Highlights of ASHA 2021 Member and Affiliate Profile Report

Lead Findings

• The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) currently represents 223,456 audiologists; speech-language pathologists (SLPs); speech, language, and hearing scientists; audiology and speech-language pathology support personnel; and undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students in communication sciences and disorders. That total reflects an increase of 2% from the 2020 total.
• ASHA’s membership and affiliation grew by 5,142 people in 2021—a 2.4% increase from the previous year. 
• ASHA represents 212,534 audiologists, SLPs, and speech, language, and hearing scientists.
• The total number of SLPs increased by 3.0% in 2021 compared to 2020, and the total number of audiologists increased by 1.3%. 

Employment

Overall, only 1.5% of constituents were unemployed and seeking employment, well below the January 2021 national unemployment rate of 6.3% reported by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Diversity

The Association tracks the diversity (i.e., percentage of ASHA members who are from racial/ethnic minoritized groups, are males, and/or are bilingual service providers) of the membership in 5-year cohorts.

The 2021 diversity index shows positive increases in several respects:

About one third (29.7%) of the 2017–2021 cohort were diverse compared with 22.5% of the 2003–2007 cohort—a 7.2% increase.

• 18.2% of the 2017–2021 cohort identified as being from racially/ethnically minoritized groups compared with 11.8% of the 2003–2007 cohort—a 6.4% increase.
• 4.4% of the 2017–2021 cohort were male compared with 4.0% of the 2003–2007 cohort—a 0.4% increase.
• 10.6% of the 2017–2021 cohort considered themselves bilingual service providers compared with 9.0% of the 2003–2007 cohort—a 1.6% increase.

Full report: ASHA 2021 Member and Affiliate Profile [PDF]

ASHA Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Initiatives

About the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)
ASHA is the national professional, scientific, and credentialing association for 223,000 members and affiliates who are audiologists; speech-language pathologists; speech, language, and hearing scientists; audiology and speech-language pathology support personnel; and students. Audiologists specialize in preventing and assessing hearing and balance disorders as well as providing audiologic treatment, including hearing aids. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) identify, assess, and treat speech, language, and swallowing disorders.