Undergraduate Program

The major in linguistics is intended to acquaint the student with the methods and findings of the scientific study of human language and its relationships to cognition, society, and history. It serves as a preparation for graduate training in linguistics or related areas, and as part of a rigorous general education. Linguistic training is relevant to work in anthropology, philosophy, psychology, and language and literature, as well as to careers in such fields as education, computer science, and law.

The department offers a major, two minors, and an accelerated program (submatriculation) leading to both bachelor's and master's degrees at the end of the fourth year.

Linguistics classes satisfy several general course requirements. See this table for details.

The Hoenigswald Prize is given to seniors whose senior thesis is deemed to have made a significant scientific contribution to the field.

The Major in Linguistics

Minimum Requirement 14 course units.

1. All students in the major program are required to take 10 cu's in the linguistics department. One of these courses must be the Undergraduate Tutorial -- Ling 4000 (Ling 300), which is taken in the fall semester of senior year. Requirements for the remaining 9 linguistics courses differ based on Class year.  See links below for details. 

2. The remaining 4 cu's may be satisfied by courses in linguistics or by related courses in other departments. Related courses include perspectives on language in social, cultural, historical, or cognitive context; studies of a specific language or family; or the formal properties of human and other languages. Up to two language instruction courses can be counted toward the major.

For details, see Major in Linguistics (through Class of 2018), or Major in Linguistics (as of Class of 2019).

The Minor in Linguistics

A minor in linguistics requires any six course units offered through the department, excluding language courses. With approval of the undergraduate chair, a closely related course from outside the department may be substituted for one of these six.

For details, see The Minor.

The Minor in American Sign Language and Deaf Studies

The department also houses a minor in American Sign Language and Deaf Studies. For details, see The ASL Minor. Questions about the minor should be directed to Jami Fisher.