Program Overview

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Linguistics, BA

Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It investigates the common principles underlying all languages, as well as the organization of particular languages. The Linguistics major emphasizes strong foundational training in the core areas of theoretical linguistics.

Requirements for the Major

Students pursuing the linguistics major must complete 30 credits as follows:

• Required Foundational Courses (4 courses)
  • LINGUIS 101: Human Language
  • LINGUIS 310: Phonology
  • LINGUIS 322: Morphology
  • LINGUIS 330: Syntax
• Advanced Linguistics Coursework (2 courses)
  • One 500-level LINGUIS course
  • LINGUIS 690: Capstone in Linguistics
• Electives in the Major (4 courses)
  • Complete 4 of the following courses:
    • Any LINGUIS course (except LINGUIS 351, LINGUIS 352, LINGUIS 481, LINGUIS 482, LINGUIS 583, LINGUIS 681, LINGUIS 682)
    • AFRICAN 206: Introduction to African Linguistic Practices
    • AMER IND/ANTHRO 314: Indians of North America
    • AMER IND/LINGUIS 371: Survey of North American Indian Languages
    • ANTHRO/LINGUIS 430: Language and Culture
    • ASIAN 358: Language in Japanese Society
    • ASIAN 432: Introduction to Chinese Linguistics
    • ASIAN 434: Introduction to Japanese Linguistics
    • ASIAN 631: History of the Chinese Language
    • ASIAN 632: Studies in Chinese Linguistics
    • ASIAN 633: Chinese Applied Linguistics
    • CS&D 110: Introduction to Communicative Disorders
    • CS&D 201: Anatomy and Physiology of Speech Production
    • CS&D 202: Hearing Science
    • CS&D 210: Neural Basis of Communication
    • CS&D 240: Language Development in Children and Adolescents
    • CS&D 303: Speech Acoustics and Perception
    • CS&D 315: Phonetics and Phonological Development
    • CS&D 440: Child Language Disorders, Assessment and Intervention
    • CS&D 503: Neural Mechanisms of Speech, Hearing and Language
    • ED POL 205: Language and Social Inequality
    • ED POL 595: Language Politics and Education
    • ENGL 314: Structure of English
    • ENGL 316: English Language Variation in the U.S.
    • ENGL 318: Second Language Acquisition
    • ENGL 319: Language, Race, and Identity
    • ENGL 320: Linguistic Theory and Child Language
    • ENGL 412: Bad Grammar and Metalinguistic Awareness
    • ENGL 413: English Words: Grammar, Culture, Mind
    • ENGL 414: Global Spread of English
    • ENGL 415: Introduction to TESOL Methods
    • ENGL 416: English in Society
    • ENGL 417: History of the English Language
    • ENGL 420: Topics in English Language and Linguistics
    • ENGL 514: English Syntax
    • ENGL 516: English Grammar in Use
    • FOLKLORE/L I S 490: Field Methods and the Public Presentation of Folklore
    • ITALIAN 340: Structures of Italian
    • GERMAN 351: Introduction to German Linguistics
    • GERMAN 352: Topics in German Linguistics
    • GERMAN 650: History of the German Language
    • L I S 501: Introduction to Text Mining
    • L I S 640: Topics in Library and Information Studies (Tribal Libraries, Archives, & Museums topic only)
    • LINGUIS/ANTHRO/FOLKLORE/INTL ST 211: Global Language Issues
    • LINGUIS 213: Topics in Sociolinguistics
    • LINGUIS 237: Language in Wisconsin
    • LINGUIS 303: Historical Linguistics
    • LINGUIS 309: Grammatical Variability of Language
    • LINGUIS 340: Semantics
    • LINGUIS/AMER IND 371: Survey of North American Indian Languages
    • LINGUIS 373: Topics in Linguistics
    • LINGUIS 375: Sign Language Linguistics
    • LINGUIS 426:
    • LINGUIS 427: Field Methods II
    • LINGUIS/ANTHRO 430: Language and Culture
    • PHILOS 516: Language and Meaning
    • PSYCH 406: Psychology of Perception
    • PSYCH 414: Cognitive Psychology
    • PSYCH 460: Child Development
    • PSYCH 521:
    • RELIG ST 201: Religion in/and Everyday Language
    • SOC 535: Talk and Social Interaction
    • SPANISH 320: Spanish Phonetics
    • SPANISH 321: The Structure of Modern Spanish
    • SPANISH 327: Introduction to Spanish Linguistics
    • SPANISH 331: Spanish Applied Linguistics
    • SPANISH/FRENCH/ITALIAN/PORTUG 429: Introduction to the Romance Languages
    • SPANISH 430: Spanish in the United States
    • SPANISH 446: Topics in Spanish Linguistics
    • SPANISH 630: Topics in Hispanic Linguistics

Residence and Quality of Work

• 2.000 GPA in all LINGUIS and all major courses
• 2.000 GPA on 15 upper-level major credits, taken in residence
• 15 credits in LINGUIS, taken on the UWMadison campus

Honors in the Major

To earn Honors in the Major, students must satisfy both the requirements for the major and the following additional requirements:

• Earn a 3.300 University GPA
• Earn a 3.500 GPA for all LINGUIS courses, and all courses accepted in the major
• Complete two LINGUIS courses, taken for Honors, with concurrent 1-credit enrollment in LINGUIS 481 Junior Honors Tutorial, LINGUIS 482 Junior Honors Tutorial, or LINGUIS 583, for a total of 2 additional credits
• Complete a two-semester Senior Honors Thesis in LINGUIS 681 Honors Seminar-Senior Thesis and LINGUIS 682 Honors Seminar-Senior Thesis, leading to submission of an acceptable paper, for a total of 6 credits

University Degree Requirements

• Total Degree: To receive a bachelor's degree from UWMadison, students must earn a minimum of 120 degree credits
• Residency: Degree candidates are required to earn a minimum of 30 credits in residence at UWMadison
• Quality of Work: Undergraduate students must maintain the minimum grade point average specified by the school, college, or academic program to remain in good academic standing

Learning Outcomes

1. Familiarity with data from a wide range of languages from different language families
2. Ability to respond to biased views of language in their communities
3. Knowledge in all core areas of linguistics: Phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics
4. Sound grasp of linguistic concepts
5. Sound grasp of linguistic methodology

Four-Year Plan

This Four-Year Plan is only one way a student may complete an L&S degree with this major. Many factors can affect student degree planning, including placement scores, credit for transferred courses, credits earned by examination, and individual scholarly interests.

Freshman

• Fall: Communication A, Quantitative Reasoning A, 3rd semester of Foreign Language (if needed), L&S Breadth, L&S Breadth
• Spring: Ethnic Studies, 4th semester of Foreign Language (if needed), LINGUIS 101, I/A Math, Comp Sci, or Stat (if needed for BS), L&S Breadth

Sophomore

• Fall: Quantitative Reasoning B, LINGUIS 310, LINGUIS 330, L&S Breadth, Elective
• Spring: Communication B, LINGUIS 322, Linguistics major elective #1, I/A Math, Comp Sci, or Stat (if needed for BS), L&S Breadth

Junior

• Fall: Linguistics 500-level course, Linguistics major elective #2, L&S Breadth, Electives
• Spring: Linguistics major elective #3, L&S Breadth, Electives

Senior

• Fall: Linguistics major elective #4, Electives
• Spring: LINGUIS 690, Electives

Total Credits: 120