CF Job Postings & Resources Padlet
During your CF, your CF mentor is an integral part of your team. You may not see them every day, or even every week, but they are an excellent resource for you. Reach out to them with concerns and questions about all aspects of your professional role.
CF Requirements (American Speech-Language Hearing Association):
Must last at least 1,260 hours and 36 weeks (for CFY purposes, full-time is considered 35 hours/week)
CF mentor must hold a current CCC-SLP and have taken 2 hours of professional development in the area of supervision
Receive 6 hours of direct supervision and 6 hours of indirect supervision during each of the 3 segments of your CFY for a total of 36 hours of supervision. One segment usually lasts 12 weeks.
Receive feedback from CF mentor at least once per segment of CF
Resumes and cover letters serve a social purpose and have both implicit and explicit social and cultural expectations.
The communicative purpose of a resume and cover letter
You will:
Provide information: your skills and experience
Express desire for an opportunity
Signal the reader about what is important and what you will bring
Use language specific to the form with prescribed (and constrained) style and content
Use language that is field specific – part of the “in crowd”
Use words and phrases that represent larger cultural debates and issues – the intersection of your values and the values of the employer
Guiding Principles:
RESEARCH
RESPECT
CONTRIBUTION
Resumes and Cover Letters: Overview
Resume provides information: skills and experience
Summary of relevant qualifications
Descriptions: location, time, duration, responsibilities, skills acquired, significance of experience
Cover letter expresses desire for social good: apply for opportunity
State goal and purpose
Descriptions: desired clinical externship setting, rationale/justification for request
Tell your story and put resume into a narrative
Your shifting identity: show own role in relationship to roles of others
Consider your own evolution as graduate student to graduate clinician, to practicum student, to professional colleague
Recognize where you are in your journey and then write to the level of where you are intending to go
Expectations on Form, Style, and Content
One or two pages
Look at many different resume templates and find a layout that speaks to you – we represent ourselves through layout
Expectation in our field – nothing too racy
Organization: order of key elements
Elements: objective, education, coursework, clinical experiences, research/lab experiences, job and professional experiences, volunteer experiences, professional development/trainings, presentations, honors and awards, affiliations and memberships
Expected organization is reverse chronological order of experiences for each element (section)
List life experiences that provide insight into your values and factors that shaped you
Examples: cultural and linguistic diversity, international study or work, experiences with disability
Experiences outside of field show work history and work ethic
Connect strengths of outside experiences to speech language pathology
Examples:
“I excel in designing organization systems from my work as an office manager.”
“Volunteering with Sunnyvale Family Shelter taught me the importance interprofessional teamwork in supporting families experiencing hardships.”
“My undergraduate degree in political science provided me with an appreciation of different cultural approaches and policies regarding healthcare and education.”
Use clear headings and bullet points to guide reader
Short sentences that show responsibilities and achievements
Actions words
Examples: coordinated, planned, created, designed, developed, administered, provided, directed, mentored, facilitated, trained, advocated, educated, coached, consulted, examined, explored, identified, interpreted, completed, attained, etc.
Key words customized to the area of the field that you would like pursue
Examples: skilled nursing, rehabilitation, acute care, early childhood, etc.
Avoid acronyms: spell out entire words, e.g., Portland State University, Lee Silverman Voice Treatment, Childhood Apraxia of Speech
Font for main content
Easy to read and professional: Times New Roman, Ariel, Calibri, Cambria
12 point font
Professional email: use university email account
Error-free: no typos, mistakes, irregular formatting
Have resume and cover letter reviewed by multiple readers, including university writing center
Double-check spelling of names and locations
Errors represent lack of respect and readers may dismiss requests that contain errors
Submit electronically as PDF to preserve formatting
Cultural Expectations
Recognize role, authority, and status of reader
Honorifics and full names
Examples: Dr. Sam Smith, Professor Jan Jones, Mr. Tom Thompson, Ms. Brenda Baker, etc.
