Our Services
Catherine Sweet, Speech-Language Pathologist
MA, Speech-Language Pathology
(University of Maine)
MA, Comparative Religions
(McMaster University)
Catherine Sweet is a certified Speech-Language Pathologist who has a special interest in the speech sounds and intonation of North American English. For more than nine years, she has run the Dalhousie Accent Clinic, and has worked with people from over 40 countries who speak more than 50 languages. Catherine teaches clinical phonology to graduate students learning to be speech therapists and audiologists at Dalhousie.
Catherine is a native English speaker from the east coast of Canada, and has lived in the US, the UK, and in five Canadian provinces. She has studied French, German, Japanese, and Hindi, and understands the challenges of pronouncing sounds which are not in one’s first language. She strives to make pronunciation training a fun, kind, and practical experience.
Interested in an assessment?
If you are interested in having an assessment please complete the Expression of Interest Form
- [PDF - 466 kB]
and email it to speech@dal.ca.
Helping you communicate more effectively
What is involved in accent training?
Accent training aims to help correct production of English sounds, as well as stress, rhythm and intonation patterns. The ultimate goal is not to eliminate a person’s natural accent but to increase success and confidence in speaking English.
Training for Professionals is available for those who would like to grow confidence, improve understanding, strengthen trust, help client relationship management or build collegial relationships within their work. We tailor training to our client's professional needs by creating industry-specific goals. This includes working on pronunciation of technical terminology, proper names, and even everyday words that you must be able to communicate clearly.
A comprehensive speech assessment is required to determine whether an individual is likely to benefit from accent training. Individualized training goals are then developed, based on the results of this assessment and the client’s specific communication needs.
Training sessions are usually conducted on an individual basis. The number of sessions will depend on client needs and availability. Regular home practice (approximately one half-hour per day) is advised to achieve optimal success.
Who provides services at the Dalhousie Accent Clinic?
Accent training services are provided by certified speech-language pathologists who have education and experience in clinical phonetics, speech sound perception and production, and speech correction. The Dalhousie Accent Clinic is part of ÐӰɵ¼º½â€™s School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, which offers a Masters degree program in speech-language pathology and is a centre for speech and language research.
What is the cost of the program?
- Assessment: For individual clients, the cost of the initial assessment (approximately 1½ hours) is $170 for a comprehensive assessment report, or $120 for an abbreviated assessment report.
- Training sessions. Individual sessions are provided at the rate of $120 for a one-hour session.
Many health care plans will provide a limited amount of coverage for individual speech therapy services (details can be provided by the clients' health care service provider).
Where are the services provided?
Assessment and program sessions are typically provided at the School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, located at the Sir Charles Tupper Medical Building, 5850 College Street 2nd Floor, Room 2C01.
For more information or to book an appointment, please email speech@dal.ca or phone 902-494-3511.