Maryland State Characteristics of Licensure Law

Last updated April 2008

Contact the state's licensure board or regulatory agency for exact licensure, certification, or registration requirements in your jurisdiction.

Initial Licensure Requirements

Audiology

1. Holds a doctoral degree from an accredited educational institution
2. Supervised clinical training as required by the Board with standards consistent with the ACAE and the CAA
3. Passage of an examination (score 600)

Waiver

The Board may waive any of the qualifications required for a license if the individual:

1. Is of good moral character and pays the application fee
2. Holds or held a national certification in audiology from a Board recognized organization that meets the practice requirements established by the Board
3. Holds a current license in another state that has equivalent requirements
   or
4. On or before Sept. 30, 2007 holds a current license and master's degree from an accredited program, meets practice requirements that are equivalent to the Board requirements and meets any other requirements adopted by the Board

Speech-Language Pathology

1. Master's degree or equivalent
2. Supervised training as required by the Board
3. Supervised postgraduate professional practice
4. Passage of an examination (score 600)

Waiver

1. Is of good moral character and pays the application fee
2. Holds or held a national certification in speech language pathology from a Board recognized organization that meets the practice requirements established by the Board
   or
3. Holds a current license in another state that that has equivalent requirements

Note: As of October 1, 2007, new school speech language pathologists and assistants must be licensed by the Board.

Exemptions

1. Federal employees
2. Students or trainees
3. Physicians
4. Volunteers working in free speech and hearing screening programs
5. Audiologists or speech language pathologists licensed in another state while waiting for Board approval of their licensure application
6. Employees of public or state schools providing speech-language pathology services that have practiced continuously on or before September 30, 2007
7. Individuals continuously employed to practice audiology since June 30, 1988 in a county or State school system.

Reciprocity/Endorsement

1. The Board may waive the examination requirement to an applicant who meets the qualifications otherwise required by this title and is licensed in another state with equivalent standards.
2. Audiologists, speech language pathologists and speech language pathology assistants licensed in another state may practice while their completed application for licensure is pending before the Board.

Interim Practice/Temporary Licensure

1. The Board may allow an individual licensed in another state to practice in Maryland if the individual has recently become a Maryland resident and the individual has an application for license pending before the Board.
2. The Board may issue a limited license to individuals who meet the licensure requirements except for the examination and supervised clinical training/ postgraduate professional practice and have master's degree in speech language pathology or a doctoral degree in audiology or both and have their CCCs or certification from ABA that were in effect at the time their degree was obtained. Practice must be under a licensed supervisor or an individual who holds a national certification accepted by the Board.
3. Applicants without master's degrees that are enrolled in a post-baccalaureate doctoral training or hold a master's degree from a university program that is not accredited by the CAA may seek a limited license under equivalency requirements specified by the Board in regulation.
4. Speech language pathology assistants must obtain a limited license before beginning supervised practice.

Continuing Education for License Renewal:

1. 20 CEUs per 2-year renewal cycle; 30 CEUs for dual licensees
2. Continuing education credits may not be carried over from one renewal cycle to another
3. The Board will waive CEU requirements for individuals newly licensed, reinstated or transfers from other states if license is obtained during the 2 year cycle.

Hearing Aid Dispensing

Audiologists may dispense under an audiology license.

Support Personnel

1. A speech-language pathology assistant must have completed one of the following requirements within the past 5 years: (a) an associate's degree from an approved program for speech-language pathology assistants at an accredited institution; (b) an associate's degree in an allied health field from an accredited institution, with minimum coursework that includes at least 3 credit hours in each of the following areas—normal speech-language development, speech disorders, anatomy and physiology of speech systems, language disorders and phonology; (c) a baccalaureate degree in speech-language pathology or communication science disorders from an accredited institution.
2. A speech-language pathology assistant must demonstrate completion of 25 hours of clinical observation and 75 hours of clinical assisting experience obtained within an associate, bachelor or master's program. If an applicant has not completed these hours, the applicant may file with the Board a written plan for an alternative method to obtain the hours.
3. An assistant shall have a limited licensed before beginning supervised practice and shall practice only under a licensed speech language pathologist.
4. Must complete 9 months of supervised practice and submit a competency checklist completed by the supervisor, to the Board
   or
5. Under waivers: if the individual has been working as a speech language pathology assistant for 2 years, has completed the associate's or bachelor's educational program, submits an speech language pathology assistant competency skills checklist and completes a delegation agreement for each supervising speech language pathologist; or via reciprocity if the other state has equivalent qualifications.
6. A full-time supervising speech-language pathologist may not supervise more than 2 full-time speech-language pathology assistants. A part-time supervising speech-language pathologist may not supervise more than 1 full time speech-language pathology assistant. A supervising speech-language pathologist must have a minimum of 3 years of work experience and maintain ongoing contact with all clients seen by the assistant as directed in regulation.
7. Speech-language pathology assistants must complete a minimum of 10 CEUs every 2 years to renew their license.

Board Oversight

State Board of Examiners for Audiologists, Hearing Aid Dispensers, and Speech-Language Pathologists

Board Composition

The Board shall comprise 13 members; 3 members shall be licensed audiologists with at least 5 years of work experience and are currently practicing, 3 members shall be licensed speech-language pathologists with at least 5 years of work experience and currently practicing, 2 members shall be licensed physicians who hold a certificate of qualification from the American Board of Otolaryngology and currently practicing, 2 shall be consumer members one of whom shall be a consumer of services by a licensee and 3 shall be licensed hearing aid dispensers with at least 5 years of experience and currently practicing. The Governor and Secretary shall accept speech language pathologist nominees from MSHA, audiologist nominees from MSHA and the Maryland Academy of Audiology, physicians from the MD Society of Otolaryngology; hearing aid dispensers from the Hearing Society of MD, DC and DE and consumers from the Department of Disabilities list.

Telehealth

Telehealth means the use of telecommunications and information technologies for the exchanges of information from one site to another for the provision of health care to an individual from a provider through hardwire or Internet connection.

Web site

Board of Audiologists, Hearing Aid Dispensers & Speech-Language Pathologists

Questions regarding this document? Call ASHA at 800-498-2071 and ask for the State Advocacy Team.