Presupposition: assume high level of content knowledge of reader
Recipient and Position
Recipient: know reader (audience) and culturally specific expectations
Social distance: status and deference
Social significance: titles and labels
Values of desired clinical setting
Main roles and responsibilities of desired clinical setting
Inter-professional and inter-disciplinary aspects: understand teams and team members within setting
Professional and formal language use
Cultural expectations
Self-promotion
Direct language: specific request
Demonstration of passion for field: emotional verbs and adjectives
Clear description of career goals
Expression of gratitude for opportunity to apply
Cultural considerations for self-promotion
Consider expressing gratitude and acknowledging others, e.g., “I am skilled with providing bilingual assessments” versus “I am grateful for the extensive clinical training in administering dynamic assessment measures for bilingual clients that I have received”
Acknowledge the hierarchical relationship – you are requesting access to an opportunity from another person who has a higher level of status and the ability to grant access to opportunities
Expectations around how we use language – the words you use send a message
Sometimes we adopt words and phrases that we’ve heard elsewhere. Think about phrasing that may be reflect what you have heard from professors and what you’ve read in textbooks.
Recognize when you choose to allude to ideas from a specific contextual setting (academic, clinical, policy, procedure)
Example: “culturally responsive practices to meet the needs of diverse learners”, “evidence-based practices to improve functional outcomes”
Larger conversations: words and phrases that represent larger cultural debates and issues
Understand when you are using words and phrases that show your place within a larger societal debate
Examples: neurodiversity, autism community/autistic adults, senior/geriatric, deaf/Deaf, sustained/suffered, etc.
Understand words that represent specific professional settings and the preferred terms for these settings
Examples: nursing home/skilled nursing facility, daycare/childcare facility, etc.
Guiding questions to examine a resume/cover letter:
How does this resume/cover letter show what is important?
Consider layout, organization, word choice
How are identities (social relationships) highlighted in this resume/cover letter?
What words show the identities of the writer and the reader?
What political perspective of social commodities is visible in this resume cover letter?
How is the writer recognizing the status of the reader and requesting access to social goods?
How does this resume/cover letter connect themes and ideas to each other?
What values are visible and how do they connect to the request?
How does this resume/cover letter show claims to academic and clinical knowledge?
How does the writer demonstrate sufficient expertise for the request?
A letter of interest may be the only opportunity that you have to introduce yourself to an employer (or supervisor). It serves as a first impression. If your letter of interest is not acceptable, or is off-putting in any way, the reader may not continue to review your application. In other words, no matter how strong your resume may be, an employer may never see it if your letter of interest is below expectations. Even if you excel at interviewing, you may never have an interview if your letter is not strong.
Style
Business Letter
Use a business letter format – see an example of a business letter at the end of this document.
Recipient
You need to know the correct recipient of the letter. Find out the name of the person who is reviewing the letters and applications. Make sure that your letter is addressed to a specific person.
Font and Margins
Your letter should only be one page. Your letter should not be two-pages. Use 1” margins and 12-point font. In rare cases, you may use 0.8” or 0.75” margins. Avoid 10-point font, as many (possibly older) readers may have difficulty reading the small print.
Spelling
Remember to double-check that spell correction hasn’t changed any of your words into a correctly spelled, but inappropriate word, e.g., “persevere” and “perseverate” appear similar, but have different meanings, especially clinically.
Proof-read
Have multiple people review your letter to ensure accurate spelling, grammar, punctuation, etc. Any error could cause a reader to question your ability to represent yourself in writing. This is crucial as written materials, e.g., report writing, medical documentation, and compliance forms, require accurate and precise writing skills. In some settings, your report serves as your calling card, i.e., other professionals may judge your clinical skills based on your reports.
Terms and Acronyms
The terms “i.e.” and “e.g.” do not mean the same thing and are often used incorrectly by many writers. Remember, “i.e.” approximates “in other words”, and “e.g.” approximates “for example”. If you have any doubt at all about how to use either “i.e.” or “e.g.” don’t use them. You could write, “in other words”, or “for example” and that would be fine.
