298: Tales of a SLP Graduate Student
Show Notes:
In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk, Hallie chats with grad student Madison Meyer—aka @speechiewannabe—about what life in SLP school is really like. From juggling classes, clinic, and her side gig as a teletherapy SLPA, to figuring out time management and surviving group projects, Madison shares the ups, downs, and everything in between. She opens up about the stress of grad school applications, the relief of finding her people in her cohort, and why taking a true day off each week helped her stay balanced. Whether you’re applying, just starting, or guiding grad students yourself, this conversation is packed with encouragement, practical tips, and real talk to keep you motivated and moving forward.
Here's what we learned:
- Free tools make planning faster and easier.
- Time blocking helps you stay ahead of the chaos.
- Taking one full day off keeps you sane.
- Your cohort is your built-in support system.
- Grad school flies by—celebrate the little wins.
RESOURCES
Learn more about Madison Meyer:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/speechiewannabe/
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speechiewannabe
Learn more about Hallie Sherman and SLP Elevate:
🎧 Check out the Secondary Secret Podcast here!
JOKE OF THE WEEK:
Q: Why does nobody talk to circles?
A: Because there's no point
Where We Can Connect:
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TRANSCRIPT
00:00:00 Hallie: Hey there SLP, I have a quick question for you. What if you could have just one book on your shelf that actually gets the challenges of working with middle school and high school students? Well, it's here. Well, actually the pre-order is here, but hey, I'm so excited to let you know that my brand new book, The Secondary SLP Guide is available for pre-order. And when you pre-order, you get an exclusive bonus that you won't want to miss.
00:00:31 Hallie: It is packed with real talk strategies, quick tips and inspiration that you can use with your middle school and high school students all year long. This is the perfect book for a book club, a grad student group, or just flipping through when you're stuck and in a IEP writing spiral. So head to speechtimefun.com/preorder or head to my Instagram and send me a DM with the word pre-order and I will send you the link so you can pre-order now. And I cannot wait for you to get your hands on this book in November but the sooner you grab it the better the bonus.
00:01:17 Hallie: Welcome to SLP Coffee Talk, the podcast designed exclusively for speech language pathologists who work with older students, grades 4 through 12. I am your host, Hallie Sherman, your SLP behind Speech Time Fun, the Speech Retreat Conference, and the SLP Elevate Membership. And I'm thrilled to bring you conversations, strategies, and insights that will give you the jolt of inspiration that you need. Whether you're tuning in during your morning commute, on a break in between sessions, or even during a well-deserved relaxation time. I am here for you each and every week. Let's do this SLPs.
00:01:56 Hallie: Hey, hey, and welcome to another episode of SLP Coffee Talk. I know I have a lot of brand new SLPs here today, and I know those going into graduate school and going to… and starting graduate school. And I know that you guys are going to love this conversation that I have here today with Madison Meyer. Welcome to the show.
00:02:16 Madison: Thank you for having me. I'm so excited.
00:02:18 Hallie: Tell everyone listening a little bit about yourself and your journey up to what you are doing today in your SLP journey.
00:02:25 Madison: So my name is Madison, like you said, and I am now officially a second year graduate student. I go to Maryville University, which is in the St. Louis area in Missouri. And my first year, I was a teletherapy SLPA on the side with graduate school. And you guys probably know me as @speechiewannabe on Instagram and TikTok, but I'm here to talk about all things graduate school.
00:02:56 Hallie: Because it's been, I don't know, 18 years for me. So things have changed. Let's just say I took the Praxis with a number two pencil. So that's just… to tell you my age. And that was before… there was no iPhones back then. [inaudible] I had to press the numbers three times. So a lot of things have changed in the graduate school world. So I would love to – because I'm sure some listening probably can relate to your SLPA into SLP journey. What made you go that route?
