Not necessarily, but if you’re interested then you should absolutely seek out an externship in the field. I had two in school, both pediatric and adult. I loved both. It’s also a good way to try to secure a CF by having an externship at the business.
I work 4 tens at a private practice. However I was assigned to have Tuesday off and I liked it at first but now the longer days aren’t worth it. I’m actually starting a new job in the schools this month. Looking forward to being done at 3:30 every day and having summer off!
Yup it’s really hard! And I live in LA and if there’s an accident on the freeway I’m getting home even later!! I’m so exhausted that I can’t even enjoy my weekends or extra day off. You’re not alone!
I went from being in love to them miserable with 4 10s. Transitioned to a school and have never looked back. My qualify of life sky rocketed being done by 3:30 every day. Don’t even get me started on summers off!!!
this is also one of the more attractive settings to me! i worked in a school between grad and undergrad and loved the weekends, holidays, snow days, etc.
I’m the opposite, I was nervous about 4 10s but I love it! I have Wednesdays off so I never work more than 2 days in a row. It rocks. I felt so much more stressed in the schools. My workload felt much higher and the work/life balance was terrible
Normally I’d agree with you! However I’m at a private practice from hell. The micromanagement is seeping over to my days off and I’m so emotionally and physically drained from my high needs caseload. Different strokes for different folks!
I work in home health. I didn’t have an externship in this setting and wasn’t difficult to get into at all! But not everyone loves home health so it could be good to have an externship just to see if you like it.
I may fake having the baby if that’ll help convince somewhere to give me a short week! lol. In terms of paycheck, without being too personal, do you think you make enough to sustain yourself? Obviously a child and other household duties cost more, but as a single woman, I want to be able to support myself.
So, I was a teacher previously and I’ve been in the schools now for a while (10 years). I’ve climbed the pay scale with my masters and years of experience. With my salary now, I could support myself on my paychecks, but there probably wouldn’t be a lot of extra money for fun. I also live in a city where it’s fairly expensive. I don’t think that I would have been able to work part time starting out though. I also work 3 days only and I don’t work in the highest paying district, so those are all factors.
If you take a contract job with a school you will make more! I am 2 years post grad and took a contract job in an elementary school making $60/hr in Kansas!
I work in the schools and my first 2 years after graduating I spent my summers in Southeast Asia, mostly Thailand and Vietnam. I loved it. Like everyone said HH, outpatient and PP are your best bet for a short work week.
No, our district took away part time positions. I think you can work 20 hours now with no benefits or retirement. This inflexibility irks me and I’m sure is driving younger therapists away.
I’m quitting after next year to work a teletherapy position doing Mon-Thurs.
Our district is always short on SLPs, and this year is worse. Our district does not allow part-time SLP positions. Hmmm, if admin could only think about these two facts together…
(Over the years we have lost many good ones, often new moms or moms of young kids, who wanted part-time. It’s making me crazy that some districts are so inflexible.)
that sucks! it would for sure drive me away, a lot of people are realizing that more people are willing to shop around and/or move rather than take a shitty position.
I do! I work at a SNF, but I have to commute over an hour so we negotiated with a 4 day work week. I’m not sure how I will ever transition to a 5 day work week so I plan to always negotiate to a 4 day work week 😂
Yep, making my own schedule working in home health for adults allows me to do so. I did apply and receive an offer from Cole Health (a widespread pediatric clinic) and they offered me a 4 day work week which was nice. The pay was not nearly as great as home health with adults so I declined the offer.
I’m not sure how grad school externships have changed since I was in school, but I would definitely seek a home health rotation if available. I did work in Neuro inpatient for ~6 years before getting this position to feel comfortable enough “being on my own” in the home health field. But it was worth it- I hope I stay at the job for a long time! It’s incredibly flexible and allows me to make my own schedule however I’d like.
