Site Visitor Qualifications

Accreditation Handbook—Chapter VII: Site Visitors

The CAA assembles teams of practitioners and university representatives to serve as site visitors to academic programs in the discipline. The selected pool of academic faculty, clinical faculty, and practitioners actively serve as CAA site visitors once selected and trained.

CAA site visitors are comprised of the following three main categories:

1. Academic Faculty
2. Clinical Faculty
3. Practitioner

The CAA has identified a unique set of qualifications for each site visitor category. See subsections below for details.

Academic Faculty

• has earned a doctoral degree in audiology, speech-language pathology, or a related discipline from a regionally accredited institution
• has schieved the rank of associate professor or above or comparably experienced educator
• has a faculty appointment in a CAA-accredited program (this does not include programs holding candidacy status unless the the individual has held a previous faculty appointment at a CAA-accredited program)
• is employed by a CAA-accredited program in the same professional area as the individual
• has demonstrated active involvement in the profession of audiology and/or speech-language pathology (e.g., membership in professional organizations, credentials, research record)

Clinical Faculty

• has earned graduate degree in audiology, speech-language pathology, or a related discipline from a regionally accredited institution
• has a clinical appointment in a CAA-accredited program (this does not include programs holding candidacy status unless the individual has held a previous faculty appointment at a CAA-accredited program)
• is employed by a CAA-accredited or candidacy program in the same professional area as the individual
• holds valid licensure, if available, and nationally recognized credentials in audiology and/or speech-language pathology, as appropriate
• has principal responsibilities that include clinical education, such as student supervision or client services, teaching, or administration (applicants whose primary employment function is as an on-campus clinical director or supervisor/preceptor for the purposes of student training meet this criterion)

Practitioner

• has earned a graduate degree in audiology, speech-language pathology, or a related discipline from a regionally accredited institution
• holds valid licensure, if available, and nationally recognized credentials in audiology and/or speech-language pathology, as appropriate
• has experience as a practitioner in the area for which credentials are held for at least 5 years
• is directly engaged in a significant manner in the practice of speech-language or hearing services (applicants whose primary employment function is as an on-campus clinical director or supervisor/preceptor for the purposes of student training do not meet this criterion)

For in-depth information about volunteering as a CAA site visitor, please refer to Chapter VII: Site Visitors in the Accreditation Handbook.

Questions? Contact accreditation staff at caasvapplicants@asha.org.