00:03:26 Madison: Well, it was kind of funny because I graduated with my undergrad a year early because I had some college credit from high school. So I graduated early and then I knew I was going straight into graduate school, but also I was kind of looking for a job because when you're in graduate school, it's expensive. So I was kind of looking for something maybe, like child related, a pediatric job, babysitting, whatever I could find. And then I had kind of heard about being an SLPA. And I honestly didn't know anything about it, but there is a private practice in my hometown. And so I kind of had reached out to the owner and I was like, do you have any openings for a job or just like part-time, low hours for an SLPA?
00:04:15 Madison: And come to find out they were so flexible. They worked with me. I did teletherapy to make it easy because I was in class in St. Louis. And so, it just… that was the easiest option. And I don't know. It was just nothing I had planned for, but it honestly worked out perfect because I would do my teletherapy in the morning at Maryville. I would do like in a study room and then go straight to class. And then I would have my clinic and that's… it was just so unplanned, but it was perfect for my first year. And it was great experience, too, to have extra practice with different populations, different age groups and also just teletherapy in general. It was definitely a big learning curve for me.
00:04:56 Hallie: Do you feel like it gave you a one-up from your classmates?
00:05:00 Madison: I honestly don't know. I think it gave me a new perspective on the pediatric population. I've always known I wanted to work with kids, but obviously now since COVID, teletherapy is becoming more popular. And so I kind of had the advantage to have this opportunity to do teletherapy. So it definitely gave me new ideas, a lot of new experience with materials or coming up with ideas for sessions, session planning. So I think it helped me in the long run of working with kids. And I had a whole toolkit of all these ideas and options for therapy sessions that I could use for [inaudible] or language or pragmatics, anything related to communication?
00:05:47 Hallie: I'm sure many listening are very curious. What were your go-to's? Because many graduate students… you're looking for free cheap low-cost options and easy to prep options. What were your go-to's last year and even this coming year?
00:06:05 Madison: So I got really lucky and my supervisor had a Bamboozle account. And so I used that every single session. It was so easy. I didn't have to prep anything. It came with so many options. Like I could just type in WH questions, short stories, TH and SH sounds, CH words, and it would come up with all of these different types of games, different… It was just basically materials that other people create and they just put them out there publicly. So I use Bamboozle a lot. And then Bamboozle actually reached out to me and gave me a free membership. So then I had my own account. So it honestly worked perfect.
00:06:47 Madison: But for something free, I used a lot of, like Teacher Pay Teacher resources. There's so many free ones out there that work great. And I also used a lot of Google Docs… like I would just come up with my own little quick story or go into ChatGPT real quick, ask them to write me a sixth grade fictional story about football and then put it into my Google Docs. So just a lot of trial and error and learning through the process. I definitely became more skilled at finding therapy materials throughout the year.
00:07:19 Hallie: I love that. And for those listening that are not familiar, Bamboozle, with a free account, you can just use the regular interactive game board thing. You're just limited to just the one game type. So the free account, you can still search for anything you find if you don't have access to a paid account. I've literally lived off of the free account my entire career.
00:07:40 Madison: Perfect.
00:07:42 Hallie: It gets the job done. So letting you guys know. That's awesome. Other than the planning part, I'm very – I know a lot of graduate students, probably those listening are overwhelmed with the time constraints and the… how did you manage working on top of all that? So can you share a little bit about your time management skills and strategies?
00:08:03 Madison: Yes. So I was really worried about that, especially starting out because I was brand new to graduate school, brand new to therapy. I had never done therapy in my life. So not only did I have two clients in our clinic at Maryville, but then I also was starting this job too. So luckily my SLPA job was not very time consuming because my schedule was all over the place to begin with. So I didn't have much time to do teletherapy on the side, but they were so flexible with me. And so I only did it two mornings a week.
00:08:40 Madison; Other than that, between classes and clinic, yes, it is very time consuming. And I had known that going into graduate school, because obviously there's always a lot of talk about SLP grad school and how tough and challenging it can be. Something that really helped me was time blocking and using, like my planner and notes app. I always before the week began, always made sure that I knew what homework I had, what assignments I had to do, what did I need to do for clinic. And I think just having a planner or having some type of online calendar, whatever it may be, everyone's different, but you need to have something to keep ahead of schedule. I feel like that's the biggest time management key for graduate school is like, you have to stay ahead. You will fall behind.