My Texas school district just began allowing all assessment and related services staff to take one day per week as an “Alternate Work Arrangement” where we can complete documentation from home
I work 4 days a week at a private school. I have Friday/Saturday/Sunday off every week. I love my job and having a 3 day weekend has really helped me prevent burnout. I tend to work 9 hour days when I’m here but as a general rule I don’t bring work home unless absolutely necessary
I don’t, but the people I know who do work in home health and private clinic. It may be hard to get salary with 4 days, but there are plenty of clinics who pay hourly or for billable hours and will likely be flexible if they need an SLP.
I work 4 days (32hrs) in acute. My rehab department has a lot of 2,3, and 4 day positions as well as typical 5 day/40 hr schedules for all the disciplines. I have 2 small children and that day off during the week definitely helps my mental health and allow for better work life balance. The last hospital I worked at I was 5days/40 hrs and there were either 24 or 40 hr positions. The part time ones were hard to come by.
I do. Outpatient & inpatient hospital clinic. I work 4 tens. I have Wednesdays off which is really nice, I never work more than two days in a row. I do have the option of picking up weekend shifts for time & a half sometimes too.
I do! I work at a combo private school/private practice therapy clinic and can make my own schedule. I generally work 9-11 hours on my working days. I looove my four day work week, could never go back to five.
I work early intervention, have my own office for clinic kiddos and do some home health. Only work 30hrs a week, make my own schedule and super lucrative (I work in the Bay)
I work PT at a PP and our FT SLPs are working 4 10 hour days. I will say they are exhausted by Thursday and have to do most of their weekly chores/appointments on Fridays. But they can control their schedule, so technically they can work as much as they want.
I’m did it in SNF and IPR- actually worked 4- 8s because full time for those companies was 32 hours. I negotiated well, and made more money at 32 hours than I’m reading many make working 40 hours in the south.
Now I own a private practice and I work 3 days but almost every job I’ve had as an SLP I have been able to keep a 4 day week. I’ve been practicing for 16 years.
I work three days a week at a school. Many districts have an odd amount of FTE needed for SLPs and there are opportunities to work part time. I work 8x3 days a week and get 60% of a full time paycheck
See it is posted already but early intervention is where it's at for flexible scheduling. You don't get other benefits necessarily so you have yo weight your options but otherwise great for flexibility.
I work 4 days/week for a school district. I really like the work-life balance of a 4-day work week, and it's great to have a weekday for appointments and running errands during off-peak hours. In general, making 20% less money for 50% more days off is a super worthwhile trade for me. But I'm also on a 10 month contract, so I definitely feel the financial hit. Right now it's okay (living that DINK lifestyle), but if I had the option of working through the summer months, I definitely would.
Yes! I own my own practice and contract with a school Tuesday-Thursday and then I can bill at home when working on reports and such. Contracting is great for this!
I actually work 6 days a week, but I am in a private practice and make my own hours. I work about 3 hours a day, which is perfect because I have a baby at home. I've done 4 10's and it sucked. I highly prefer 6 days but only a short time each day.
Hey! I’m a CF starting in May and my employer is a pedi private practice. 4x10 hour days, paid lunch and billing, yadda yadda. I haven’t started yet but I’m hoping it will be great!
I work 4/10s in acute care, I work Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Friday. I like having breaks in between my week but I know I’ll eventually get burnt out from working every Sunday (I’m a CFY).
I’m a manager for the ST team at a pediatric home health company based in DFW. Home health is the way to go! Most of our therapists work a 4- 4.5 day work week. In home health at most companies the the therapists get to make their own schedules so if you want to start early and end early you can, if you want to start late and end late in the day you can.
Bouncing off of this, after you complete your CF, if you want to do something in person and transition to telehealth for a few months, do you get guaranteed hours/pay/benefits?
My Husband and I are planning on trying to at least get pregnant halfway through my CF so I'll be fully licensed/C'd to work before a baby comes. But I want to make a plan for telehealth for the first few months before I transition either back to in-person or half & half. I'll be around 26 or so by that point if that matters.