Make sure that you explain any terms or acronyms that you use – this means that there is not one single abbreviated term that has not been previously explained. Make sure that you verify the accuracy of the acronyms that you use. Do not use any terms that you do not fully understand. Once you have explained the term, you are welcome to use the acronym. You could explain acronyms in the following ways:
· “Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) became a strong area of clinical interest after I had the opportunity to work with adolescents who had sustained Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBIs) in sports-related activities. We used the Cognitive Planning Intervention (CPI) model to focus on functional life goals, such as obtaining an after-school job, and navigating the public transit system. This experience showed me how many individuals with TBI benefit from procedural supports. “
· “A meaningful clinical practicum placement for me was at the Riverwood Music and Therapy Center, where we worked with children who used Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC). I was able to incorporate client interests, such as popular music artists and movie stars, by programming these contemporary conversational topics on the client’s Voice Output Communication Aid (VOCA) to increase successful initiations with typically developing peers. I learned that peers often serve as strong motivators for a client’s use of AAC.”
Tone
Positive Language
It is extremely important to use positive language. Do not write (or say in an interview) anything negative about any supervisor, professor, colleague, peer, etc. If you share negative comments, then a potential employer (or supervisor) may not trust you. The presence of negativity is concerning, as the listener might say to him/herself, “this person says bad things about other people. This person might say something bad about me someday, too.” No one wants to feel that there is not professional trust in a working relationship.
Challenges
If you have experienced challenges, focus on how you addressed these challenges and the unique advantages that you gained from the experiences.
· “Initially, I was unsure about programming the client’s Voice Output Communication Aid (VOCA), however, after completing an on-line training with DynaVox Communication Devices and programming novel messages on the Maestro Device, I become confident and proficient.”
· “I was able to treat up to ten patients per day at Twilight Hills Nursing Facility. Although these were busy days, I gained valuable skills in methodical data collection to facilitate planning for therapy.
Confidence
Appear confident in your writing and avoid language, which could make you appear needy or desperate for a job. Here is an example of a confident expression of interest: “I am intrigued by the family-centered approach and caregiving training model used at City Park Speech Clinic.” Here is an example of a needy expression of interest, which you should not use: “I really love working with families and I’ve been applying for jobs like yours for the past three months.” It is important that a potential employer views you as a desirable candidate and not someone who is unsuccessful when searching for jobs.
Cultural Sensitivity
Appear culturally sensitive, as a heightened level of cultural sensitivity may be required for some (though not all) positions. Use of the term “family”, and the combined terms “parent/caregiver” and “spouse/partner” show inclusion and honor a diverse view of household constellations. Terms such as “parent”, “wife”, or “husband” may appear limiting to some readers when they are applied to a larger community and not one specific example. Remember an “Interpreter” interprets spoken language and a “Translator” translates written texts. Here are examples of culturally sensitive statements:
“My practicum in a middle school setting in an ethnically diverse community, where adolescents and families experienced significant challenges, helped me to appreciate the role of language and literacy intervention in academic success.”
“When I worked with multi-lingual and multi-cultural senior residents of West End Assisted Living Center, I strived to honor family and client views of food and mealtimes across cultures, as well as work with the interpreter to ensure that all parties were able to understand the safe feeding protocol.”
Here is an example of non-sensitive language, which you should not use: “I learned a lot about all kinds of diversity and how to use a translator, during my practicum placement because I was at a school in a really poor area of town with lots of illegal immigrants, and many of the children didn’t understand any English at all.”
Content
Customized
Each letter should be customized to the specific site to which you are applying. Your clinical interests should also reflect the focus of the place to which you are applying.
Sincere
Share sincere and respectful desire for the position.
“I am excited to apply for “
“It is an honor to have the opportunity to apply for”
Current Level and Training
State your current academic/professional experience, and provide information about where you are in your professional career. Share any special training, projects, or coursework.
