Academic Year:
Linguistics And Cognitive Science
Telephone: (302) 831-6806; Fax: (302) 831-6896
http://www.ling.udel.edu/ling/
Faculty Listing: http://www.ling.udel.edu/ling/
The Department of Linguistics offers programs leading to the MA degree in Linguistics and Cognitive Science and the PhD in Linguistics. In addition, the department offers the option of a combined BS/MA in Cognitive Science/Linguistics and Cognitive Science (this is not an option for Speech Pathology). The MA in Linguistics and Cognitive Science is a flexible degree, allowing students to design programs of study in areas of theoretical linguistics, cognitive science, and applied linguistics (including teaching English as a second language). Areas for PhD specialization include theoretical linguistics (syntax, semantics, phonology, morphology), psycholinguistics (first and second language acquisition, language processing, neurolinguistics), endangered and under-described languages (linguistic field methods, language typology, language documentation), and applied linguistics.
Requirements For Admission
Students with a BA/BS or MA/MS in linguistics or in an appropriate field may apply. (Students without a degree in linguistics proper may be asked to take additional courses to meet minimum training in linguistics.) Applicants are required to submit a completed application, a writing sample, three letters of recommendation, GRE scores (a minimum of 1050 on verbal and quantitative combined is normally required; the analytical score is also considered), official transcripts of all previous work, and a personal statement describing interests and objectives. Foreign students whose language of education is not English must also submit TOEFL scores. A minimum of 100 on the computer-based/IBT TOEFL is normally required. Foreign students whose native language is not English and who are awarded a teaching assistantship must attend the ELI TA training offered by UD before assuming their assistantship duties.
Admission is selective and competitive based on the number of well-qualified applicants and the limits of available faculty and facilities. Those who meet stated minimum academic requirements are not guaranteed admission, nor are those who fail to meet those requirements necessarily precluded from admission if they offer other appropriate strengths.
Financial Aid
Financial aid is available for PhD students only and takes the form of teaching assistantships, graduate assistantships and research assistantships. Conditions on funding are stated in the Graduate Guidelines available from the department's Director of Graduate Studies and on the department website
(http://www.ling.udel.edu/ling/).
Requirements For The Master's Degree
For the MA degree, students must complete 30 credit hours planned in consultation with the student's advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies or the Cognitive Science Graduate Advisor. These credits must include at least 21 credit hours in cognitive science or linguistics courses and at least one 800-level seminar in cognitive science or linguistics. Full details of all programs are available from the department's Director of Graduate Studies or the Cognitive Science Graduate Advisor.
Combined BS and MA Option
Qualified undergraduate students in the BS in Cognitive Science as well as students completing a Bachelors degree in related fields like Anthropology, Computer and Information Science, Philosophy and Psychology (and other fields by application) may apply for the Combined BS and MA option. Whereas the traditional programs for the BS and MA degrees involve 4 years of undergraduate work and 2 years of graduate work, the Combined BS and MA option enables students to earn both degrees in a 5-year period. Students who complete the Combined BS and MA program will graduate with both a Bachelor of Science degree in Cognitive Science and a Master of Arts degree in Linguistics and Cognitive Science. Students who are candidates for the Combined BS and MA option, and who complete the requirements for the BS but fail to complete the additional MA requirements, will receive the BS degree. This combined degree is not applicable for an MA in Speech Pathology.
a. Admission into the Combined BS and MA Program
Students may apply for admission to the Combined BS and MA program at the end of the sophomore year. The application process requires submission of a completed graduate application form for review by the Departmental Graduate Studies Committee. Initial admission will be based upon the student's ability to meet the following recommended entrance criteria:
- Combined mathematics and verbal SAT scores of at least 1200
- An undergraduate GPA of at least 3.25
- Completion of all core courses for the BS other than CGSC 485
- Submission of a writing sample, based on work completed in a Cognitive Science course
Admission is competitive so meeting the minimal requirements for admission does not guarantee admission nor does the failure to meet a requirement result in an automatic rejection. The GRE is not required for admission to the Combined BS and MA program by UD undergraduates.
b. Maintaining Status within the Program
Upon admission into the program and prior to the start of the junior year of study, the student will meet with his graduate advisor and submit a planned program of study, including all elective courses, to the Graduate Studies Committee. Planned programs of study are due by the end of fall semester of the student's junior year.