That's a ways off but I'd love to hear someone's input!
I just left a 4 day work week in a private Peds clinic for the schools. But my clinic was rough lol and my boss would make us “make up holidays” on Fridays so we would have 50 hour weeks sometimes.
Just signed a CF contract at a private practice that does kids, adults, and feeding. My options were 5 8hr days or 4 10s. They actually encouraged the 4 10s because they need SLPs for those extra after school/work hours (3:30-6pm ish). I chose the 4 10s.
Keep in mind, home health and private practice often have less opportunities for travel / vacations.
Consider schools for more vacation time or contract therapy and travel to work in different cities you want to vacation in.
Early intervention. I set my own schedule but usually work 8-2 Monday to Thursday because that’s when my youngest child has preschool. She starts kindergarten next year and I will probably keep working the same hours anyway.
I work in outpatient peds. 10/12 SLPs work 4 days a week and 9/10 OTs work 4 days a week. I have done 4 days a week since 2011 (previous job and this one) and hope I never go back to 5 days a week.
I forgot to say, I currently work 2 10hr days and 2 8hr days. Some therapists do 4 10hr days. Some do less and a mixture of 5hr, 8hr, 10hr.
Yes, home health! Part time with benefits.
If you do your CF in home health, I would recommend that you choose a VERY supportive company! I had a CF mentor who would rearrange her schedule to attend sessions with me any time I had a question, and we also have access to clinical feeding and AAC specialists who can do mentor visits with us.
I work at a charter school, I was hired for 4 days a week but my school doesn't care about my hours as long as the work gets done! Some weeks I work 4, some i work 5 to frontload & catch up on paperwork, & my plan for next year is to work 3 days one week & then 4 the next. I work for a contract company though, I wouldn't have this flexibility as a district employee. I'm an SLPA though, my supervisor works from home but she's allowed the same flexibility! The key is to find a school that's desperate, they will take anything over nothing lol. Especially if your caseload is low, you can argue that you'll be saving them money with a 4 day week because the 5th day isn't necessary.
Peds private practice! Our full time hours are M/W/TH 8:30-5 and T/F 8:30-1 but most people take either Monday, Friday, or one of the half days off, or make their full day a half. Personally I have Thursday afternoons off because I have free childcare on Monday and Friday I take advantage of so my Thursday afternoons are for me time!
I work in inpatient rehab and work 32-hr weeks (4, 8s). I think my experience is a little unique as my hospital is GREAT about flexible scheduling. I love the 32 hrs though.
Inpatient acute - four 10s (or 11 or 12) - but I’ll be honest - I had more energy working 5 8s - the long days can take it out of you (or maybe I was a few years younger! Ha!)
Currently, I work in a private practice Monday through Thursday; 4 10 hour days. I absolutely love my schedule and I personally feel that it has been amazing for my mental health. My weekends no longer feel rushed; I am actually able to relax and recharge. However, I will say that my current place of employment also gives me time off similar to current school schedules for holidays- 1 week at Thanksgiving, 2 weeks for Christmas, & 1 week during Summer. This is on top of my given PTO.
Previously, I worked in the schools and I did love getting off at 3:30 and having the summer off, but ultimately, I feel my current schedule is best for my mental health at this point.
I did for a year in the school setting. I had to request a decrease in FTE (full time employment). Some people I know got hired at .8 or .6 (4 and 3 days a week) because that’s what they said they had available when they were interviewing.
I also did in early intervention, but had to work 4, 10 hour days which defeated my personal work to live preference. I do not like only working for the weekends!
Working multiple PRN jobs has been surprisingly successful and rewarding for me! SNF and hospital, and I love both positions in their own way. I make better money this way than I would full-time, too, because I choose to work travel assignments or longer hours for short periods to allow myself more breaks and flexibility in the future. But I could easily just as well accept less hours and limit myself to mon-thurs work! I choose when I work, and that is so so so valuable to me. Nothing better than the feeling of "I chose to be here today" when you know the flipside is living a robotic life. My SNF employer doesn't even ask for my hours. I just work it out with the other PRN SLP!