00:09:30 Hallie: And I felt graduate school prepared me for working in a school where again, lots of reports to write, a lot of meetings. Something that I learned in graduate school that helped me in my career was not just writing down when things are due, but writing down when I'm gonna do the things.
00:09:47 Madison: Yes, exactly.
00:09:49 Hallie: Not only when is that report due, when am I working on that report? Not only like, when is that test? When am I studying for the test? Aputting that in a calendar and holding yourself accountable.
00:09:59 Madison: Yeah, it's very easy to kind of forget everything you have to do because again, there is so much in between clinic and class, it's two separate things that you have to keep track of on your own, like soap notes and lesson plans. You're not going to have your supervisor being like, oh, did you do your soap note today? Did you get your lesson plan done? So it's just a lot to remember, but honestly, just keeping track of everything really helped me stay on top of it and also stay time managed with whatever free time I had, I had to use it.
00:10:30 Hallie: Love that. And as this episode is airing, we're probably nearing maybe right after midterms, people are thinking about finals. Those that are in their brand new first semester of graduate school, what advice would you give to someone who's just started, starting to feel overwhelmed, starting to have that imposter syndrome, starting to have that like, what did I get myself into sort of thinking?
00: 10:53 Madison: I can totally relate to all of that. I definitely felt overwhelmed, felt stressed out a lot of the time, but something that really helped was like, take it one day at a time. And I know that's so cliche and everybody says it. But I really started to focus on that when I was having my long days, my really hard days, maybe I had a test that day and I would be like, okay, as soon as this day is over, what else can I do the rest of the day? And then tomorrow's a fresh start, a new day, maybe tomorrow might be a little bit better, a little bit easier.
00:11:23 Madison: And I also would say that something that really, really helped me and especially in the first semester is to set one day a week that I did not do any schoolwork, did not open my laptop. I did not check anything. It was my day for me. It was almost like a self care day. And I usually put it on Saturday because Saturday was my free day. I wanted to go do stuff, hang out with my family, friends, or do something fun. So I think that helped me because I had balance. And I think balance is hard for a lot of people in graduate school because graduate school can consume you. I could have been on my laptop all seven days of the week working on things, but I made sure that one day was always for me. One day was always for my self care.
00:12:04 Madison: And it really helped me feel more motivated and refreshed because I'd have that day off. I get to do whatever I want, not being on my laptop. And then I was ready to get back to it, be productive. And Sunday I'd always get ahead for the week. So I think, like the first semester is all about figuring out what works best for you and finding that balance between learning what it's like to be a graduate student and how hard it can be, but also learning that you have a life outside of grad school too. You just have to find it.
00:12:35 Hallie: I love that. What about your fellow cohort members and graduate student friends? What advice – relying on them, leaning towards that, like what advice can you give towards the cohort?
00:12:52 Madison: Yes, I think something about graduate school that is different from undergrad is that you're all at the same pace. Nobody's applying anymore. That competition that… the so-called application process is over. Everyone's in grad school for a reason. And your cohort is struggling through it all with you. I think that it really helped me realize that I wasn't the only one. Like if I was stressed out, most of the time my cohort was also stressed out. And it also helped to just keep everyone in line. A lot of times we would sit in our clinic space or go sit out in this main lobby area and just sit, chat, hang out, talk about school stuff, but also just have a little break to ourselves.
00:13:35 Madison: I think graduate school is great for leaning on your cohort because you are with them majority of the time. And so a lot of friendships can form in that time. And I would just say that in graduate school, cherish the time you have with your cohort and really lean on them because you're all going through the same two years or however long the master's program is, you're all going through it together. So making sure that you just use your cohort as your lifeline.
00:14:07 Hallie: Speaking though, advice for working on group projects.
