Job prospects for speech therapists

In response to a letter published in the Irish Examiner on May 18, the Irish Association of Speech & Language Therapists consider it important to clarify some of the issues highlighted.

Firstly, the student who wrote the letter is right — the job prospects for current new graduates is poor. There is huge demand for speech and language therapy for adults and children in services across Ireland. There are significant numbers of unemployed fully qualified therapists. The recruitment embargo has meant that services cannot recruit for vacant posts and few new posts are being created.

Some graduates are working in volunteer positions and these can vary in terms of content. These can provide excellent opportunities for skills maintenance and professional development. However, they are not equivalent to working as an autonomous speech and language therapist under professional supervision and are not considered under the competencies framework for full membership of the professional body.