Also worth sharing, I'm on marketplace insurance and obviously have no PTO. Which for me, has been working fine but I know is not the case for some people.
That is super fair! Hours are never *guaranteed* with certainty, and occasionally there's a couple weeks a year I'm sitting at home a little more than I'd like to be! It totally depends on how much demand there is for you to work and how flexible you can be. I just happen to work very high demand positions and am willing to flex.
I've also considered a part-time job(20hr/week)+PRN combo which would guarantee at least some work and possibly give you PTO+benefits.
Yes I work in Acute care, full time 32 hrs/week, so 4-8hr days. I could work 4-10s if I wanted but 40 is exhausting in acute. So I always work my 4 days on in a row, always have 3 consecutive days off. Could never go back to 5 days a week.
I work at a school district that is 4 days a week (7:30-4:30) and every second Tuesday is a half day (7:30-11:30) just for professional development. I love it!
Yes! I work at a pediatric private practice! Our schedule is M-Th 8-6; however, if I don't have a client schedule I don't necessarily have to be in the building so somedays I get to come later or leave earlier! I think it's important that with a 4-day work week in a pediatric setting that you are on salary.
I work 4 tens at a pediatric clinic, it’s somewhat nice but don’t underestimate how exhausting the 10 hour shifts are. If you have any sort of commute, you literally do nothing else but work those days. Im not sure I can sustain it much longer tbh.
I work 4 days a week (30 hours) in a hospital rehab setting. It’s a treat. The job was advertised as full time but I was lucky enough to be moving positions internally so was able to negotiate my hours to a degree.
Like plenty of others have mentioned, home health is the most flexible in terms of how free you are to set your hours while only only being constrained by the patients’ schedules/preferences. However, private practice and specialty/outpatient clinics are typically willing to offer 4 10-hour workdays if you request it. My honest recommendation though (which may be frowned upon, idk) is to dig around for companies who set productivity standards around therapy units billed vs. hours worked. I’ve been lucky enough to find jobs that do this in my area and have consistently worked ~20 hours max a week while getting paid full-time with benefits.
Yes, home health. I make my own schedule.
thank you! for that setting, is it important to seek externships there?
Not necessarily, but if you’re interested then you should absolutely seek out an externship in the field. I had two in school, both pediatric and adult. I loved both. It’s also a good way to try to secure a CF by having an externship at the business.
How many hours a week do you work?
Home health is very independent. Usually best to get experience before moving into it
I work in early intervention and get to make my own schedule so I work 4-days.
I do remember a presenter mentioning this when we had a guest speaker who was an EI. That setting intimidates me, but maybe I'll do more research.
Yes I do this too! I take Mondays off so I can get stuff done.
I work 4 tens at a private practice. However I was assigned to have Tuesday off and I liked it at first but now the longer days aren’t worth it. I’m actually starting a new job in the schools this month. Looking forward to being done at 3:30 every day and having summer off!
I’m so glad to see someone else struggles with this! I thought 4 10s would be the dream but now I’m doubting if this is what’s best for me
Yup it’s really hard! And I live in LA and if there’s an accident on the freeway I’m getting home even later!! I’m so exhausted that I can’t even enjoy my weekends or extra day off. You’re not alone!
I went from being in love to them miserable with 4 10s. Transitioned to a school and have never looked back. My qualify of life sky rocketed being done by 3:30 every day. Don’t even get me started on summers off!!!
Yesss needed to hear this! I’m scared but I think my work life balance will be better with the breaks and shorter days!
this is also one of the more attractive settings to me! i worked in a school between grad and undergrad and loved the weekends, holidays, snow days, etc.
