Program type:

Major
Format:

On Campus
Est. time to complete:

4 years
Credit Hours:

120
Immerse yourself in the study of language and discover how language evolves in form, structure and context.
UNT's Linguistics degree offers students a comprehensive overview of the history of the field and a strong foundation in the core areas of phonetics, phonology, morphology and syntax, exposing students to the limits and extent of language structure. A major goal of the bachelor's program is to stimulate student curiosity about language and cultural diversity. The BA in Linguistics provides students with direction and ample practice in working with data to discover predictable linguistic patterns (linguistic problem solving). Students learn how to read, write, and present synthesis of relevant published work and original theoretical argumentation. The Capstone and Scientific Methods courses train students in original research which includes evaluating and reporting on existing findings using appropriate citation methods and creating and reporting on original experiments and arguments.

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Why Earn a Linguistics Degree?

The Department of Linguistics, in close collaboration with Library and Information Science, Learning Technologies and Computer Science, offers a collaborative environment for developing innovative curricula that incorporate research on language with database design and management, text mining, computational and quantitative methods in linguistics and natural language processing.

The unifying philosophy for the linguists is that a broad typological linguistic sample is necessary to understand the extent and limits of human language structure, learning and use. In order to achieve this understanding, it is necessary to use the highest quality of linguistic data, i.e., corpora of naturally occurring language in human interactions.

In the Department of Linguistics, our focus is to ensure you receive the proper training and knowledge to have a successful career or to pursue a graduate education. The curriculum allows you to immerse yourself in the study of language to understand its structure, use, design and application.

UNT Linguistics is supported by an active linguistics research community with ties across campus and with local, national and international communities. Our faculty engage in national and international collaborative research in:

  • Computational linguistics
  • Language acquisition and teaching
  • Language documentation
  • Language variation and change
  • South Asian languages
Marketable Skills
  • Data management and database structure
  • How to analyze and annotate language data
  • Project planning and implementation
  • Analytic capabilities
  • Creation and computational analysis of language corpora

Linguistics Degree Highlights

The Linguistics Colloquium Series will give you an opportunity to meet top researchers in the field and gain new perspectives.
You can also discuss the latest trends in language as a member of the Student Linguistics Association of North Texas (SLANT).
Students will learn in-demand software and programming skills with state-of-the-art technology.
UNT Linguistics is supported by an active linguistics research community with ties across campus and with local, national and international communities.
Students have flexible degree programs and can also choose a concentration in Teaching English in the Global Context or Computational Linguistics.
The department is a pioneer in its area because of our interdisciplinary approach to the study of language. This helps us to develop new solutions for real-world application in local and international community outreach programs.

What Can You Do With a Linguistics Degree?

A degree in Linguistics allows you to explore careers in:

  • Artificial intelligence
  • Computer speech recognition
  • Computer text recognition
  • Education and educational research
  • Preserving native languages
  • Teaching English as a Second Language
  • Translation/interpretation

Positions may also be available in basic and applied research in medicine, law, marketing and government.

Linguistics Degree Courses You Could Take

Phonetics and Phonology: The Sound Patterns of Language (3 hrs)
Survey of the quantitative and qualitative analytical approaches used to understand language as a social practice. Analyzing the fluid, rather than static, structure of language, as it exists and changes in the service of people and communities.
Discourse AnalysisTalking and Telling (3 hrs)
Methods and concepts of discourse analysis and conversational analysis. Applying these methods to the study of spoken language.
The Language of Now: Pop Culture, Technology and Society (3 hrs)
Explores the relationship among pop culture, rapidly changing technology and language change. Examines the linguistic significance of new technologies such as texting, gaming, instant messaging and social networking.
Communication Across Species (3 hrs)
This course considers perspectives and issues of animal and human language and communication using cross-disciplinary evidence from different fields. Two major questions are being addressed and explored: “How do humans and non-humans communicate?” and “What are the similarities and differences in communicative abilities between humans and non-humans?”
Migration and Language Contact (3 hrs)
Study of the linguistic and social patterns resulting from language contact due to migration. Topics include lexical and structural borrowing, code-switching and formation of pidgins, creoles, and mixed languages.
Language and Society (3 hrs)
Survey of the quantitative and qualitative analytical approaches used to understand language as a social practice. Analyzing the fluid, rather than static, structure of language, as it exists and changes in the service of people and communities.

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