Whether you know it or not, you have an accent. In fact, everyone speaks with an accent. You may speak English with an accent from a different region of the United States. You may also speak English with an accent because English is not your first language. In our world today, people regularly move from state-to-state and country-to-country — and bring their accents with them.

Your accent can help give someone a clue as to where you’re from – or at least where you’ve spent time living. However, accents can sometimes adversely affect communication. If you’ve been told you have an accent, you may have faced the following difficulties:

• People not understanding you
• Avoiding social interaction with people you don’t know or who may not understand you
• Frustration from having to regularly repeat yourself
• People focusing more on your accent than on what you are saying

Such communication barriers can affect your job, education, and everyday life. For these reasons and more, you may want to work with a specialist to help modify your accent.

Who is a Candidate?

People who regularly undergo accent modification include:

• Non-native English speakers
• Speakers who want to reduce a regional accent
• Business and medical professionals who want to improve their communication skills due to a foreign or regional accent
• Actors who need to learn a new accent for a specific role or performance

What to Expect

As you might expect, you can’t change your accent overnight – and accent modification takes time, practice, and patience. You will work closely with a specialized speech-language pathologist (SLP) who will help you learn how to change your speech pronunciation.

The first step of your accent modification will be a thorough assessment of your speech patterns. Then, your SLP will determine what you can do to modify your accent and improve your overall communication. Your SLP and you will work together to develop personalized goals and a treatment plan just for you.

Why Choose UHealth?

Ranked No. 28 in the nation according to U.S. News & World Report. The ranking reflects the team’s dedication to excellence in research patient care and outcomes. Surgeons, audiologists, biomedical engineers, speech pathologists, researchers, and psychologists collaborate with many research programs at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine to deliver the best possible multidisciplinary care to pediatric and adult ear, nose, and throat patients.

World-class care in an academic health system. We are recognized throughout South Florida and the world as a leader in treating conditions and disorders of the ear, nose, and throat. Backed by one of the nation’s top universities, our team uses the latest technologies and research-driven expertise to provide you with superior, personalized care and the best outcomes.