Courses
The listing of a course description here does not guarantee a course’s being offered in a particular term. Please refer to the published schedule of classes on MyBU Student Portal for confirmation a class is actually being taught and for specific course meeting dates and times.
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MET LX 532: Intermediate Semantics: The Grammatical Construction of Meaning
Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS LX 331 (formerly CAS LX 502); Graduate Prerequisites: GRS LX 631 (formerly CAS LX 502), or consent of instructor. - Systematic development of a semantic theory of natural language, using the tools of model-theoretic semantics. In-depth study of the relation between meaning and grammar, and the relation between meaning and context. Also offered as CAS LX 732. -
MET LX 542: Language, Race, and Gender
Prereq: (METLX250) or consent of instructor. Do women talk differently from men' How do race and ethnicity relate to the way people use language' This course examines these interrelated questions from the perspective of modern sociolinguistic theory, analyzing a range of languages and communities throughout the world. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Teamwork/Collaboration. -
MET LX 546: Language Variation and Change
Prerequisite: METLX 250 or consent of instructor. Why do languages change over time' Who leads and who follows in situations of language change' The course answers these questions by examining the link between language change and linguistic variation, focusing on how synchronic variation leads to diachronic change. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Teamwork/Collaboration. -
MET LX 549: Bilingualism
Prereq: (METLX250) or consent of instructor. The psycholinguistics and sociolinguistics of life with two languages. Topics include bilingual language use, processing, acquisition, organization; effects of bilingualism on cognition and development; the bilingual brain; the bilingual speech community; bilingual education; bilingualism in the media and public eye. Carries humanities divisional studies credit in CAS. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry II, Individual in Community, Critical Thinking. -
MET LX 560: Historical and Comparative Linguistics
This course explores different approaches to historical linguistics, the study of language change. We will discuss various types of linguistic change (phonological, morphological, semantic, and syntactic) and the methods used to investigate these changes. Throughout the course we will address the contribution of historical linguistics to understanding prehistory. Another important topic of this course is linguistic reconstruction (reconstruction of protolanguages), its methods and goals. We also explore the social and linguistic motivations for linguistic change. Finally, we will consider language contact and borrowing and genetic/genealogical classification of languages. -
MET LX 565: Variation in Dialects of English
Prerequisite: METLX 250 or consent of instructor. Exploration of how dialects of English differ from each other, focusing on grammatical variation in the US, with occasional forays into British dialects. Students come to appreciate how linguists investigate grammatical diversity scientifically, revealing the complex structure of non-standard dialects. -
MET LX 570: Romance Linguistics
Covers morphophonological and morphosyntactic change since Latin, plus various topics in the comparative grammar of modern Romance languages. Students deepen their linguistic knowledge and analytic skills by applying what they have learned in other linguistics courses to this language family. -
MET LX 575: History of French
Overview of socio-historical and linguistic factors underpinning the emergence, development, and spread of the French language over time. Study of historical, societal, and political events, along with phonetic, morphological, syntactic, and orthographic changes. Representative texts demonstrate stages of language change. Effective Spring 2025, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy. -
MET LX 583: Sounds of Spanish
Introduction to Spanish phonetics and phonology. Covers articulatory, acoustic, and auditory phonetics, focusing on techniques for visualizing speech sounds. Examines the phonemic inventory and phonological organization of Spanish from several perspectives, including generative and articulatory phonology as well as sociolinguistics. Conducted in Spanish. -
MET LX 584: The Structure of Spanish
Introduction to Spanish morphology and syntax. Explores the structure of Spanish words, phrases, and sentences from multiple perspectives with a focus on natural language data. Examines Generative, Usage-based, and Lexical-Functional approaches to the analysis of grammatical structure. Conducted in Spanish. This course cannot be taken for credit in addition to the course with the same title that was previously numbered MET LX 508. -
MET LX 590: Topics in Linguistics
Topics and pre-requisites vary by semester and section. May be repeated for credit as topics change. Please see "Notes" for current offering. -
MET LX 591: Linguistic Field Methods
A team-based in-depth investigation of the phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and lexicon of an African or other non-Indo-European language. Bi-weekly sessions with language consultant. Weekly trainings on methodology, ethics, analysis, and presentation of results. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Ethical Reasoning, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Teamwork/Collaboration. -
MET LX 594: Introduction to Programming for Computational Linguistics
Prereq: (METLX250) or consent of instructor. Introduction to computational techniques to explore linguistic models and test empirical claims. Serves as an introduction to programming, algorithms, and data structures, focused on modern applications to Natural Language Processing (NLP). Topics include tagging and classification, parsing models, meaning representation, and information extraction. (Not intended for students with a background in programming or computer science.) Carries MCS divisional studies credit in CAS. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Quantitative Reasoning II, Research and Information Literacy. -
MET LX 596: Computational Linguistics
Prerequisite: METLX 250 or consent of instructor. Introduction to computational techniques to explore linguistic models and test empirical claims. Serves as an introduction to concepts, algorithms, data structures, and tool libraries. Topics include tagging and classification, parsing models, meaning representation, corpus creation, information extraction. [Students who have already taken CAS LX 394/GRS LX 694 are not eligible to take this course.] Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Quantitative Reasoning II, Research and Information Literacy. -
MET MA 100: Elementary Algebra
Introduction to algebraic concepts necessary for further study of mathematics. Linear equations and inequalities, graphing linear systems, exponents and polynomials, factoring, rational expressions, roots and radicals, and quadratic equations. Does not give College of Arts and Sciences credit. -
MET MA 113: Elementary Statistics
Undergraduate Prerequisites: (METMA100) or equivalent. - MA 113 may not be taken for credit by any student who has completed any MA course numbered 300 or higher. Students may receive credit for not more than one of the following courses: MET MA 113, MA 213, or CAS MA 113, MA 115, or MA 213. Basic concepts of estimation and tests of hypotheses, ideas from probability; one-, two-, and multiple-sample problems. Applications in social sciences. Primarily for students in the social sciences who require a one- semester introduction to statistics, others should consider CAS MA 115 or MA 213. This course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Quantitative Reasoning II. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Quantitative Reasoning II, Critical Thinking. -
MET MG 202: Personal Financial Planning
The development of personal investment strategies using money and credit. Securities and portfolio management, budgeting, insurance, taxes, retirement programs, and estate planning. -
MET MG 315: Operations Management
Undergraduate Prerequisites: METMA120 & METMA213 or equivalent. - Introduction to the operating functions of a firm. Emphasis on problem-solving skills using analytical techniques. Includes production planning and inventory control, quality control, forecasting, capacity planning, and work-study. Viewed from the aspect of management. -
MET MG 401: Introduction to Management
A look at the management of an enterprise from the perspective of the chief executive officer. Covers the functions of organizing for successful management. Survey of theories and techniques. Examination of case studies. Effective Fall 2025, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Creativity/Innovation, Quantitative Reasoning II, Teamwork/Collaboration. -
MET MG 405: Principles of Marketing
The organization and operation of marketing functions within individual firms. A look at methods of product determination, channels of distribution, and advertising and sales promotion. Administration of total marketing program. Readings, class discussions, lectures, and case analyses. Effective Fall 2025, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Creativity/Innovation, Quantitative Reasoning II, Teamwork/Collaboration.
