One Discipline. Two Careers. Learn More About CSD.

Now you know that CSD stands for communication sciences and disorders—but what does that mean? What do you learn if you enter a CSD program? What can you do with a CSD degree?

What Does Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSD) Mean?

• Communication refers to how we convey information, feelings, and ideas to each other.
• Communication science studies how people develop, use, and experience communication.
• Communication disorders occur when people encounter problems with their ability to receive, send, or understand communication. There are many reasons why people experience communication disorders—including injuries, illnesses and other health conditions. 
• CSD professionals provide education, diagnoses, treatment, and rehabilitation related to communication. CSD professionals also investigate balance, cognition, and swallowing.
• Communication disorders, communication sciences, hearing and speech sciences, and audiology and speech-language pathology are all different names to describe CSD degrees. You may see educational programs use one, some, or all these terms to talk about the same general area of study.

What Can I Learn in a CSD Undergraduate Program?

Study broadly applicable subjects like these:

• the science of human communication, communication differences, and communication disorders
• the history of and need for communication accessibility
• acoustics, biology, cognitive science, language science, and lifespan human development

Gain highly competitive, transferrable skills such as:

• public speaking, collaboration, and critical thinking
• culturally responsive practice, ethics, and evidence-based decision making
• how to pursue undergraduate research opportunities, service learning, and community partnership work

What Education Do I Need to Work in CSD?

You can learn more about CSD professions as a high schooler.

Look for colleges that offer majors and minors in communication disorders, communication sciences, communicative sciences and disorders, hearing or speech sciences, speech-language pathology and audiology (these titles all describe the same discipline: CSD). 

In undergraduate CSD programs, you’ll acquire interdisciplinary communication knowledge. Typically, you need to earn a master’s degree to work as an SLP. A doctor of audiology (AuD) degree is required to practice as an audiologist in most of the United States.

Whether you earn a bachelor’s degree in CSD or another subject, multiple pathways allow you to pursue CSD. An undergraduate degree in pre-med, teaching, linguistics, and/or language(s) can provide a solid foundation for graduate work in CSD. See the Undergraduate to CSD Career Roadmap to prepare for graduate program requirements.