00:14:12 Madison: Oh my. There are a lot of group projects. That is something I did not know about grad school and specifically my program that I'm in is very group project based, which honestly I did turn out to love. At first, I was a little bit hesitant about it, but it worked great in all of my classes. But it can be difficult. I mean, working on group projects, A, projects are a lot of work and B, you have to work with a lot of people trying to get it all done.
00:14:40 Madison: Something that my program really did with group projects was we would work on it a lot of times in class, which helps. But out of class, we usually would have a group chat or something to keep us all connected outside of school so that we'd work on it. And usually just assigning everyone a piece or a slide works best. Keeping it simple, just being like, okay, I'm going to take this slide with this information, dividing it up and then getting it done. Honestly, group projects are always so fun because you get to do it together. You're not the only one working on a big project and there's always someone to help you if you need help on the project. So I really enjoyed doing group projects throughout grad school.
00:15:20 Hallie: Hey, you have no choice. So you gotta… [inaudible] the best. I was always like, I'd rather just do this myself. But that was just me. But that was a long time ago before we had group chats and Google.
00:15:32 Madison: Exactly.
00:15:33 Hallie: [inaudible] on things together. So it was a lot harder. We had to actually talk to each other and find time to get together. What advice would you give to someone who is applying to graduate school and feeling nervous about getting in?
00:15:48 Madison: It is very stressful. I can totally relate to that. I was that really stressed out senior applying to graduate school and just completely worrying about if I would even get in. And I think it's just hard because everyone's applying at the same time. Especially when I was a senior, everyone in my class was also applying. And so everyone was talking about, I applied here, I applied here. What'd you put on your application? How did you stand out? What'd you write for an essay? And so it kind of does feel like a competition in some ways. And I know a lot of people talk about that online about just the rigorous process of applying to graduate school.
00:16:27 Madison: But in the end, it always works out. It always does. And I mean, there's always a waitlist. There's always more options than you think. So for anyone going through that process, just do your best, showcase whatever it is that is something strong about you. Maybe it's your leadership abilities. Maybe it's job experiences. Maybe it's anything you were involved in in college. And I think everyone intends to downplay how impressive their accomplishments are during the process because it can be so stressful. But it will work out.
00:17:10 Madison: I'm someone that was so worried about it and it all worked out. It worked great. I just know how stressful it is. It's so, so time consuming, so overwhelming, and it's not in your hands. It's completely out of your control. So I would just say, you're in the process of applying or waiting to hear back from schools, wait it out, trust the process. It does work out. And there are always so many options for anyone wanting to go to grad school. So don't let it deter you if it doesn't go the way you thought it would.
00:17:40 Hallie: How did you decide which program for you to go to?
00:17:46 Madison: Well, I originally went to undergrad three hours away from home. And I had always known I kind of wanted to come back to my hometown, be in this area. And so this grad program that I wanted to get into was Maryville. And so once I got accepted, I was super thrilled because I could move back home, be back in my hometown and be in the St. Louis area for where I eventually want to get a job anyway. So it just all worked out really well. And now I get to be back at home with my family and still finish my degree.
00:18:18 Hallie: I love it. I remember I spent my summer going into my senior year where I did all the research, prepared all the applications. I made folders for every – I mean, I'm sure that you don't need folders anymore, but for all my letters of recommendation and this and that and I had everything prepared this way. When semester started, when the classwork was already there going, I didn't have to worry about all that stuff. It was done. I spent the summer doing it. And I mean, I know I applied to nine schools because I was like, I'm determined to get into any. I'll pay every single application fee.
00:18:50 Hallie: I don't care. I just remember wanting to have the options. And for me, I wanted to… also I moved back home after going to school away from home. I wanted to go to school where I wanted to end up because that's where I wanted my placements to be done because I wanted those [inaudible] on my resume. So, yeah, it's just there's always options.
00:19:11 Madison: There is. Yeah. I think the process of you have to wait a few months to hear back and you have no idea who's going to accept you or why you're going to get accepted, I think it's just hard to put that control in other people. And so that waiting process of those few months is super hard because you're kind of just waiting on that application process to finish so that you can hear back to figure out what your next two or however many years is going to look like.
