1. February 15, 2016
To Whom It May Concern,
I am pleased to write this recommendation on behalf of Kirstie Ruhland, who is applying for a
speech-language pathologist position. I know Kirstie well, and strongly believe she has the experience
and qualities needed for this position.
Clinically, Kirstie has had a wide variety of clinical experiences. As a student clinician, she has
worked with children and adults who have had a variety of diagnoses. As a result of such client
diversity, she has had to do a significant amount of self-directed learning in order to develop
appropriate client-centered assessment and treatment protocols. I supervised her in the Roy Eblen
Speech and Hearing Clinic with adults who have accented speech and wish to improve their
intelligibility. In my observations, Kirstie worked well with clients, administered formal tests in the
standardized manner, scored them appropriately, and made accurate interpretations based on the
clients’ performance. Kirstie is unafraid to seek input if she feels it is necessary, but she also brings
ideas of what she wants to do. She works well individually and as part of a team. She is particularly
interested in working with adults in medical setting, and thus, is interning in two different hospitals.
Kirstie is strong academically, maintaining high GPAs both as an undergraduate and a graduate
student. I had the pleasure of having her in the adult neurogenic courses I teach. She earned top scores
on tests and projects and participated in class discussion, indicating her understanding and application
of information learned in class. I also supervised Kirstie’s master’s research project in which she and a
team of peers developed an app for persons who have sustained right hemisphere damage. Despite
some unexpected delays outside of our control during the development process, Kirstie has been
dedicated to the project. She and her team presented this project at the Iowa Speech-Language-Hearing
Association’s Annual Convention this past November. She explained the project well, answered
attendees’ questions, and obtained feedback to better the app as we continue its development.
Kirstie can balance a number of activities at once. Prior to leaving for her full-time off-campus
internships, she worked at a local healthcare facility providing direct care to residents, and previously
worked at local daycares. She volunteered with various activities and was a member of the National
Student Speech-Language-Hearing Association (NSSLHA. Being part of that organization indicates
her interest in staying abreast of current issues in the field of speech-language pathology. Managing
her various commitments indicates she is dedicated and industrious.
On an interpersonal level, Kirstie is a pleasure with whom to interact. She gets along very well
with a variety of personalities. She is an intelligent, responsible, hard-working, ethical individual who
will be a welcome addition to your organization. I highly recommend Kirstie for this position.
Sincerely,
Angela N. Burda, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
Professor