· “I am currently a second year graduate student in the Communication and Sciences Disorders Program at Portland State University.”
· “This past summer I completed a special topics seminar course in Craniofacial/Cleft Palate.”
· “Over the past year, I have been assisting Dr. _______ participating in research in ___________.”
· “I currently serve as our University’s National Student Speech Language Hearing Association (NSSLHA) Volunteer Coordinator.”
Future
State your vision of where you see yourself professionally in the future.
· “After graduation, I hope to provide clinical intervention in a medical setting focusing on dysphagia and caregiver training.“
· “I am looking forward to collaborating with general education teachers to provide therapy which enables children to excel in the areas of language and literacy.”
Career Goals
State how this placement aligns with your career goals.
· “Happy Apple Pediatric Clinic provides a range of assessment and intervention services for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). It is my goal to specialize in serving children with ASD.”
· “Foggy Mountain Community Hospital offers a comprehensive adult speech and language department. My professional goal is to provide services in a medical setting, with an emphasis on progressive disorders. “
Specific Interest
Explain why you want this position. Think abut what it is about this placement that interests you.
· “Ocean Center Clinic uses a multidisciplinary team model for assessment. I am excited about the opportunities to collaborate with other professionals.”
· “Autumn Leaves Neurodevelopmental Center provides comprehensive pediatric feeding services. I am excited about the opportunity to provide feeding intervention for children with craniofacial disorders.”
Past
Describe how you became interested in this specific area of Speech Language Pathology. Provide a short (two to three sentences maximum) and interesting clinical example or personal information to show what has motivated you.
Clinical experiences: Describe something that a client did or a clinical event that you observed.
· “During my practicum placement at XYZ Clinic, I was inspired by”
· “This summer my placement at ABC day camp, working with children with (insert area) needs, reinforced my desire to”
Life experiences: Describe something in your personal life that affected your career path.
· “My early experiences volunteering in the Special Needs classroom when I was in high school solidified my commitment to”
· “When my (list family member) sustained (list medical event), I attended therapy sessions with the Speech Language Pathologist. Watching my (list family member) make progress with his/her skill development in the area of (list functional communication domain) through the use of (list therapy technique) was inspiring to me.
Unique Traits
Describe what is unique about you. State what characteristics and qualities that you bring to your work that distinguish you from other people – these should not be generic traits. Here are examples of unique traits:
· “My specialized training in social-cognitive intervention and my commitment to incorporating current research make me an excellent candidate for the position at The Autism Advancement Center.”
· “My commitment and compassion are exemplified through my use of individualized treatment and an appreciation of the strengths that each client brings to the therapeutic process, as this approach helps clients increase their participation in daily living tasks. “
Here are examples of generic traits, which you should not use: “I am dedicated, responsible, and I love working with children.” “I am a hard-worker and I always give 100% to every task and each client that I serve.”
Restate and Praise
Restate your interest and consider praising or complimenting the professionals or the program.
· “Shady Grove Hospital is renown for exceptional care for individuals with Acquired Brain Injury. I am excited about the possibility of learning from the professionals in your program.”
· “Happy Apple Cooperative Speech Clinic is a leader in combining language and literacy intervention to support children with special needs. I would greatly value the opportunity to learn from the professionals at your clinic.”
Thanks and Future Contact
Thank the reader and imply continued communication.
· “Thank you for your time and attention.”
· “I look forward to hearing from you.”
· “Please let me know if you have any questions.”
· “I would be happy to meet with you and your staff to answer any questions.”
3 guiding principles that are universally valued:
Research
Respect
Contribution
Research
Did you do your research on the site?
Mission
Values
Strategic plan
Demographics of patients/populations
Teams
Respect
How will you show your regard and respect for the work they do?
Social distance
Honorifics
Acknowledge the hierarchical relationship – you are requesting access to an opportunity from another person who has a higher level of status and the ability to grant access to opportunities
How will you demonstrate gratitude?
