Program Overview

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MSc in Applied Linguistics for Language Teaching

The MSc Applied Linguistics for Language Teaching is a part-time course, taught mostly online, that offers a cutting-edge introduction to the linguistic and pedagogic knowledge needed for teaching language.

About the Course

The course is aimed at professionals of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) or modern foreign languages. While the concepts covered in the course can be applied to all languages in most contexts, there is a strong opportunity for students to specialise in the teaching of English language in university settings.

Course Structure

• The course is taught over two academic years, preceded by a one-week induction residential in Oxford during which your academic writing will be formatively assessed.
• You will take six assessed modules (two modules in term one, and one in term two of each year).
• You will also take a formatively assessed module on Research Methods in term two of the first year to help prepare you for your dissertation project.
• At the beginning of term three of the first year of the course, you will begin working on your dissertation project under the supervision of a member of the applied linguistics research group.

Attendance

• As a part-time student, you will be required to participate in online weekly classes, seminars, and other academic tasks during term time.
• With the exception of the induction module, coursework is delivered in an asynchronous format.
• Materials are made available on the University's virtual learning environment two weeks in advance of the expected completion date for the associated activities.
• There is flexibility in the dates and pattern of participation each week to fit into your work schedule.

Resources to Support Your Study

• As a graduate student, you will have access to the University's wide range of resources, including libraries, museums, galleries, digital resources, and IT services.
• The Bodleian Libraries is the largest library system in the UK, including the main Bodleian Library and libraries across Oxford.
• The University's IT Services is available to all students to support with core university IT systems and tools, as well as many other services and facilities.

Supervision

• The allocation of graduate supervision is the responsibility of the Department of Education, and it is not always possible to accommodate the preferences of incoming graduate students to work with a particular member of staff.
• Under exceptional circumstances, a supervisor may be found outside the Department of Education.
• Students may expect around 10 hours of contact time with their supervisors during the course.

Assessment

• Students will complete six modules, each module is currently assessed by submitted assignments (usually taking the form of a 2,500-word take-home essay), and a dissertation topic selected by the student and approved by the supervisor.
• The Department of Education will undertake a comprehensive review of its assessment methods during the 202526 academic year, taking into account recent developments in Artificial Intelligence.

Graduate Destinations

• Past students from the Department of Education have gone on to doctoral study and academic and research careers at universities in the UK and across the world.
• Many have gone on to be employed across a wide range of other sectors, such as government policy, NGOs, international organisations, think tanks, and administration at local and national levels.

Changes to This Course

• The University will seek to deliver this course in accordance with the description set out in this course page.
• However, there may be situations in which it is desirable or necessary for the University to make changes in course provision, either before or after registration.

Entry Requirements

Proven and Potential Academic Excellence

• As a minimum, applicants should hold or be predicted to achieve the following UK qualifications or their equivalent:
  • A first-class or strong upper second-class undergraduate degree with honours in any discipline.
• For applicants with a bachelor's degree from the USA, the minimum overall GPA that is normally required to meet the undergraduate-level requirement is 3.6 out of 4.0.

Other Qualifications, Evidence of Excellence, and Relevant Experience

• Professional experience or academic study in language teaching or a related field is desirable, though not compulsory.
• Publications are not expected.

English Language Proficiency

• This course requires proficiency in English at the University's higher level.
• If your first language is not English, you may need to provide evidence that you meet this requirement.

Funding

• For entry in the academic year, the collegiate University expects to offer over 1,100 full or partial graduate scholarships across a wide range of graduate courses.
• If you apply by the January deadline shown on this page and receive a course offer, your application will then be considered for Oxford scholarships.

Costs

Annual Course Fees

• The fees for this course are charged on an annual basis.
• For the academic year, the annual course fees are:
  • Home: Ł9,485
  • Overseas: Ł18,085

Additional Costs

• Please note that this course requires that you attend in Oxford for induction week, and you may incur additional travel and accommodation expenses for this.
• The average cost of a hotel room in Oxford is around Ł150 per night, although the price will vary depending on the type of accommodation, time of year, and day of the week.

Living Costs

• In addition to your course fees and any additional course-specific costs, you will need to ensure that you have adequate funds to support your living costs for the duration of your course.
• Your living costs may vary depending on your personal circumstances, but you will still need to cover your cost of living on a full-time basis for the duration of your course, even if you will not be based in Oxford throughout your studies.

College Preference

• Students enrolled on this course will belong to both a department/faculty and a college.
• The following colleges accept students on the MSc in Applied Linguistics for Language Teaching:
  • Blackfriars
  • Linacre College
  • The Queen's College
  • Regent's Park College
  • St Anne's College
  • Wycliffe Hall

How to Apply

• Our guide to getting started provides general advice on how to prepare for and start your application.
• If it is important for you to have your application considered under a particular deadline, we recommend that you aim to complete and submit your application at least two weeks in advance.

Application Fee Waivers

• An application fee of Ł75 is payable for each application to this course.
• Application fee waivers are available for the following applicants who meet the eligibility criteria:
  • Applicants from low-income countries
  • Refugees and displaced persons
  • UK applicants from low-income backgrounds
  • Applicants who applied for our Graduate Access Programmes in the past two years and met the eligibility criteria

Completing Your Application

• You should refer to the information below when completing the application form, paying attention to the specific requirements for the supporting documents.
• For this course, the application form will include questions that collect information that would usually be included in a CV/résumé.

Referees

• Whilst you must register three referees, the department may start the assessment of your application if two of the three references are submitted by the course deadline and your application is otherwise complete.

Official Transcript(s)

• Your transcripts should give detailed information of the individual grades received in your university-level qualifications to date.

Personal Statement

• Your statement should be written in English and explain your motivation for applying for the course at Oxford, your relevant experience and education, and the specific components of the course that interest you.

Written Work

• Academic essays or other writing samples, written in English, are required.
• Excerpts of the requisite length from longer works are also permissible.

After You've Submitted Your Application

• Your application (including the supporting documents outlined above) will be assessed against the entry requirements detailed on this course page.
• Whether or not you have secured funding will be taken into consideration when your application is assessed.