The Department offers degree programs in General Linguistics and Romance Linguistics, each leading to a BA, MA, or PhD, and a Professional MS degree in Computational Linguistics (CLMS). In all programs, students study issues relating to any and all languages. General Linguistics students have a basic mastery of at least two languages from different language families, while Romance Linguistics students specialize in at least one Romance language. Computational Linguistics students study the underlying theory and current state of the art in speech and language processing technology. The Department also teaches ASL and Deaf Studies.
Linguistics is the study of language as a natural phenomenon. It focuses on grammar, the social context of language variation, the physics of speech sounds, and the properties of language evolution. As language is an exclusively and intrinsically human characteristic, research on the structure, acquisition, and use of language cuts to the heart of human cognition and the social world, linking linguistics to psychology, anthropology, information science, and many other disciplines.
This program of study leads to the following credential:
Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in Linguistics
Recommended Preparation
Suggested First- and Second-Year College Courses: One year of a foreign language that belongs to a different family from the student's native language.
Admission Requirements
Completion of at least the third quarter, or equivalent, of a foreign language, with a minimum 2.0 grade
Completion of either LING 200, LING 400, or an approved introductory linguistics course; at least one writing (W) course; and one additional quantitative and symbolic reasoning (QSR) course. Minimum 2.0 grade in each course and a cumulative 2.50 GPA in the three courses
The department accepts students who meet the minimum requirements stated above, but recognizes that a 2.50 GPA or higher is indicative of the motivation and academic skills needed for a reasonable probability of success in the program.
Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in Linguistics
Credential Overview
The degree program in General Linguistics leads to a BA. Students study issues relating to any and all languages. General Linguistics students have a basic mastery of at least two languages from different language families.
Completion Requirements
80 credits
LING 400 or other introductory course in linguistics
LING 450, LING 451, LING 461, LING 462
Minimum one additional 400-level LING course, excluding LING 400, LING 419, LING 430, LING 480, LING 490, and LING 499
At least one year of each of two languages, one of which must belong to a language family different than the student's native language, with a minimum grade of 2.0 in the third quarter of each language
20 additional credits of departmentally approved courses in linguistics.
The degree program in Romance Linguistics, leads to a BA. Students study issues relating to any and all languages. Romance Linguistics students specialize in at least one Romance language.
This program of study leads to the following credential:
Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in Romance Linguistics
Recommended Preparation
Suggested First- and Second-Year Courses: Two college years of study in a Romance language.
Admission Requirements
Completion of at least one year of college work in a single Romance language
Completion of either LING 200, LING 400, or an approved introductory linguistics course; at least one writing (W) course; and one additional quantitative and symbolic reasoning (QSR) course. Minimum 2.0 grade in each course and a cumulative 2.50 GPA in the three courses.
The department accepts students who meet the minimum requirements stated above, but recognizes that a GPA of 2.50 or higher is indicative of the motivation and academic skills needed for a reasonable probability of success in the program.
Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in Romance Linguistics
Credential Overview
The degree program in Romance Linguistics, leads to a BA. Students study issues relating to any and all languages. Romance Linguistics students specialize in at least one Romance language.
Completion Requirements
Minimum 63 credits
LING 400 or another introductory course in linguistics
LING 450, LING 451, LING 461, and LING 462
15 credits at the 300 level or higher of one Romance language
LING 419
20 additional credits of departmentally approved courses in linguistics, with at least one course for which a research paper on a Romance language is written
A Linguistics minor may be of particular interest to students majoring in a foreign language, as well as majors in such fields as speech and hearing sciences, English, communication, psychology, computer science, and anthropology.
This program of study leads to the following credential:
Minor in Linguistics
Minor in Linguistics
Credential Overview
A Linguistics minor may be of particular interest to students majoring in a foreign language, as well as majors in such fields as speech and hearing sciences, English, communication, psychology, computer science, and anthropology.
Completion Requirements
32 credits
LING 400 or another introductory course in linguistics
Three courses from LING 432, LING 442, LING 450, LING 451, LING 461, LING 462, or LING 481
12 additional credits from a list of departmentally approved courses in linguistics, 6 of which must be in upper-division courses
Learning Objectives and Expected Outcomes: The study of linguistics emphasizes formal reasoning and critical thinking skills. Linguists' skill sets include the ability to analyze sound, word, and sentence structures of individual languages; the ability to understand and account for how languages change in certain patterns; the ability to understand how social factors can affect language, how people learn their first or second languages; and the ability to find out and appreciate how apparently vastly different languages can be governed by the same set of rules. Linguistics is a valuable component of liberal education and vocationally can have applications wherever language itself becomes a matter of practical concern. Graduates have a good foundation for pursuing further training and careers in teaching languages, in areas of rehabilitative medicine such as audiology or speech therapy, in special education, in work with native peoples or with immigrant groups, in lexicographic work, in interpretation and translation, in work in computer science and artificial intelligence, or in academic disciplines such as psychology, philosophy, literature and language studies, where the contribution of linguistics is recognized. An undergraduate degree in linguistics from the UW also serves as preparation for graduate work in linguistics or language-related fields such as speech and hearing science or language teaching.
Instructional and Research Facilities: The Language Learning Center located in Denny Hall provides audio and video services facilitating language learning. It also has a computer laboratory providing instructional software for linguistics and varieties of languages. Departmental facilities include a phonetics laboratory for students conducting phonetic experiments and doing digital acoustic analyses, a linguistics library that supplements the linguistics collection of the UW libraries and provides a quite study place, and a computer laboratory for research in computational linguistics.
Honors Options Available: With College Honors (Completion of both Honors Core Curriculum and Honors requirements in the major). With Honors (Completion of Departmental Honors requirements). See adviser for requirements.
Research, Internships, and Service Learning: None offered
Department Scholarships: None offered
Student Organizations/Associations: The Linguistics Undergraduate Association (LingUA)