Master of Arts in Linguistics
Utrecht University
Key Information
Campus location
Utrecht, Netherlands
Languages
English
Study format
On-Campus
Duration
2 years
Pace
Full time
Tuition fees
EUR 2,209 / per year *
Application deadline
Request info
Earliest start date
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* EU/EEA, Surinam or Swiss students; €17,500: International students
Scholarships
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Introduction
Cognitive Faculties Underlying Human Language
How do we acquire language? How is it processed in the brain? How do we use it? The very fact that we have and use languages is part of what makes us human. Many different languages are spoken in the world. In this program, you get to reflect on their structures and what drives language variation and change.
Communicating by means of language is a crucial ingredient of success in modern society. You will learn the principles of first language acquisition, and what is special about learning more languages. The program also satisfies your curiosity to know more about the way language is processed in the brain and how we use it. The key focus of the research Master’s program in Linguistics is on the cognitive faculties underlying human language, and their interaction.
Program Outcome
After Graduation
- You are equipped with a broad understanding of the field of linguistics, and in-depth knowledge of a particular linguistics subdiscipline.
- You have learned to apply your knowledge to new topics and to reflect critically on existing knowledge and current research.
- You have acquired the academic, communication, and methodological skills that prepare you for carrying out your own research.
- In your internship and thesis under the supervision of senior researchers of the Utrecht Institute of Linguistics, you have learned to formulate original research questions and develop answers.
- You have started building a network in linguistics through participation in lecture series, workshops, and the national LOT schools that will give you a head start in your postgraduate career.
In your program, you will have the opportunity to actively work on your career development.
Curriculum
Theory-Driven Empirical Research
The program offers a broad focus on:
- Theoretical linguistics (phonology, syntax, semantics)
- Psycholinguistics (language acquisition, language processing)
- Language use (discourse studies, bilingualism, phonetics, historical linguistics)
You will acquire a solid background in all three domains, and then choose a series of elective courses in order to specialize in one area. You will receive training in empirical, computational, and experimental methodology, and you will practice designing, planning, and carrying out a research project during your internship and thesis work. Read more about our teaching and research environment, including our teaching staff.
Career Opportunities
As a graduate of the Research Master Linguistics, you will be highly eligible for a Ph.D. position or for a position within a public or private organization. Many alumni pursue academic careers, while others obtain traineeships in natural language resource firms, junior research positions in international organizations and research facilities, teaching positions in secondary schools and colleges, etc.
Career Prospects
The Research Master’s program Linguistics prepares you for a broad range of jobs inside and outside academia that require academic skills, research methodology, and advanced knowledge in the field of linguistics. Graduates of the program are highly eligible to operate in the international field of linguistics research and to obtain Ph.D. positions in the Netherlands or abroad.
If you decide not to embark on an academic career, you are fully equipped to apply for junior positions where specialized knowledge, research abilities, and insight into the structure of language and its use are relevant. For example:
- A traineeship in the field of language technology (speech recognition, text-to-speech)
- An advisory position in first- and second-language teaching and policymaking
- A teaching position in higher education
- A junior project research position in the industry
- An assistant position in the experimental and computational lab
Academic Careers
After successfully completing the Linguistic Master’s program, you are able to pursue an academic career and apply to a Ph.D. program either at Utrecht University or elsewhere. During the program, you will work on a research proposal that may be used in Ph.D. applications or easily be adapted to such applications.
Over the past three years, 50% of our graduates entered Ph.D. programs, not including those involved in self-funded Ph.D. research or returning to their home universities as lecturers.
- Dominique Blok, for example, is a Ph.D. candidate in linguistics at Utrecht University. Her research involves semantics and pragmatics of range markers across and throughout languages.
- Robert Grimm is a Ph.D. candidate at Antwerp University, where he is combining Machine Learning with data and insights from Psycholinguistics.
- Other alumni have positions as Ph.D. candidates at the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics (Nijmegen) and Ghent University.
Non-Academic Careers
You can also pursue a professional career. Below, you will find a couple of examples of job prospects that require research experience and/or expertise in linguistics.
Other alumni have gone on to work as:
- Tester of IT applications at Calco
- Development Editor at Macmillan Education
Other graduates have found jobs at:
- Pearson English
- The Decision Group
- SNS REAAL
- ING Nederland
- Douwe Egberts