Linguistics is the scientific study of language. It investigates the common principles underlying all human languages, as well as the organization of particular languages. It is expected that undergraduates with a major in linguistics will be able to:
- demonstrate a sound knowledge of the fields of phonetics (articulatory and acoustic properties of speech), phonology (the organization of the sound system of languages), morphology (the structure of words), syntax (the structure of sentences), and semantics (the interpretation of structures);
- demonstrate that they are able to analyze data in all these areas of linguistics;
- apply their linguistic training without prejudice, as expected in any science; and
- apply their analytical abilities beyond the study of linguistics.
The linguistics major program can be enriched through linguistics-related courses offered in other departments such as the language departments, the departments of psychology, philosophy, and communicative disorders.
Undergraduate students wishing to major in linguistics should consult the Requirements tab. Students must contact the Linguistics undergraduate advisor Rebecca Shields, rashields@wisc.edu, to declare linguistics as a major. Inquire in 1168 Van Hise Hall or call 608-262-2292 for the undergraduate advisor's office hours. All students proposing to major in linguistics must consult the department's undergraduate advisor.
Any exceptions to the departmental requirements must be approved by the Degree Programs Committee of the Department of Language Sciences. Note that the undergraduate advisor of the department cannot authorize exceptions. Students requesting exceptions must prepare a written petition and submit it to the department administrator, who will then forward it to the Degree Programs Committee members.
The petition must justify the exception request by providing detailed information on the circumstances, and by including all relevant documents. The Degree Programs Committee considers each case individually on its merits. Approval is granted rarely, and only under extraordinary circumstances. Not having time to satisfy requirements before graduating is not a valid excuse.
University General Education Requirements
All undergraduate students at the University of Wisconsin–Madison are required to fulfill a minimum set of common university general education requirements to ensure that every graduate acquires the essential core of an undergraduate education. This core establishes a foundation for living a productive life, being a citizen of the world, appreciating aesthetic values, and engaging in lifelong learning in a continually changing world. Various schools and colleges will have requirements in addition to the requirements listed below. Consult your advisor for assistance, as needed. For additional information, see the university Undergraduate General Education Requirements section of the Guide.
| General Education |
* The mortarboard symbol appears before the title of any course that fulfills one of the Communication Part A or Part B, Ethnic Studies, or Quantitative Reasoning Part A or Part B requirements. |
College of Letters & Science Breadth and Degree Requirements: Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
Students pursuing a bachelor of science degree in the College of Letters & Science must complete all of the requirements below. The College of Letters & Science allows this major to be paired with either a bachelor of arts or a bachelor of science curriculum. View a comparison of the degree requirements here.
Bachelor of Science DEGREE REQUIREMENTS
| Mathematics | Two (2) 3+ credits of intermediate/advanced level MATH, COMP SCI, STAT Limit one each: COMP SCI, STAT |
| Foreign Language | Complete the third unit of a foreign language Note: A unit is one year of high school work or one semester/term of college work. |
| L&S Breadth |
|
| Liberal Arts and Science Coursework | 108 credits |
| Depth of Intermediate/Advanced work | 60 intermediate or advanced credits |
| Major | Declare and complete at least one (1) major |
| Total Credits | 120 credits |
| UW-Madison Experience | 30 credits in residence, overall 30 credits in residence after the 90th credit |
| Minimum GPAs | 2.000 in all coursework at UW–Madison 2.000 in intermediate/advanced coursework at UW–Madison |
Non–L&S Students PURSUING AN L&S MAJOR
Non–L&S students who have permission from their school/college to pursue an additional major within L&S only need to fulfill the major requirements and do not need to complete the L&S breadth and degree requirements above. Please note that the following special degree programs are not considered majors so are not available to non-L&S-degree-seeking candidates:
