MSc Speech & Language Therapy alum Josh tells us where his course has taken him and what he most enjoyed about studying it at Leeds Beckett.

Course: MSc Speech & Language Therapy

Tell us a bit about yourself and what you've been doing since you graduated?

After graduating from Leeds Beckett, I applied for several jobs and received two interviews within a short space of time. I attended an interview at Lighthouse School Leeds and was offered the job on the same day.

During my interview day I had a great feeling about the role and I accepted an offer before attending my other interview. Since then, I've worked as a Band 5 Speech and Language Therapist full time at Lighthouse School.

This is a provision for students who are diagnosed as autistic in Year 7, through to Year 14. Lighthouse School aims to ensure the personal development of our students with a focus on developing communication skills, social relationship skills, independence, employability, and personal emotional wellbeing skills.

What have been the highlights of your career so far?

Shortly after my role began, my line manager went on maternity leave. The school provided me with alternative clinical supervision; however, this was more of a 'long arm' approach meaning that I did not have access to direct on-site supervision from another Speech and Language Therapist (SaLT).

Despite this, I was able to manage a full caseload in their absence, as well as completing my NQP competencies prior to them returning. This gave me a great sense of achievement and confidence in my own autonomy which is a skill that I further developed at LBU.

I would say that this felt like being thrown in at the deep end, yet it provided me with an opportunity to further develop certain skills such as caseload management and the delivering of direct therapy and assessment.

Tell us about your job, what does this entail and did studying at Leeds Beckett help you get there?

My current role is as a full time Band 5 Speech and Language Therapist, based in a secondary school. Lighthouse School Leeds is one of a kind, and was the first free school for students who have a diagnosis of autism, and as a result have an Educational Health Care Plan.

My role in the school isn't like anything that I experienced on placement during my time at Leeds Beckett, however the skills that I developed have been invaluable.

I regularly complete formal assessment as a way of monitoring the progress of our students. I deliver direct therapy sessions which are incorporated into all of our students' timetables as part of their high school provision. I liaise with the training team, teaching staff, key stage coordinators as well as parents and the students in order to provide a student-centred approach while working as part of a wider MDT.

Our values at Lighthouse mean that we are committed to gaining student voice, developing independence and promoting neuro-affirming practice within school. Each student is different, and these differences should be celebrated.

How has your experience studying at Leeds Beckett influenced you and your career?

I thoroughly enjoyed my experience at Leeds Beckett. The focus on interpersonal skills and team work I found extremely valuable and definitely prepared me for work after university in a profession where collaboration with others is paramount.

My placement experiences enabled me to put my taught skills into practice, and the exposure to a range of working environments enabled me to develop my knowledge from a wide range of educators – all with different levels of experience.

What attracted you to study your course at Leeds Beckett University?

I attended Leeds Beckett as a postgraduate student after previously completing a degree in Linguistics at Newcastle University. I knew that I wanted to work in an intrinsically rewarding profession that was related to language development so Speech & Language Therapy seemed like an ideal fit.

Being from Leeds, I knew that I wanted to return home and so I applied to the MSc course at Leeds Beckett. Lots of my friends had attended Leeds Beckett for their undergraduate degrees offering lots of positive feedback about the teaching and the learning environment.

I also really liked the idea of joining an institution with a keen focus on diversity and that provides opportunities to develop taught skills from a seminar room in real-life working placements throughout my studies.

What did you enjoy about your course?

I most enjoyed the content covered in lectures over my two years. We were exposed to a range of topics such as interpersonal skills, medical science and psychology / lifespan which supplemented our learning of the more core Speech and Language Therapy modules such as Language Disorders.

I also enjoyed the placement opportunities I was given during my time here. As a non-driver I initially anticipated being given quite local placements. However, as my cohort were studying during the back end of the COVID-19 pandemic, placement opportunities were harder to secure and I remember travelling around to Wakefield, Hull and Northallerton to name a few of my placement destinations.

I was a little frustrated at the amount of travel this would entail, but I have to say I wouldn’t have changed this experience for anything and the early starts were more than worth it. All of my placement experiences were enjoyable, informative and prepared me for work after LBU.

Throughout my time the course team were incredibly supportive. Through my dissertation supervisor, I was introduced to a team of male SaLTs conducting research into why the profession is one of the most female dominated Allied Health Professions (AHPs) in the country and I was given the opportunity to become part of a wider project alongside my studies which was a fantastic experience.

What advice would you give someone thinking about studying this course?

The advice I would give to someone studying this course is to make sure that this is something you really want to do, and to immerse yourself into the experience. Really get stuck in to the placements and these opportunities can be so hard to come by, and seek out any help or advice during your time here.

The lecturers and all of my placement educators had so much knowledge, tips and tricks to share - don't struggle in silence when you don't need to. Something we focused on at my setting was being able to self-advocate and how important this skill is in later life. I would be a hypocrite if I didn't take on this advice myself.

What's next for you?

Hopefully I'll be at my current setting for many years to come. I love the work I do here and I love the team that I work in. The kids make every day very different but very fun, and I can see myself developing as a professional with their help whilst simultaneously helping them to develop certain skills in the process.

My next milestone would be continuing to develop and hopefully transition to a Band 6 role in the not so distant future, taking on more responsibility and contributing more to the school in a 'bigger picture' way.