Consider expressing gratitude and acknowledging others, e.g., “I am skilled with providing bilingual assessments” versus “I am grateful for the extensive clinical training in administering dynamic assessment measures for bilingual clients that I have received”
Adam Grant Organizational Psychologist Ted Talk – 3 types of people, takers, givers and matchers. Name 4 people whose careers you have fundamentally improved. Takers will give you 4 names and they will all be more influential than them. The givers are more likely to name folks below them in a hierarchy who don’t have as much power and can do them no obvious benefit.
Contribution
What unique experiences, values and approaches do you have to contribute?
Consider experiences outside the profession that enrich your role as an SLP.
Preparation
List 3 significant anecdotes from your clinical experiences that have shaped your clinical approach:
Prepare to talk about a time that you 1. Received difficult feedback and how you responded 2. Made a mistake and what your learned/how you responded -have a specific story and the specific actions you took. Avoid disguised praise (sometimes I am too much of a workaholic) or speaking in generalities (I am have worked on having better professional boundaries with clients – have a specific story – this demonstrates a growth mindset)
Prepare to talk about a clinical skill that was an uphill battle to learn and what made it stick
Prepare to talk about your experience working on teams? What do you bring? What makes a team work in your opinion?
Be prepared for the CASE STUDY
Resources – go back to your classes that covered the populations covered at the site. Use the frameworks you have been given – do not make it up on the fly.
https://glennweybright.com/case-studies/
https://www.rit.edu/ntid/slpros/casestudies/4
If you do not know the answer to a question, do not guess, but rather discuss how you would proactively seek information from a supervisor, colleagues, professors and use existing frameworks to respond to case studies and conjecture:
EBP triangle
https://www.asha.org/research/ebp/evidence-based-practice/
WHO participation model:
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/icd/icfoverview_finalforwho10sept.pdf
https://www.icf-casestudies.org/introduction/introduction-to-the-icf
Example case study questions for medical sites:
1. You have a new eval, Male, 65 y/o, paperwork only says R-CVA. Describe your thought process for completing this eval. What are you expecting to see?
2. A resident on the long-term care unit is experiencing unexpected weight loss. They have moderate/severe dementia. What is your plan for treatment? What special considerations are needed?
3. What would you say to nursing/caregivers who want to know why treatment for dementia is needed when the pt will just decline anyhow. Give us your elevator pitch for the importance of dementia care.
Example questions for pediatric medical sites (these are from Brandon)
Overall, our questions at Shriners aimed to get to know the individual to make sure they were a good fit for our team from an interpersonal standpoint. Our belief is that operational skills (e.g., how to conduct an assessment; how to deliver a treatment technique) can be taught, but we want someone who 1) actively pursues feedback to improve themself professionally and personally, 2) is reflective in their practice, 3) will contribute to the organization beyond just "doing the job," 4) communicates effectively/efficiently and directly; conflict-management skills, and 5) contributes to an enthusiastic, fun team-atmosphere. Thus, "soft-skills" were really critical, and seeing personality and a critical thinking thought-process shine through responses to questions was critical.
1) You are going to be evaluating a 2-year old client from a bilingual Spanish-English speaking home. What milestones would you expect the child to have met, what assessments would you use in the evaluation, and what toys would you use during the assessment?
2) Tell us about your experience using AAC during evaluation and treatment sessions
3) Explain your usual process for completing an AAC assessment to getting equipment for your clients
4) Tell us about a challenging situation you had with a family you worked with in the past, and how the situation was resolved.
5) What would a previous coworker suggest are two of your strengths and two areas of growth or development?
6) What are your professional goals? What steps do you currently have planned to achieve those goals?
7) Where do you see yourself in five years?
8) Tell us about a team experience where you were successful and an experience where you were not very successful and explain what happened.
9) Tell us about ways in which you have made a difference to teams or organizations you have been a part of
10) Tell us about a conflict you had with a coworker or supervisor, and what steps did you take to resolve the conflict?