- Applied Mathematics, Engineering and Physics (Bachelor of Science–Applied Mathematics, Engineering and Physics)
- Journalism (Bachelor of Arts–Journalism; Bachelor of Science–Journalism)
- Music (Bachelor of Music)
- Social Work (Bachelor of Social Work)
Requirements for the Major
Language
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Complete the fourth unit or higher in a foreign language, by course or by examination | 0-16 | |
| Total Credits | 0-16 | |
LINGUISTICS
30 credits as follows:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| LINGUIS 101 | Human Language | 3 |
| or LINGUIS/ANTHRO 301 | Introduction to Linguistics: Descriptive and Theoretical | |
| LINGUIS 310 | Phonology | 3 |
| LINGUIS 330 | Syntax | 3 |
| LINGUIS 322 | Morphology | 3 |
| LINGUIS 340 | Semantics | 3 |
| 500-Level LINGUIS (1 course) | 3 | |
| Phonological Theories | ||
| Advanced Morphology | ||
| Syntactic Theories | ||
| Advanced Semantics | ||
| Introduction to Experimental Phonetics | ||
| Structure of a Language | ||
| Capstone | ||
| LINGUIS 426 | Field Methods I | 3 |
| or LINGUIS 427 | Field Methods II | |
| Electives | 9 | |
any LINGUIS course 1 | ||
| Introduction to African Linguistics | ||
| Language and Society in Africa | ||
| African Linguistic Structures-Morphology and Syntax | ||
| Indians of North America | ||
| Survey of North American Indian Languages | ||
| American Indian Folklore | ||
| Language and Culture | ||
| Introduction to Communicative Disorders | ||
| Speech Science | ||
| Normal Aspects of Hearing | ||
| Neural Basis of Communication | ||
| Language Development in Children and Adolescents | ||
| Speech Acoustics and Perception | ||
| Phonetics and Phonological Development | ||
| Child Language Disorders, Assessment and Intervention | ||
| Neural Mechanisms of Speech, Hearing and Language | ||
| Natural Language and Computing | ||
| The Teaching of Reading | ||
| Language in Japanese Society | ||
E ASIAN 431 | ||
| Chinese Linguistics II | ||
| Introduction to Japanese Linguistics | ||
| History of the Chinese Language | ||
| Structure of English | ||
| English Phonology | ||
| English Language Variation in the U.S. | ||
| Second Language Acquisition | ||
| Language, Race, and Identity | ||
| English Words: Grammar, Culture, Mind | ||
| Global Spread of English | ||
| Introduction to TESOL Methods | ||
| English in Society | ||
| History of the English Language | ||
| Gender and Language | ||
| Topics in English Language and Linguistics | ||
| English Syntax | ||
| English Grammar in Use | ||
| Field Methods and the Public Presentation of Folklore | ||
| Digitally Documenting Everyday Communication | ||
| Structures of Italian | ||
| Introduction to the Romance Languages | ||
| Introduction to German Linguistics | ||
| Topics in German Linguistics | ||
| History of the German Language | ||
| American Indian History | ||
| Introduction to Digital Information | ||
| Topics in Library and Information Studies (TLAM only) | ||
| Language, History, and Society | ||
| Language & Immigration in Wisconsin | ||
| Language, History, and Society | ||
| General Phonetics | ||
| Grammatical Variability of Language | ||
| Survey of North American Indian Languages | ||
| Topics in Linguistics | ||
| Language and Culture | ||
| Topics in Phonological Theory | ||
| Language and Meaning | ||
| Psychology of Perception | ||
| Language, Mind, and Brain | ||
| Cognitive Psychology | ||
| Child Development | ||
| How We Read: The Science of Reading and Its Educational Implications | ||
| Introduction to Scandinavian Linguistics | ||
| Topics in Scandinavian Linguistics | ||
| Talk and Social Interaction | ||
| Spanish Phonetics | ||
| The Structure of Modern Spanish | ||
| Introduction to Spanish Linguistics | ||
| Spanish Applied Linguistics | ||
| Introduction to the Romance Languages | ||
| Topics in Spanish Linguistics | ||
| Spanish Phonology | ||
| Contemporary Issues in Applied Spanish Linguistics | ||
| Structure of the Spanish Language: Morphology and Syntax | ||
| Topics in Hispanic Linguistics | ||
| Total Credits | 30 | |
| 1 | Except LINGUIS 236, LINGUIS 481, LINGUIS 482, LINGUIS 583, LINGUIS 584, LINGUIS 681, LINGUIS 682. |
Residence and Quality of work
- 2.000 GPA in all LINGUIS and major courses
- 2.000 GPA on 15 upper-level major credits, taken in residence1
- 15 credits in LINGUIS taken on the UW–Madison campus
| 1 | Intermediate- and advanced-level LINGUIS courses, LINGUIS 340, LINGUIS 373 and some elective courses from other SUBJECTS are upper level in the major (see below). |
Electives from Other SUBJECTS That Are Upper Level in the Major
