Admission to the Graduate School and Department of Communication Disorders

In order to be accepted into the doctoral program, a faculty member must indicate that he or she wants to work closely with you. Individuals who are interested in pursuing a doctoral degree at LSU should contact one or two specific faculty members from our department whom he or she thinks would be an appropriate mentor. All applicants are expected to interview (either in person or by Zoom or telephone) with their potential mentors. It is also highly recommended that applicants meet their future mentor(s) prior to acceptance into our program; such meetings may occur during a visit to LSU or at a research conference. 

Once the applicant selects a mentor and the faculty member agrees to serve as his or her mentor, a student should complete LSU’s online application for graduate school. The application requires a written statement, three letters of recommendation, and a GPA. Applicants are highly encouraged to submit an additional writing sample through the “supplemental materials” section of the online application. Whenever possible, the writing sample should demonstrate the applicant’s technical writing skills and research goals (e.g., theses, publications, unpublished documents, clinical reports, or class papers). 

Although applicants can apply to the Ph.D. program at any time, priority funding goes to students who have their applications submitted by February 1 and who plan to enroll full-time in the fall.