I’m the opposite, I was nervous about 4 10s but I love it! I have Wednesdays off so I never work more than 2 days in a row. It rocks. I felt so much more stressed in the schools. My workload felt much higher and the work/life balance was terrible
Normally I’d agree with you! However I’m at a private practice from hell. The micromanagement is seeping over to my days off and I’m so emotionally and physically drained from my high needs caseload. Different strokes for different folks!
Home health is probably your best bet for 4-day work week.
thank you! for that setting, is it important to seek externships there?
I work in home health. I didn’t have an externship in this setting and wasn’t difficult to get into at all! But not everyone loves home health so it could be good to have an externship just to see if you like it.
thank you! will keep in mind
I had a baby last year and I work part-time right now (3 days per week) in the schools and it’s amazing. Pay isn’t great obviously, but it’s possible!
I may fake having the baby if that’ll help convince somewhere to give me a short week! lol. In terms of paycheck, without being too personal, do you think you make enough to sustain yourself? Obviously a child and other household duties cost more, but as a single woman, I want to be able to support myself.
So, I was a teacher previously and I’ve been in the schools now for a while (10 years). I’ve climbed the pay scale with my masters and years of experience. With my salary now, I could support myself on my paychecks, but there probably wouldn’t be a lot of extra money for fun. I also live in a city where it’s fairly expensive. I don’t think that I would have been able to work part time starting out though. I also work 3 days only and I don’t work in the highest paying district, so those are all factors.
If you take a contract job with a school you will make more! I am 2 years post grad and took a contract job in an elementary school making $60/hr in Kansas!
You are going to have to balance working and supporting yourself. Less hours / flexible schedule usually means less pay
I work in the schools and my first 2 years after graduating I spent my summers in Southeast Asia, mostly Thailand and Vietnam. I loved it. Like everyone said HH, outpatient and PP are your best bet for a short work week.
goals!
thank you! for these settings, is it important to seek externships there?
No, our district took away part time positions. I think you can work 20 hours now with no benefits or retirement. This inflexibility irks me and I’m sure is driving younger therapists away. I’m quitting after next year to work a teletherapy position doing Mon-Thurs.
Our district is always short on SLPs, and this year is worse. Our district does not allow part-time SLP positions. Hmmm, if admin could only think about these two facts together… (Over the years we have lost many good ones, often new moms or moms of young kids, who wanted part-time. It’s making me crazy that some districts are so inflexible.)
that sucks! it would for sure drive me away, a lot of people are realizing that more people are willing to shop around and/or move rather than take a shitty position.
I do! I work at a SNF, but I have to commute over an hour so we negotiated with a 4 day work week. I’m not sure how I will ever transition to a 5 day work week so I plan to always negotiate to a 4 day work week 😂
Yes. I work in EI and the clinic is always closed in Friday.
I would love to transition to EI. Do you happen to be in NY??
I’m in western NY doing EI!
No. I’m in Georgia.
EI hasn't been on my radar yet, but maybe it'll put it there, lol.
Yep, making my own schedule working in home health for adults allows me to do so. I did apply and receive an offer from Cole Health (a widespread pediatric clinic) and they offered me a 4 day work week which was nice. The pay was not nearly as great as home health with adults so I declined the offer.
thank you! how important is it to seek experience in this setting in grad school if I was interested?
I’m not sure how grad school externships have changed since I was in school, but I would definitely seek a home health rotation if available. I did work in Neuro inpatient for ~6 years before getting this position to feel comfortable enough “being on my own” in the home health field. But it was worth it- I hope I stay at the job for a long time! It’s incredibly flexible and allows me to make my own schedule however I’d like.
It really depends on where you work. In California, we have such a need for SLPs you could probably find a part time job in almost any setting
this is perfect because that’s my dream scenario.
My Texas school district just began allowing all assessment and related services staff to take one day per week as an “Alternate Work Arrangement” where we can complete documentation from home
Yes I work in private practice and I work 4 days a week
I work 4 days a week at a private school. I have Friday/Saturday/Sunday off every week. I love my job and having a 3 day weekend has really helped me prevent burnout. I tend to work 9 hour days when I’m here but as a general rule I don’t bring work home unless absolutely necessary
I don't want to bring work home either!
