CAS: Linguistics

Please contact Kelly Capri (kcapri@bu.edu), Assistant Director of Academic Advising at CAS, with any questions.

Upon completion of the CGS program, students must have earned credit towards the following 10 courses:

• Humanities: 3 courses
  • Choose two from CGS HU 103, CGS HU 201, or CGS HU 202
  • CGS HU 104*
• Natural Sciences: 2 courses
  • CGS NS 201 and CGS NS 202
• Rhetoric: 2 courses
  • CGS RH 103 and CGS RH 104*
• Social Sciences: 3 courses
  • Choose two from CGS SS 103, CGS SS 201, or CGS SS 202
  • CGS SS 104*

*Required course taken during the Summer term.

An undergraduate major in Linguistics requires the successful completion of a total of 12 courses: eight in linguistics (and/or a related field), and four upper-level (at or above 3^rd-semester level) foreign language courses. All required courses are 4 credit hours.

Required Linguistics Courses (8)

In linguistics, students take a core of four required courses:

• CAS LX 250 Introduction to Linguistics
• CAS LX 301 Phonetics & Phonology: Introduction to Sound Systems
• CAS LX 321 Syntax: Introduction to Sentential Structure
• CAS LX 331 Semantics & Pragmatics: Introduction to Linguistic Meaning

Students choose four additional linguistics courses, distributed as follows, with a maximum of one course below the 300 level:

• One course in linguistic analysis of a specific language
• Two additional CAS LX courses, including at most one below the level of LX 250
• One course in linguistics or a related field, selected in consultation with the student’s advisor 

Required Language Courses (4)

Students take four upper-level language courses, at or above the 3^rd-semester level, including (at least) two different languages. The languages may be spoken or signed (e.g. American Sign Language). Students with prior background in a language may commence study of that language at 3^rd-semester level or higher; those starting a new language will take additional courses to first get up to 3^rd-semester level (the pathway above shows a student starting both languages, Language A and Language B, from the beginning).

For a full list of required courses, please see the CAS Bulletin.

• Completion of the CGS required courses and appropriate electives
• Cumulative GPA greater than or equal to 2.00

Boston University students completing a Linguistics degree in CAS must complete all of the following requirements.

• BU Hub requirements
  • Students who take the specific CGS courses noted on the pathway above will fulfill all BU Hub requirements except the units listed below. These remaining Hub requirements can be fulfilled through the courses you take for your major and/or other electives:
    • Quantitative Reasoning II (1 requirement) (CAS LX 394, CAS LX 433, or CAS LX496)
    • Creativity/Innovation (1 requirement) (CAS LX 360 or CAS LX 433)
    • Teamwork/Collaboration (1 requirement) (CAS LX 205, CAS LX 235, CAS LX 342, CAS LX 346, or CAS LX 391)
    • Writing-Intensive Course (1 requirement) (CAS LX 367)
  • CAS requirements
  • Second Language requirement (will be fulfilled through language courses taken for the major)
  • Natural Sciences Laboratory requirement*
• Linguistics major requirements
• CAS requires a minimum of 128 units, excluding PDP, ROTC, and CAS FY and SY courses.

*Note: The CAS Natural Sciences Laboratory Requirement is met through completion of College of General Studies Program of Study.