I'm certain there are more, but these are some that come to mind! I am happy to talk through these more if it would be helpful as I have strong opinions on interview skills to make sure that students also find the right fit for them.
Example case study questions for educational sites:
What is your protocol for evaluating a child who is suspected of a language disorder and speaks African American English?
-How would you tell a parent that their child exhibits signs of autism?
-How would you evaluate a child whose primary language is one that you don't speak?
-Tell me about a situation where you had a different opinion than one of your colleagues/peers about how to move forward with a client/project. How did you resolve/address this issue?
-What populations are you most comfortable working with? Which populations are you least comfortable working with? What would happen/what would you do if you were assigned a client that had a diagnosis you were least comfortable working with?
Be prepared to name specific assessments, treatment methodologies related to the population served by that site
What are your questions for them? (this is very important to prepare beforehand. It shows engagement and curiosity)
Resources:
https://speechisbeautiful.com/2016/04/40-interview-questions-slp/
https://interviewpenguin.com/speech-language-pathology-interview/
My Professional Profile
Three professional values that I hold:
(Think about what “Professional” means to you.)
My main area of interest is:
(You may customize this area for each potential job. You may want to complete the profile more than one time for each of your interest areas. Your area of interest is a key component of your profile, and it may be beneficial to keep the area of interest consistent throughout most of the following questions.)
Example 1 of a significant learning moment that I had in one of my courses:
(This is an opportunity to show how you incorporate academic knowledge into your practice.)
Example 2 of a significant or meaningful learning moment that I had in one of my courses:
(This is an opportunity to show how your understanding of the world has been changed by what you have learned in graduate school.)
Example 1 of a clinical interaction that affected me in a positive way (either observation or direct client interaction):
(Do not say anything negative about any other SLP in any professional interaction, such as at an interview or in a letter of interest, as you may seem like a “negative person”, and that could reduce your chances of success.)
Example 2 of a clinical interaction that affected me in a positive way (something good that you did to help one of the clients at one of your practicum placements):
(What did you learn from this example? How did it change your practice and/or your beliefs?)
Example of a time that you collaborated with colleagues for successful client outcomes:
(This could be a time that you observed your supervisor collaborating with team members, until you have more extensive clinical experience.)
Example of a time that you were in a leadership position or were able to bring new information to a group or setting which positively affected outcomes:
(You can think about group work in your academic courses, until you have more extensive clinical experience.)
My philosophy of leadership and supervision:
(This should be two or three sentences and highlight what you think are the two most important aspects of leadership.)
My inspiration for becoming a Speech Language Pathologist:
(This should be a two or three sentence response – not your life story.)
Describe your occupation to an unfamiliar audience, in only one sentence, which will entice another person to ask you more about your work:
(As SLPs, we need to promote both our profession and ourselves. Think about your area of interest and how to make it sound fascinating in plain language. Sometimes SLPs are interviewed by HR or administrative personnel. It is important that we can also explain our work in plain language.)
References
St. Olaf College, University of Minnesota. (2018). Cultural differences in the job search.
Retrieved from https://wp.stolaf.edu/pipercenter/files/2013/06/Cultural-Differences-in-Job-Search.pdf
Gee, J.P. (2014). An introduction to discourse analysis: Theory and method (4th ed). New York,
NY: Routledge.
My Perfect Resume. (2018). Free downloadable resume templates. Retrieved from
https://www.myperfectresume.com/resume-templates
Resume Genius. (2018). Free downloadable resume templates. Retrieved from https://resumegenius.com/resume-templates
The Balance Careers. (2018). How to write a resume that will get you an interview. Retrieved
from https://www.thebalancecareers.com/how-to-write-a-resume-2063336
The Muse. (2018). 185 Power action verbs that will make your resume awesome. Retrieved
from https://www.themuse.com/advice/185-powerful-verbs-that-will-make-your-resume-awesome