ASHA Audiology: Working for You

ASHA Audiology by the numbers...

In 2023, more than 14,700 CCC-A audiologists affiliated with ASHA.
In 2023, 96% of audiologists renewed their certification with ASHA.
In 2023, more than 600 audiologists were newly certified, and 80 audiologists regained certification through the reinstatement process.
In 2023, 262 students became National NSSLHA members.

Advocating With You

ASHA volunteer leaders and National Office staff build strategic relationships with lawmakers and policymakers to advance the interests of the audiology profession.
ASHA Government Affairs and Public Policy team supports audiologists on issues to broaden coverage of and payment for services they provide. Read more about ASHA’s Public Policy Agenda.
ASHA is partnering with the American Academy of Audiology (AAA) and the Academy of Doctors of Audiology (ADA) to endorse the Medicare Audiology Access Improvement Act, bipartisan legislation that will provide seniors with more timely and robust access to services provided by audiologists.
Audiologists can contact ASHA’s federal and political affairs staff for specific questions about federal legislation at federal@asha.org.
Audiologists can contact ASHA staff for specific coding and payment questions at reimbursement@asha.org.
ASHA has partnerships and agreements with the Academy of Rehabilitative Audiology (ARA) Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (AG Bell), American Cochlear Implant Alliance (ACI Alliance), Educational Audiology Association (EAA), Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA), National Center for Hearing Assessment and Management (NCHAM), National Hearing Conservation Association (NHCA) and Vestibular Disorders Association—these agreements provide reciprocal benefits in the areas of advocacy, exhibiting, and promotion.

Providing Professional Development and Consultation

The ASHA National Office staff includes nine ASHA-certified audiologists.
ASHA audiologists can be reached at audiology@asha.org to provide professional consultation to anyone with audiology practice or hearing-related questions.
ASHA ProFind is a free online directory that connects audiologists with patients seeking hearing care and to other health professionals who may refer patients.
ASHA Professional Development offers online learning opportunities for audiologists in a variety of formats. All ASHA members can gain unlimited access to a curated online course catalog by subscribing to the ASHA Learning Pass.
In 2020, ASHA launched the Assistants Certification Program which (a) helps audiologists identify qualified audiology assistants who can provide support for routine practice tasks and (b) allows audiologists to use their time to practice at the top of their license/profession.

An ad hoc committee of audiologists and audiology assistants created a Scope of Practice for Audiology Assistants.

Supporting Audiology Science and Research

ASHA offers peer-reviewed journals focused on audiology and hearing--the American Journal of Audiology; the Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research; and Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools--and one scholarly review journal, Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups.
ASHA's National Center for Evidence-Based Practice in Communication Disorders (N-CEP) has guided ASHA’s commitment toward evidence-based practice.
ASHA's online Practice Portal and Evidence Maps combine evidence, expert opinion, and a wealth of resources to inform evidence-based clinical practice.
ASHA supports early-career scientists through several research education and mentoring programs as well as award programs.
The American Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation (ASHFoundation) supports audiology science and research through a variety of funding programs for new investigators, mid-career researchers, and seasoned scientists. Since its founding, the ASHFoundation has awarded $12.8 million to more than 2,500 innovators to pursue transformative ideas that change the lives of people with communication disorders.
In recent years, the ASHFoundation has provided more than $1.5 million to audiologists, hearing scientists, research practitioners, and audiology students through research grants and scholarships.

Upholding the Code of Ethics

The Board of Ethics adjudicates complaints alleging violations of the Code of Ethics and may sanction individuals for unethical conduct.
All current ASHA members and Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC) holders, as well as applicants for the CCC, must adhere to the ASHA Code of Ethics (2023). ASHA's Board of Ethics provides guidance about the Code of Ethics through its Issues in Ethics Statements, develops professional ethics educational programs, and produces occasional Everyday Ethics blog posts in ASHA Leader Live.
ASHA-certified assistants must abide by the Assistants Code of Conduct.
The 17-member Board of Ethics comprises a mix of audiologists and speech-language pathologists, and two public members.