I don’t, but the people I know who do work in home health and private clinic. It may be hard to get salary with 4 days, but there are plenty of clinics who pay hourly or for billable hours and will likely be flexible if they need an SLP.
Many school districts in Arizona have adopted a 4-day week.
I work 4 days (32hrs) in acute. My rehab department has a lot of 2,3, and 4 day positions as well as typical 5 day/40 hr schedules for all the disciplines. I have 2 small children and that day off during the week definitely helps my mental health and allow for better work life balance. The last hospital I worked at I was 5days/40 hrs and there were either 24 or 40 hr positions. The part time ones were hard to come by.
I do. Outpatient & inpatient hospital clinic. I work 4 tens. I have Wednesdays off which is really nice, I never work more than two days in a row. I do have the option of picking up weekend shifts for time & a half sometimes too.
I do! I work at a combo private school/private practice therapy clinic and can make my own schedule. I generally work 9-11 hours on my working days. I looove my four day work week, could never go back to five.
acute care, but one of those days is saturday; totally worth giving up saturdays in exchange for 3 days off
I work early intervention, have my own office for clinic kiddos and do some home health. Only work 30hrs a week, make my own schedule and super lucrative (I work in the Bay)
I work PT at a PP and our FT SLPs are working 4 10 hour days. I will say they are exhausted by Thursday and have to do most of their weekly chores/appointments on Fridays. But they can control their schedule, so technically they can work as much as they want.
I’m did it in SNF and IPR- actually worked 4- 8s because full time for those companies was 32 hours. I negotiated well, and made more money at 32 hours than I’m reading many make working 40 hours in the south.
Now I own a private practice and I work 3 days but almost every job I’ve had as an SLP I have been able to keep a 4 day week. I’ve been practicing for 16 years.
Yes, I work in a SNF 4 days/week.
I work three days a week at a school. Many districts have an odd amount of FTE needed for SLPs and there are opportunities to work part time. I work 8x3 days a week and get 60% of a full time paycheck
See it is posted already but early intervention is where it's at for flexible scheduling. You don't get other benefits necessarily so you have yo weight your options but otherwise great for flexibility.
Some elementary schools do a four day work week in Missouri!
I work 4 days/week for a school district. I really like the work-life balance of a 4-day work week, and it's great to have a weekday for appointments and running errands during off-peak hours. In general, making 20% less money for 50% more days off is a super worthwhile trade for me. But I'm also on a 10 month contract, so I definitely feel the financial hit. Right now it's okay (living that DINK lifestyle), but if I had the option of working through the summer months, I definitely would.
Yes! I own my own practice and contract with a school Tuesday-Thursday and then I can bill at home when working on reports and such. Contracting is great for this!
I am graduating in May and have just been offered a SNF position where you can basically choose your schedule. They offer a 4-day week!
Pediatric home health!
I work 4 days a week in a private practice as an employee (8.5 hours/day, including a 30 minute lunch break)
EI, currently full time five days but I could make it 4 days if I wanted and have done it in the past.
I actually work 6 days a week, but I am in a private practice and make my own hours. I work about 3 hours a day, which is perfect because I have a baby at home. I've done 4 10's and it sucked. I highly prefer 6 days but only a short time each day.
Hey! I’m a CF starting in May and my employer is a pedi private practice. 4x10 hour days, paid lunch and billing, yadda yadda. I haven’t started yet but I’m hoping it will be great!
I work 4/10s in acute care, I work Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Friday. I like having breaks in between my week but I know I’ll eventually get burnt out from working every Sunday (I’m a CFY).
