Clinical Practice

Student clinical education emphasizes the application of classroom work to clinical practice.

A supervised clinical experience is provided for students completing their certification programs. Each experience is a full-time, daytime responsibility and includes a weekly seminar at Adelphi University. Specific course prerequisites for student teaching or the practicum are listed in the course description sections for individual programs. General requirements include a satisfactory health examination, a satisfactory speech and hearing evaluation, acceptable academic qualifications, and satisfactory faculty recommendations. Students will be cleared for student teaching by their program director.

To determine what tests are needed for your certification area, please contact your advisor. It is strongly recommended that all exams be taken prior to student teaching. Undergraduate students must have a 2.75 overall GPA and 3.0 in education courses to be eligible to student teach.

Applications for the clinical experience must be filed by March 1 for the following spring semester and December 1 for the following fall semester. Information pertaining to the clinical experience may be obtained through the Office of School and Community Partnerships.

Curriculum and Instruction
Fieldwork experience bridges the gap between theory and practice. It provides our students with the opportunity to visit local schools as participants and observers to enhance their knowledge of the teaching and learning process. This classroom experience is an introduction to the student’s area of certification, and helps the student examine the student-teacher relationship and the role of teacher within the context of the classroom, school, and community.

Students gather and analyze data, assist, co-teach, work with individual students and with small groups, design lessons, and assess student performance.

Communication Sciences and Disorders
Students participate in supervised clinical experiences at the Hy Weinberg Center, observing and working with clients across the lifespan with a wide range of communication difficulties. These experiences include evaluation and treatment of speech, language, and hearing disorders. Students may participate in our innovative group therapy programs for toddlers, preschool-aged children, adolescents, and adults, including our social communication, aphasia, and caregiver groups. Additionally, students can observe or evaluate clients with auditory processing disorders, and can assist the audiologist in the selection and fitting of hearing aids.

Health Studies, Physical Education, and Human Performance Science
Students have opportunities for supervised clinical experience in exercise science, including work in the cardiac rehabilitation program, adult fitness program, children’s obesity lab, and exercise physiology research lab. In addition, for those pursuing the pre-physical therapy program, additional experiences are found in our athletic training and sport injury clinic, as well as physical therapy and rehabilitation clinics.

Fieldwork experiences are available for pre-student teaching in a variety of school settings.

• Exercise Science: Fieldwork opportunities in exercise science include the exercise physiology research lab, the child obesity clinic, Adelphi’s cardiac rehabilitation program, Adelphi’s sport injury clinic, and numerous placements in fitness and medical centers.

• Sport Management: Fieldwork is required in both the undergraduate and graduate programs and includes field placements with over twenty professional teams in the greater New York area, the NFL, MLB, the NBA, Madison Square Garden, Nassau Coliseum, and Walt Disney World in Florida. Approval must be made by both parties.

• Adapted Physical Education: Placements are made through our partnership program with the Henry Viscardi School in Albertson. In addition, a variety of other placements may be made for those wishing to pursue a specialization in Adapted Physical Education.

For more information, contact:

Joann Cosentino
Director, Office of School and Community Partnerships
Harvey Hall, Room 111
p – 516-877-4087
e – cosentino@adelphi.edu