Ensuring the Quality and Success of Graduate Education

The Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CAA) is committed to quality and is dedicated to graduate education programs’ success in preparing future audiologists.

Eighty existing audiology entry-level clinical doctoral education programs are accredited or hold candidate status by the CAA.
Seven audiologists serve on the CAA (five academics and two practitioners).
Approximately 28 audiologists serve in the pool of CAA accreditation site visitors.
The CAA is the only accrediting agency for graduate education programs in audiology that is recognized by both the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (since 1964) and the U.S. Department of Education (since 1967).

Supporting Audiology Students

More than 328 audiology students have received the Audiology/Hearing Science Research Travel Award, supporting their travel to the ASHA Convention.
ASHA offers the Audiology Students at the ASHA Convention program, designed to engage clinical audiology students with National NSSLHA and audiology leaders in the profession at the annual ASHA Convention.
Audiology Mentor Program for Students is a virtual mentoring program that pairs AuD students with clinical audiologists who provide guidance, feedback, and support to the students in their journey to becoming practicing professionals.
Each year, ASHA’s Audiology Practices team hosts in-person and virtual AuD Student Day events for audiology program faculty and students to learn about the Association and professional practice issues.
EdFind, ASHA’s online search engine, helps prospective students find detailed information on all audiology graduate programs.
In 2023, 56 audiology and hearing science students and early-career faculty participated in award, mentoring, and research education programs designed to support the PhD pipeline, faculty-researcher careers, and the communication sciences and disorders (CSD) science base.
Every year, the ASHFoundation provides scholarships and grants to many AuD and PhD students to help those students complete their education, pursue innovative research studies, and launch their careers.
National NSSLHA offers 54 student leadership opportunities (some serving on key ASHA committees), Member Honors awards, specifically for audiology students, as well as undergraduate scholarships and graduate scholarships that are open to both audiology and speech-language pathology students .
Students who are National NSSLHA members during the last 2 years of their doctoral program are eligible for $225 off the initial dues and fees of ASHA membership and certification.

Promoting Public Awareness of Hearing Health

ASHA partnered with the National Center for Hearing Assessment and Management (NCHAM) and researchers at NORC at the University of Chicago on an interactive map showing the U.S. prevalence of bilateral hearing loss by state and county. The map will help providers communicate with patients and health care decision-makers about how common hearing loss is, and the need for prevention and treatment.
ASHA's Identify the Signs campaign has reached more than half a billion consumers.
Each May, National Speech-Language-Hearing Month provides an opportunity to raise awareness about communication disorders and the role of ASHA members in providing life-altering treatment.
Audiology Patient Education Handouts provide information on hearing-related topics in plain language for consumers.
ASHA provides a Hearing Screener quick test for consumers to check their hearing.
ASHA's public information efforts reach hundreds of millions of consumers each year, and almost one third of the visitors to ASHA’s website are from the public.
For the past several years, in observance of World Hearing Day (March 3), ASHA--in collaboration with the Hearing Loss Association of America--has run a week-long digital promotional campaign, along with (a) obtaining interviews featuring audiologists on TV and radio outlets around the country and (b) offering a themed toolkit for audiologists to use to help spread the word.
ASHA regularly arranges coverage that features audiologists in outlets like The Washington Post, Sirius XM Radio, NPR, and Consumer Reports.
ASHA continues to advise the World Health Organization's (WHO) on its Make Listening Safe campaign, which has produced the first-ever global standard for safe listening on personal audio devices and developed guidance for hearing protection in entertainment venues.
Public service announcements for television and radio outlets that highlight the importance of ear and hearing care and the work of audiologists have had tens of thousands of airings across the country and continue to air indefinitely.
ASHA regularly does interviews with media outlets nationwide that educate the public about over-the-counter hearing aids, hearing loss and related topics, and the role of audiologists.