Continuation in the Combined BS and MA program is contingent upon maintaining a cumulative GPA of at least 3.25 in undergraduate courses with CGSC and LING designations and in graduate coursework. Satisfactory progress includes following the prescribed program of study.
Each student's progress and GPA will be evaluated at the end of each academic year by the student's advisor and the Graduate Studies Committee. Students who fail to meet the minimum GPA requirements or fail to show progress toward the degree will be dropped from the Combined BS and MA program. They may, however, continue in the undergraduate major unless their undergraduate progress is unsatisfactory according to the rules in effect for the BS program.
c. Degree Requirements for the Master of Arts in Linguistics and Cognitive Science and the BS in Cognitive Science
The graduate level course requirements for students in the Combined BS and MA option are the same as those for the MA in Linguistics and Cognitive Science. The course requirements for the degree include 30 credit hours planned in consultation with the student's advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies, which must include at least 21 credit hours in the Linguistics Department and at least one 800-level seminar. The MA in Linguistics and Cognitive Science is a flexible program of study that provides training in both Linguistics and Cognitive Science. Separate tracks are provided for students whose emphasis is clearly in Cognitive Science or in Linguistics. In addition, students may propose a program of study that combines elements of the Linguistics and Cognitive Science tracks. See the Department's Graduate Policy Statement for additional information. Students in the Combined BS and MA option must fulfill all graduate and undergraduate course requirements for both the MA and their undergraduate degree.
d. Course Overlap
In the event that a student in the Combined BS and MA option completes a required graduate course as an undergraduate, and elects to count that course toward the bachelors degree, he will be required to substitute another graduate course, the choice requiring approval of the Director of Graduate Studies. When a student completes a 400-level undergraduate course that has content very similar to that of a parallel 600-level graduate course, he must petition the Director of Graduate Studies to substitute another graduate course for the 600-level course in question.
e. Revisions to Planned Program of Study in Combined BS and MA Option
Students who wish to make changes to their program of study must first obtain permission from their advisor. The advisor must then make a written request to the Graduate Studies Committee to revise the program of study.
Requirements For The PhD Degree
Students are required to take 60 credits beyond the BA/BS: 51 credits in courses proper and 9 dissertation credits. Students entering with a credited MA/MS in an appropriate area as determined by the department must take 30 credits: 21 in courses proper and 9 in dissertation. All transfer credit must be in accord with the rules of the Graduate Office; approval of transferred courses is at the discretion of the Committee on Graduate Studies of the Department of Linguistics. Students must take LING 607 Phonology I, LING 609 Syntax I, LING 608 Phonology II, LING 610 Syntax II, CGSC 696 Psycholinguistics, and at least three 800-level seminars. No course can satisfy two requirements except that the three 800-level seminars can count toward specialization requirements; transfer credit for these requirements may be accepted, but only under the conditions stated above. It is suggested that the remainder of the course work have an appropriate balance of work in the subfields of linguistics and, at the same time, be directed toward the major areas of research interest.
Students are required to take one major examination, the Qualifying Examination and to write one publishable research paper for admission to Doctoral Candidacy. After successful completion of all requirements, students are required to write a dissertation followed by an oral defense.
Students whose native language is English are required to demonstrate proficiency in a language other than English. The goal is for students to be able to function as a professional in the field of linguistics in general and in their chosen area of specialization. Proficiency may be either written or spoken. Students are responsible for presenting a rationale for the selection of a particular language and for requesting a speaking or reading proficiency test. Students whose native language is not English will be assumed to have proficiency in English and will have thereby satisfied the proficiency requirement.
The language requirements must be satisfied prior to acceptance of the Dissertation Prospectus. No language examinations taken at any other school will fulfill any language requirement.
Program In Cognitive Science
The program in Cognitive Science is administered by the Department of Linguistics and Cognitive Science. See MA information (above) regarding the MA in Linguistics and Cognitive Science. While there is no Doctoral degree in Cognitive Science, the PhD in Linguistics allows a secondary specialization in Cognitive Science, and advanced degrees in related disciplines (e.g., Psychology) also permit students to develop concentrations in the field. There are also regular graduate course offerings in Cognitive Science that allow individualized training in the field.
M.A. CERTIFICATE IN COGNITIVE SCIENCE
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students and others who use the Catalog should note that the policies, rules, regulations,
requirements for graduation, course offerings, and other materials reproduced in the Catalog change
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