UB to Offer Doctorate in Audiology

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The University at Buffalo has received approval to offer a doctor of audiology degree (Au.D.), one of less than 10 in the United States, beginning in the Fall 2000 semester.

The program will be offered through the Department of Communicative Disorders and Sciences in the College of Arts and Sciences.

The American Speech-Language and Hearing Association, the professional organization that certifies audiologists, has mandated that by the year 2007, persons applying for certification must have a doctoral degree in the field.

Audiologists are responsible for the diagnosis and rehabilitation of hearing impairments. Training for the doctoral degree includes coursework in anatomy and physiology of the auditory system and nervous system, pathologies of the ear, speech perception and instrumentation and acoustics.

Clinical experiences include diagnostic, rehabilitative, pediatric and industrial audiology; central auditory processing disorders; hearing-aid evaluation and fitting; tinnitus-retraining therapy; auditory-evoked potentials; otoacoustic emissions and vestibular testing.

The department works closely with the Center for Hearing and Deafness, a UB research center with an international reputation.

Susan Roberts, clinical associate professor of communicative disorders and sciences, is clinic director. Nancy Stecker, clinical associate professor, was responsible for acquiring state approval of the degree.

For more information on the degree program, contact Joan Sussman at 716-829-2797, ext. 631, or Robert Burkard, 716-829-2001, ext. 19.