Nathan Hoffart MSc’13 (SLP)

Degree and Grad Year: MSc’13 (SLP)
Current home city: Terrace, BC
Current Profession: Registered Speech-Language Pathologist, Coast Mountains School District #82

Nathan Hoffart provides assessment and treatment of speech and language disorders within the school aged population. With a focus on early intervention, Hoffart provides direct service from Kindergarten to grade three, as well as assessment and consultation for older grades. Hoffart also runs a small private practice on the side where he works primarily with private school and homeschool students.

1. Today in healthcare it’s important to…

Keep your own mental and physical health as a priority. As caring individuals and healthcare professionals, there is a real danger that we can burn ourselves out. We need to help ourselves so that we can continue to help others.

2. What made you interested in Speech & Audiology Sciences?

While training to be a professional actor at Studio 58 in Vancouver, my wife and I got engaged and, after some soul searching, I decided to move towards a career that could better support a family. While studying at Studio 58 I had been introduced to, and fallen in love with, the IPA- that’s the International Phonetic Alphabet, not the beer (although it has a special place in my heart as well).

I knew that I wanted to continue to work with the IPA, and I had a passion for studying speech and language, so I set my sights on the dream career of a Speech-Language Pathologist and continued on to a B.A. in Linguistics at UVIC and a M.Sc. in Speech-Language Pathology at UBC.

3. What do you consider your greatest achievement to date?
My three beautiful daughters Seraph, Miriam, and Agnes, as well as our fourth child coming this June.
4. Name the last book you couldn’t put down.

A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin.

5. What is the best professional advice you’ve received?

Learn how to say no.

6. What is your favourite UBC memory?

Living in Family Housing and being surrounded by friends and cultures from around the world. That and longboarding down parkades at night.

7. Who was your favourite UBC Faculty of Medicine professor?

That’s a hard choice. But if forced to choose, I would have to say Dr. May Bernhardt. She shares my passion for both theatre and speech and language.

8. Biggest risk you’ve taken to date?
Moving to a small remote community in the North that I was unfamiliar with, as well as working full-time and starting a private practice while raising and homeschooling my three children and volunteering excessively in my community.

9. What advice would you give to current speech and audiology students?

Take it easy. Learn to say no to things. It doesn’t all have to happen at once!

10. What aspects of the Faculty of Medicine, SPA program did you most appreciate?

I really enjoyed the fact that it was in BC! I did not want to have to leave the province for grad school. I also enjoyed the focus on learning about hearing as well as speech and language. In my first year I even considered switching to audiology.

11. What profession might you have pursued, if not for speech and audiology?
As I mentioned, I was on my way to become a professional actor, but if I could do it all again, I might go into physics. I know a bit of a different direction, but things are so exciting in the world of physics right now!

12. Please name a few of your favourite hobbies and activities:
I love acting, singing in choirs, and playing board games. Since moving to the North I have also fallen in love with skiing and a full contact “sport” called boffering, where grown men (and some women) sword fight with foam wrapped PVC pipes.

13. Bucket List Item?

Travel the world with my family learning languages.
Hoffart is currently the President of the BC Association of Speech and Language Pathologists and Audiologists as well as the current Chair of Sacred Heart Parish School. Hoffart was also awarded the grand prize in the Futurpreneur Thrive North Business Challenge. He continues to live his passion for acting, volunteering as Director at Large, Terrace, Little Theatre.