[__ j a e `]

Just as the title says, I am debating whether physical therapy or speech-language pathology is better in the case of job opportunities.
Since both careers are pretty similar in various aspects (ie. annual salary, amount of time to get a masters degree, etc.), all that is left is considering which one is easier when finding a job.

Anyone have any ideas?
Thanks in advance. (:

[felinius]

Just as the title says, I am debating whether physical therapy or speech-language pathology is better in the case of job opportunities.
Since both careers are pretty similar in various aspects (ie. annual salary, amount of time to get a masters degree, etc.), all that is left is considering which one is easier when finding a job.

Anyone have any ideas?
Thanks in advance. (:

IMO physical therapy. There's probably a huge need for physical therapists due to the war and you could find work with military (as a military or civilian in the VA) or military-related groups/charities.

[Ivory Rose]

physical therapy, for sure. you can get jobs in hospitals and clinics. speech pathology seems more specialized and in select institutions only. i have hospital experience, and i know we don't usually have a lot of speech pathologists on the floor.

[dragon86]

I would say physical therapy it is more in demand and that what I am going for =). It is a good jobs and very flexible.

[love*beat]

Oh wow what a coincidence XD! My dream is also to get into Physical Therapy.
(I was also doing more research just now on it too lol)
But from what I've researched so far, PT seems to be more in demand.
The only downside is that the Master's programs are being replaced by the Doctorate level programs x__X! So we might have some work ahead of us..

[nonwinky]

i think job opportunities is not really a problem for either field.
since everyone else has talked about physical therapy, i'll talk about speech pathology :D

im studying to be a speech language pathologist right now and i don't think any of us have to worry about getting a job AT ALL. every speech pathology grad school that i researched last year showed 100% of students getting a job right away. right now the demand is so high (especially in california) since the rates of down syndrome and autism are increasing exponentially, not to mention that the baby boomer generation will soon become the geriatric population, where speech pathologists would deal w/ stroke and dysphagia patients.

speech pathologists also work in all kinds of fields... in schools, in hospitals, in rehabilitation centers, in private clinics, in trauma centers, in early intervention... lots of places haha

i think rather than looking at job opportunities to help make your decision (since both fields seem to have no problems w/ jobs) you should look more at what kind of stuff you want to get into. speech pathology deals with anatomy and physiology of the the head mouth and throat, as well as voice issues, language development and other linguistic aspects. physical therapy is a lot more general anatomy and physiology, and of course has no language aspect (i don't know much about physical therapy so i can't get into detail for that haha)

i hope my loooong reply helped (:

[sillyslp]

I actually just graduated w/ a psych degree, but am applying to graduate schools in speech-language pathology this year. I don't know much about physical therapy, but I do agree with what nonwinky has said about SLP. It is definitely in high demand--as of a matter of fact, I heard that SLP grad students are constantly getting job offers even before they have graduated.

If you haven't already, I think it would be very useful to shadow both physical and speech therapists in as as many different settings as possible...or volunteer so that you can get more hands-on experience (this is what I'm doing right now). In any case, both careers are very rewarding =) I wish you the best of luck in your decision!