00:19:43 Madison: And so it is really stressful. Just the waiting. I just remember the waiting period of those three months. And I was actually on a spring break trip with all of my friends when I got one of the acceptances and I felt immediately a weight lifted off my shoulders because it was just so stressful. Because that was March. And if I was going to start in a summer program that started in June, that was really soon. That was a quick turnaround. So the whole process can be super scary, but it does work out. And now that I'm in graduate school, I'm so thankful for the way it did work out.
00:20:15 Hallie: That's amazing. And as you are starting your second year, what's in the cards for you? What placements are you going to have this year? What's going to happen this year for you?
00:20:26 Madison: So I am starting next week with my semester and I will have –
00:20:32 Hallie: Recording this in August, guys, so not to worry.
00:20:35 Madison: You're right. So my semester is classes on Mondays. So we'll have class all day on Monday and get them done for the week. So they're a little bit longer, but that's to attest for the fact that it's only one day a week. So class all day on Monday. And then throughout the week, I am actually at the private practice that I did my job through with the SLPA job. It's in my hometown and they are growing a huge amount.
00:21:05 Madison: I actually shadowed there. The very first time I was ever shown SLP was at this private practice while I was in high school. So now it's really funny that… I don't know how many years it's been, I guess, four, maybe five since I've shadowed. And now I'm back there doing my placement, but I'm going to be in a bunch of private schools, preschools, daycares, and then also in their clinic. So it'll be all pediatric focus, which is where my heart lies. So I am really, really, really excited for just this opportunity to get more hands-on experience, more clinical practice, just finally getting the chance to do what my job will look like every day in the future. So I'm really excited for the semester.
00:21:49 Hallie: Did you get to pick it or is it kind of like, did you say you were some ideas that you had? Like, how did you end up getting this kind of placement?
00:21:57 Madison: Yeah. So in our program, you can put in your ideas for where you want. So if you want kids, if you want private practice, a hospital, whatever setting you ideally are looking for, you can kind of put that in. And then our person that coordinates all of it in our program, she will kind of talk to you, figure out what you like and don't like. So I basically just told her, I was like, Yeah. There's this practice in my hometown that I really would love to have my placement at. And they said they would love to have me as a grad student. And so they kind of just email back and forth and coordinated it. And here we are. So I think it's more of you have a choice, but also our coordinator will help find places for you as well. So it's kind of… it's a nice balance between picking and also letting them find places for you.
00:22:48 Hallie: Which I think is great. Like, lot of graduate students like I want to experience with everything adult and this and that and then it's like someone like me, I was like I just want pediatric. Like stack me with pediatric experience so I can walk in there with my resume stacked with pediatric experience
00:23:03 Madison: Exactly. I know I think my cohort would probably be half split if I had to guess between really wanting adults and really wanting pediatrics but I've always known since the beginning. And they always said keep an open mind. You might change your mind. I did not change my mind. I'm still pediatrics all the way.
00:23:22 Hallie: I love it. Any last bit of advice for those listening that are like in the heat of graduate school and just need a little bit of a boost of morale or positivity? What would you give to them?
00:23:37 Madison: I like to always tell myself this season of life in grad school is temporary. It is not permanent. It's not forever. It's only, for me, only two years. And so I think just enjoying this time while in graduate school because soon enough, I'll be having my adult job and working full time. And so just trying to enjoy this time of like learning, being in a classroom, still being with a cohort, being surrounded by people who are just there to support you throughout this journey is something I like to reflect on and think about because grad school is hard and it's really easy to focus on all the negatives in grad school.
00:24:19 Madison: But just reminding myself, this is temporary. It's not forever. And that it will come to an end at some point, but to just enjoy it right now. So finding things to enjoy. And like for me, that's my clients I get to work with and all the cute little kids I get to spend time with. And it brings me so much joy. So there is so much to look forward to in grad school too. It's not all negatives. It's not all stressful. It is super fun all at the same time, but it is two years or however many years each program is, but it does fly by. It really does. I can't even believe I'm in my second year already and thinking about graduation in May.
