School to medical field transition? Is it worth it?
For context, I was in grad school during Covid and did not have the opportunity to partake in a medical externship. I feel like this made me put myself in a box in my head to only work in education environments. I’ve had experiences in education of children with autism (focusing mainly on using PECS early out of school and then working towards more tech AAC devices), early intervention, and now in an actual school placement.
Just seeking advice from others in the field as a heavy caseload, lack of administrative support and heavy behaviors that classroom staff are not given proper support/staffing to handle has led overall burnout and dread when going to work. Would it be worth it to try to shadow a medical SLP or even get something a few days a week to try to see some of the hands on skills I may have missed from not having a medical externship? Feeling like I still want to put this degree that I went into massive debt for to use, but feel like I’m running out of options in our field that won’t leave me feeling the way I do now.
Posted Dec 4, 2025, 9:44 PM UTC