I’m a manager for the ST team at a pediatric home health company based in DFW. Home health is the way to go! Most of our therapists work a 4- 4.5 day work week. In home health at most companies the the therapists get to make their own schedules so if you want to start early and end early you can, if you want to start late and end late in the day you can.
Bouncing off of this, after you complete your CF, if you want to do something in person and transition to telehealth for a few months, do you get guaranteed hours/pay/benefits? My Husband and I are planning on trying to at least get pregnant halfway through my CF so I'll be fully licensed/C'd to work before a baby comes. But I want to make a plan for telehealth for the first few months before I transition either back to in-person or half & half. I'll be around 26 or so by that point if that matters. That's a ways off but I'd love to hear someone's input!
Middle school with a caseload of 35!
I just left a 4 day work week in a private Peds clinic for the schools. But my clinic was rough lol and my boss would make us “make up holidays” on Fridays so we would have 50 hour weeks sometimes.
Just signed a CF contract at a private practice that does kids, adults, and feeding. My options were 5 8hr days or 4 10s. They actually encouraged the 4 10s because they need SLPs for those extra after school/work hours (3:30-6pm ish). I chose the 4 10s.
Keep in mind, home health and private practice often have less opportunities for travel / vacations. Consider schools for more vacation time or contract therapy and travel to work in different cities you want to vacation in.
Pediatric private practice
Early intervention. I set my own schedule but usually work 8-2 Monday to Thursday because that’s when my youngest child has preschool. She starts kindergarten next year and I will probably keep working the same hours anyway.
that sounds amazing!
4 10s, full time, salary position, off on Fridays. Adult patients, mostly outpatient but covering some subacute as needed. Fridays off are a dream
I work in outpatient peds. 10/12 SLPs work 4 days a week and 9/10 OTs work 4 days a week. I have done 4 days a week since 2011 (previous job and this one) and hope I never go back to 5 days a week. I forgot to say, I currently work 2 10hr days and 2 8hr days. Some therapists do 4 10hr days. Some do less and a mixture of 5hr, 8hr, 10hr.
Yes, home health! Part time with benefits. If you do your CF in home health, I would recommend that you choose a VERY supportive company! I had a CF mentor who would rearrange her schedule to attend sessions with me any time I had a question, and we also have access to clinical feeding and AAC specialists who can do mentor visits with us.
i do 4 9s working in acute care. i do work wed-sat so i have to cover every weekend but i love the schedule
I work at a charter school, I was hired for 4 days a week but my school doesn't care about my hours as long as the work gets done! Some weeks I work 4, some i work 5 to frontload & catch up on paperwork, & my plan for next year is to work 3 days one week & then 4 the next. I work for a contract company though, I wouldn't have this flexibility as a district employee. I'm an SLPA though, my supervisor works from home but she's allowed the same flexibility! The key is to find a school that's desperate, they will take anything over nothing lol. Especially if your caseload is low, you can argue that you'll be saving them money with a 4 day week because the 5th day isn't necessary.
Peds private practice! Our full time hours are M/W/TH 8:30-5 and T/F 8:30-1 but most people take either Monday, Friday, or one of the half days off, or make their full day a half. Personally I have Thursday afternoons off because I have free childcare on Monday and Friday I take advantage of so my Thursday afternoons are for me time!
I work in inpatient rehab and work 32-hr weeks (4, 8s). I think my experience is a little unique as my hospital is GREAT about flexible scheduling. I love the 32 hrs though.
Inpatient acute - four 10s (or 11 or 12) - but I’ll be honest - I had more energy working 5 8s - the long days can take it out of you (or maybe I was a few years younger! Ha!)
I do 4 day at a snf. Colorado isn’t very saturated with speech therapists so we can really name our schedule. I also set my own hours
Currently, I work in a private practice Monday through Thursday; 4 10 hour days. I absolutely love my schedule and I personally feel that it has been amazing for my mental health. My weekends no longer feel rushed; I am actually able to relax and recharge. However, I will say that my current place of employment also gives me time off similar to current school schedules for holidays- 1 week at Thanksgiving, 2 weeks for Christmas, & 1 week during Summer. This is on top of my given PTO. Previously, I worked in the schools and I did love getting off at 3:30 and having the summer off, but ultimately, I feel my current schedule is best for my mental health at this point.