00:24:28 Halllie: It really does fly. I remember one thing that was hard for me at that time is I had friends that were working and making… that were moving out, having a real job. And they were like, let's do this. And then we get something – like, I can't afford that. Like I can't afford to go here or go there. Like I'm living at home. Like any money I'm making is paying for my gas money to get to my grad program. Like, so that was a hard thing for me to adjust with was like just the different phases of people in my world around me. And that's why it was really important to rely on the people that I was in graduate school with because we were all in that same boat. We were all broke together and tired and overwhelmed.
00:25:37 Hallie: And for someone who's been out in the field, like we've all been there. Like think of all the SLPs that are out now doing the thing, we've all experienced graduate school and we've all survived it. So we've all survived the Praxis. We've all survived our comps. We've all survived all those things. So it clearly is evidence. It is possible.
00:25:59 Madison: Yes, it is possible. It'll be done quick. The days might be slow, but the weeks go so fast, which… It's honestly a blessing and also a curse all at the same time because it really just does fly by. But it's what you have to do to get to being an SLP and it's just part of the journey, but it is so worth it.
00:26:20 Hallie: I love it. Where can everyone learn more about you and where they can follow along on your journey?
00:26:25 Madison: So I am on Instagram and also sometimes occasionally TikTok, but it's @speechiewannabe and you'll find me there. I do lots of updates. I give all kinds of tips and film Day in the Lives. And I just know what it's like to be so overwhelmed and confused and not have anyone to talk to about becoming an SLP. And so I just love to help people also in our field that are going through the same journey I am.
00:26:53 Hallie: I love it. Thank you so, so much. I always end my episodes with a joke because jokes build rapport. And that's something I always used with my students to build rapport when they were coming into my speech room. So why does nobody talk to circles?
00:27:07 Madison: I have no idea.
00:27:09 Hallie: Because there's no point.
00:27:14 Madison: That's hilarious. I love the joke.
00:27:16 Hallie: My corny dad jokes here, guys, are here every week. You can steal them, claim them if your students like them. If your students don't like them, you can blame me. It's okay. I can take it. Thank you so, so much, Madison. Go check out her Instagram. Tell her if you guys are SLPs listening. And if you have grad students that are working with you, your interns, tell them to go follow her on Instagram. If you guys are fellow grad students or going into grad school, go follow her on Instagram as well. And until next week, everyone, stay out of trouble. Thank you so much, Madison.
00:27:49 Madison: Thank you.
00:27:54 Hallie: Thanks so much for tuning in to another episode of SLP Coffee Talk. It means the world to me that you're tuning in each and every week and getting the jolt of inspiration you need. You can find all of the links and information mentioned in this episode at my website, speechtimefun.com. Don't forget to follow the show so you don't miss any future episodes. And while you're there, it would mean the world to me if you would take a few seconds and leave me an honest review. See you next week with another episode full of fun and inspiration from one SLP to another. Have fun guys.
00:28:35 Hallie: Hey there SLP, I have a quick question for you. What if you could have just one book on your shelf that actually gets the challenges of working with middle school and high school students? Well, it's here. Well, actually the pre-order is here, but hey, I'm so excited to let you know that my brand new book, The Secondary SLP Guide is available for pre-order. And when you pre-order, you get an exclusive bonus that you won't want to miss.
00:29:07 Hallie: It is packed with real talk strategies, quick tips and inspiration that you can use with your middle school and high school students all year long. This is the perfect book for a book club, a grad student group, or just flipping through when you're stuck and in a IEP writing spiral. So head to speechtimefun.com slash pre-order or head to my Instagram and send me a DM with the word pre-order and I will send you the link so you can pre-order now and I cannot wait for you to get your hands on this book in November but the sooner you grab it the better the bonus.
