March 20, 2012
The CAA does not require that program faculty and supervisors hold the ASHA Certification (CCC) or any other credential, but it does look to confirm that the experience and qualifications are appropriate to each person’s responsibilities in the program, as discussed in CAA’s Standard 2.3 (2017).
The CAA expects programs to provide an opportunity for students to acquire the knowledge and skills to enter independent professional practice. In these professions, this includes having a variety of supervised clinical experiences across practice settings, etc., along with a record of clinical hours to support a graduate’s application for professional credentials.
The CAA utilizes the program’s mission statement and goals as central to its review along with the Standards for Accreditation. If the program’s goal is to prepare graduates to be eligible for ASHA certification, then CAA looks to see that the program has sufficient resources (e.g., CCC supervisors) to support the achievement of this goal because that is an ASHA certification requirement.
Occasionally, the CAA is asked about the program’s responsibility to appropriately inform students of the potential risk of not being eligible for ASHA certification, if not being supervised by someone who holds the ASHA CCC. The CAA is not prescriptive in how this would be demonstrated, however, it expects programs to provide some reasonable evidence that the students have been informed and have acknowledged receipt of this information in a timely manner at the beginning of their program of study.
This expectation is part of the program’s obligations to advise students about the program’s policies and procedures, degree requirements, requirements for professional credentialing, and ethical practice (2017 Standard 4.4), as well as track and document each student’s progress through the program and to support his or her credential applications when they leave the program (2017 Standards 4.7 and 4.8).