obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. The intent of reasonable accommodations is to provide students with disabilities an equal opportunity, not to lessen or undermine academic standards or course requirements.  The program will then do its due diligence in attempting to identify a field placement that meets all of these considerations. Considerations for the field placement program are ultimately at the discretion of each field placement.

Although field accommodations are supported at any point during the clinical and field practicum sequence, the Department encourages students to explore experiential learning accommodations ideally during CSCD-GE 2111 Clinical Practicum I in order to allow the Clinical Field Placement and Academic Advising Teams sufficient time to coordinate efforts within the clinic, community and/or field placements that align with the formal accommodations. Although the above is the encouraged timeline, accommodations established after this will continue to be taken into consideration and are not retroactive. If a field placement is unable to meet the reasonable accommodations as determined by the Moses Center, the Department and the Moses Center representatives will facilitate a reasonable course of action to best support a student’s success. In some cases, this may include postponement of the clinical and/or field placement experience.

Commencement

New York University’s commencement schedule occurs one time a year during the month of May.   Students are encouraged to attend commencement to celebrate their upcoming completion of their Master of Science in Communicative Sciences and Disorders.  Since Commencement takes place sometime in May and can fall during a students’ scheduled days at their field placements, we strongly encourage students to inform you of the date at the beginning of the semester.  This will allow adequate time for the student and the field placement supervisor to discuss any changes in the schedule.  It is strongly encouraged that students make up any days missed due to Commencement Exercises; however, this is ultimately at the field placement supervisors’ discretion.  The Department of CSD is thankful and appreciative of your flexibility in allowing students to attend their Commencement Exercises and your continued commitment to their development.  If this poses any conflict, please contact the Clinical Field Placement Team.