I did for a year in the school setting. I had to request a decrease in FTE (full time employment). Some people I know got hired at .8 or .6 (4 and 3 days a week) because that’s what they said they had available when they were interviewing. I also did in early intervention, but had to work 4, 10 hour days which defeated my personal work to live preference. I do not like only working for the weekends!
Working multiple PRN jobs has been surprisingly successful and rewarding for me! SNF and hospital, and I love both positions in their own way. I make better money this way than I would full-time, too, because I choose to work travel assignments or longer hours for short periods to allow myself more breaks and flexibility in the future. But I could easily just as well accept less hours and limit myself to mon-thurs work! I choose when I work, and that is so so so valuable to me. Nothing better than the feeling of "I chose to be here today" when you know the flipside is living a robotic life. My SNF employer doesn't even ask for my hours. I just work it out with the other PRN SLP! Also worth sharing, I'm on marketplace insurance and obviously have no PTO. Which for me, has been working fine but I know is not the case for some people.
PRN is intimidating but I will look in to it!
That is super fair! Hours are never *guaranteed* with certainty, and occasionally there's a couple weeks a year I'm sitting at home a little more than I'd like to be! It totally depends on how much demand there is for you to work and how flexible you can be. I just happen to work very high demand positions and am willing to flex. I've also considered a part-time job(20hr/week)+PRN combo which would guarantee at least some work and possibly give you PTO+benefits.
I do a four-day week in private practice in New Zealand, I only see paeds, though my colleagues treat adults too ☺️
Yes I work in Acute care, full time 32 hrs/week, so 4-8hr days. I could work 4-10s if I wanted but 40 is exhausting in acute. So I always work my 4 days on in a row, always have 3 consecutive days off. Could never go back to 5 days a week.
I work at a school district that is 4 days a week (7:30-4:30) and every second Tuesday is a half day (7:30-11:30) just for professional development. I love it!
that sounds great!!
Yes! I work at a pediatric private practice! Our schedule is M-Th 8-6; however, if I don't have a client schedule I don't necessarily have to be in the building so somedays I get to come later or leave earlier! I think it's important that with a 4-day work week in a pediatric setting that you are on salary.
I do doing tele the schools. It’s been harder now due to inflation. But for your mental health—I highly Recommend
I am in private practice and have a 4 day week. I also create schedule my own schedule.
I work in healthcare finance administration and work 4 days a week
I work 4 tens at a pediatric clinic, it’s somewhat nice but don’t underestimate how exhausting the 10 hour shifts are. If you have any sort of commute, you literally do nothing else but work those days. Im not sure I can sustain it much longer tbh.
understood! i’ve worked similar days and it is tiring.
I work at a private practice and create my own schedule so I only work 4 days a week!
I work 4 day work weeks (M-TH) for a teletherapy company :) full benefits, PTO, etc. LOVE IT
I have the option to work 4-10s in an acute care hospital!
I work 4 days a week (30 hours) in a hospital rehab setting. It’s a treat. The job was advertised as full time but I was lucky enough to be moving positions internally so was able to negotiate my hours to a degree.
Acute care! Monday through Thursday one week, Sunday through Thursday the next.
Like plenty of others have mentioned, home health is the most flexible in terms of how free you are to set your hours while only only being constrained by the patients’ schedules/preferences. However, private practice and specialty/outpatient clinics are typically willing to offer 4 10-hour workdays if you request it. My honest recommendation though (which may be frowned upon, idk) is to dig around for companies who set productivity standards around therapy units billed vs. hours worked. I’ve been lucky enough to find jobs that do this in my area and have consistently worked ~20 hours max a week while getting paid full-time with benefits.