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Language and Society in Africa | ||
| Structure and Analysis of African Languages | ||
| Speech Science | ||
| Neural Basis of Communication | ||
| Speech Acoustics and Perception | ||
| Neural Mechanisms of Speech, Hearing and Language | ||
| Natural Language and Computing | ||
| Language in Japanese Society | ||
E ASIAN 431 | ||
| Chinese Linguistics II | ||
| Introduction to Japanese Linguistics | ||
| History of the Chinese Language | ||
E ASIAN 632 | ||
| Old English | ||
| History of the English Language | ||
| Structure of English | ||
| English Grammar in Use | ||
| English Syntax | ||
| English Phonology | ||
| English Language Variation in the U.S. | ||
| Global Spread of English | ||
| Second Language Acquisition | ||
| English in Society | ||
| Introduction to the Romance Languages | ||
| Introduction to German Linguistics | ||
| Topics in German Linguistics | ||
| History of the German Language | ||
| Introduction to Middle High German | ||
LCA 441 | ||
| Language and Meaning | ||
| Animal Communication and the Origins of Language | ||
| Old Norse | ||
| Old Norse | ||
| Introduction to Scandinavian Linguistics | ||
| History of the Scandinavian Languages I: Proto- to Common Scandinavian | ||
| Talk and Social Interaction | ||
| SPANISH/INTL BUS 329 | Spanish for Business | 3 |
| SPANISH 630 | Topics in Hispanic Linguistics | 3 |
Honors in the Major
Students may declare Honors in the Linguistics Major in consultation with the Linguistics Undergraduate Advisor.
Honors in the Linguistics Major: Requirements
To earn Honors in the Major in Linguistics, students must satisfy both the requirements for the major (above) and the following additional requirements:
- Earn a 3.300 overall 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 credit, with individual grades of B or better
- 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. A grade of B or better must be earned in the thesis project.
Note that Honors tutorial credits and the Senior Honors Thesis do not count toward the 30 credits required for the major in linguistics.
University Degree Requirements
| Total Degree | To receive a bachelor's degree from UW–Madison, students must earn a minimum of 120 degree credits. The requirements for some programs may exceed 120 degree credits. Students should consult with their college or department advisor for information on specific credit requirements. |
| Residency | Degree candidates are required to earn a minimum of 30 credits in residence at UW–Madison. "In residence" means on the UW–Madison campus with an undergraduate degree classification. “In residence” credit also includes UW–Madison courses offered in distance or online formats and credits earned in UW–Madison Study Abroad/Study Away programs. |
| 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. Students whose academic performance drops below these minimum thresholds will be placed on academic probation. |
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.
UnderGraduate Advising
Rebecca Shields, Undergraduate Advisor
rashields@wisc.edu
Contact the undergraduate advisor to set up an appointment to learn more about the major, careers in linguistics, and opportunities for the study of language sciences across campus.
Letters & Science Career Services
The Department of Language Sciences encourages our majors to begin working on their career exploration and preparation soon after declaring their major. Our career advisor also partners with SuccessWorks at the College of Letters & Science. L&S graduates are in high demand by employers and graduate programs. It is important to us that our students are career ready at the time of graduation, and we are committed to your success.
L&S career resources
SuccessWorks at the College of Letters & Science helps students leverage the academic skills learned in their major, certificates, and liberal arts degree; explore and try out different career paths; participate in internships; prepare for the job search and/or graduate school applications; and network with professionals in the field (alumni and employers).
SuccessWorks can also assist students in career advising, résumé and cover letter writing, networking opportunities, and interview skills, as well as course offerings for undergraduates to begin their career exploration early in their undergraduate career.
- SuccessWorks
- Set up a career advising appointment
- INTER-LS 210 L&S Career Development: Taking Initiative (1 credit, targeted to first- and second-year students)—for more information, see Inter-LS 210: Career Development, Taking Initiative
- Learn how we’re transforming career preparation: L&S Career Initiative