PhD in Applied Linguistics

Prerequisites

An applicant for the PhD degree should hold a master’s degree in linguistics, a foreign language, speech and language, or some related field. Prospective applicants with a master’s degree in a field other than those listed are encouraged to enter the master’s program described here before beginning doctoral work. Anyone unsure of eligibility should contact the program director. Applicants are strongly encouraged to include a sample of their linguistic work (such as a course paper) with application materials.

Course Requirements

A minimum of 10 courses beyond the master’s degree is normally required for the post-master’s PhD degree. The program consists of seven core courses plus three electives. One of the electives must be a research-oriented course appropriate to the student’s specialization and chosen in consultation with the student’s advisor. The electives are chosen as part of a coherent program of study that is approved at the end of the first semester of enrollment by an advisor and the program director. If their previous courses are equivalent to the core courses, students may, with the approval of the program director, count up to two courses taken as part of their master’s degree program toward the core course requirements, thereby reducing the total number of required courses to eight. (Any core course may be satisfied in this manner except for CAS LX 523 Syntax II and CAS LX 513 Phonology.)

Language Requirement

Competence in two non-native languages must be demonstrated before completion of degree requirements.

Internship Requirement

Doctoral students are required to complete an internship during their enrollment in the program. This will normally be completed concurrent with coursework and comprehensive requirements, during the first three years of enrollment. This internship must provide students with experience (research, teaching, or other professional work) in an area that is relevant to progress in some aspect of their doctoral program. The requirement may be satisfied in a wide variety of settings and roles, including—but not limited to—teaching or tutoring language learners, conducting supervised research (in some context other than directed study for credit), carrying out linguistic fieldwork, working in an organization that makes use of linguistic research and theory (e.g., commercial or research settings developing speech recognition, natural language understanding, or computerized lexicography systems), acting as an instructor or teaching assistant in linguistics classes, designing or publishing language teaching or learning materials (paper or electronic), or other activities, as jointly decided by the student and advisor. The internship may be paid or volunteer. The default time period will be one semester, but it may be longer or shorter in particular cases. It does not require registration for any for-credit course; in fact, research carried out for credit will not count toward the internship. Its duration will be negotiated among the student, advisor, and where relevant, site supervisors.

Qualifying Examination

A candidate for the doctoral degree must satisfactorily complete one publishable book review (by the end of the first year of coursework) and two substantial research papers in different areas (the first by the end of the fifth semester, the second no later than the seventh semester of enrollment). This work shall be planned and carried out under the supervision of an advisor.

Dissertation and Final Oral Examination

Candidates must submit a dissertation representing original research in an area of linguistics. A prospectus for the dissertation must be completed and approved by the program in a prospectus hearing, before the more extensive phase of dissertation research is begun. A final oral examination must be completed as outlined in the General Requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy.

Program Course Offerings

Course descriptions and prerequisites for LX courses (linguistics courses offered through the Department of Romance Studies) are presented below. Descriptions for other Graduate School of Arts & Sciences (GRS) courses are to be found in the section of this website for the sponsoring department. For other courses, please consult departmental listings in relevant school Bulletin sections: School of Education (SED), Sargent College (SAR), and the School of Medicine (MED). Courses not listed below may satisfy electives with approval.

Core Courses for the PhD

Linguistics Core

Required of all students:

• CAS LX 513 Introduction to Phonology (Prereq: CAS LX 510 Phonetics)

and

• CAS LX 523 Syntax II (Prereq: CAS LX 522 Syntax I)

Students must take four additional courses from the linguistics core:

• CAS AN 521 Sociolinguistics
• CAS LX 500 Topics in Linguistics
• CAS LX 501 Linguistic Field Methods
• CAS LX 502 Semantics I
• CAS LX 503 Semantics II (Prereq: CAS LX 502 Semantics I)
• CAS LX 504 Topics in Pragmatics (Prereq: CAS LX 502 Semantics I)
• CAS LX 510 Phonetics
• CAS LX 518 Focus
• CAS LX 519 Questions
• CAS LX 521 Morphology
• CAS LX 522 Syntax I
• CAS LX 525 Prosody (Prereq: CAS LX 510 Phonetics)
• CAS LX 533 The Structure of Creole Languages
• CAS LX 535 Historical and Comparative Linguistics
• CAS LX 540 Acquisition of Syntax
• GRS LX 865 Advanced Topics in Linguistic Theory
• SED LS 726 Discourse Analysis
• SED LS 751 Language Universals

Language Acquisition Core

One course required from the following language acquisition core:

• CAS LX 540 Acquisition of Syntax
• GRS LX 700 Language Acquisition and Linguistic Theory
• SAR SH 524 Language Acquisition
• SED LS 566 Language Acquisition
• SED LS 750 Cognitive Development and Language