The application deadline is January 15 of the admission year, and applicants are notified of their admission status in mid-March of the application year.
NU’s MS SLL program utilizes the Communication Sciences and Disorders Centralized Application Service (CSDCAS) for application submission and review. There are no additional applications or supplemental materials to complete or submit for the application process. All credentials and application materials are processed through CSDCAS. Please do not send any application materials to NU.
General information about CSDCAS, including a link to their FAQs.
To begin the CSDCAS application process, please create a CSDCAS account through the
CSDCAS Applicant Portal Link: https://csdcas.liaisoncas.com/
Please read and follow all CSDCAS directions closely for completion of all sections of the application. Please refer to the CSDCAS FAQ’s as needed.
Entering Information into CSDCAS
Academic History
In addition to uploading your transcripts, you will enter your coursework into the CSDCAS system. Please refer to CSDCAS’s directions for instructions.
Personal Essays
Your responses to the personal essay prompts will be uploaded electronically to CSDCAS. When completing the application on CSDCAS, you will be prompted to view program-specific instructions for your personal essays. NU’s personal essay question prompt reads as follows:
Please respond to the following questions. The first four essay questions are required. The fifth essay question is optional. Each question has a limit of 2500 characters.
- What is your motivation for pursuing a career in Speech-Language Pathology?
- What personal characteristics do you possess that make you well-suited for clinical practice in the field of speech-language pathology?
- Why do you want to attend Northwestern University for your graduate education? What do you believe you would contribute to the MS SLL program at Northwestern University?
- Tell us about a goal you set for yourself and how you achieved it. What motivated you to set and achieve your goal?
- Do you have other pertinent information about yourself that will inform the admissions committee about your ability to be successful as a student in the MS SLL program at Northwestern University?
Extracurricular and Volunteer Experience
In lieu of submitting a resume, you will enter information regarding your extracurricular, volunteer, and/or employment experiences. These experiences might include working in faculty labs or assisting on faculty projects, volunteering for student or community groups, or working to put oneself through school. CSDCAS provides a list of experience categories. Please refer to CSDCAS’s FAQs on “Experience Information: Extracurricular and Volunteer Experience” for more information.
Submitting Information/Sending Documents to CSDCAS
The GRE is not required to apply for the MS SLL Program. GRE scores are not seen by admission committee members and are not used in the review of any applicants.
Transcripts
Please send all official transcripts from every college or university you have attended directly to CSDCAS. CSDCAS has specific FAQs for students with US and English Canada transcripts, Foreign and French Canadian transcripts, and Study Abroad/Overseas US Institution transcripts. Please refer to the FAQs as relevant to your academic history. CSDCAS provides a Transcript Request Form, mailing address, and instructions on the FAQs.
International students, please see the International Applicants tab for additional instructions.
Three Letters of Recommendation
CSDCAS processes letters of recommendation electronically. Please refer to CSDCAS’s FAQs on “Sending Documents: Letters of Reference” for more information.
Please note that three letters of recommendation are required. It is strongly suggested that at least two of the letters be from faculty. We expect strong letters of recommendation from faculty who know you well and can speak to your ability to perform in a rigorous, clinically focused program.
We realize that many of our applicants have diverse academic backgrounds and may not have relationships with faculty in the field of CSD. This is not a problem, though we do suggest including a letter of recommendation from an individual in the field whenever possible. For an applicant with a non-CSD major, this may be a third letter of recommendation from an SLP you have observed.