The Linguistics major consists of 10 classes.
Tier I: In the first tier, majors must take LING 1000: Introduction to Language, which is offered every semester and which we recommend taking first. However, you can choose to take it at any point (including after taking some or all of the other tier courses):
- LING 1000: Introduction to Language: our sampler-platter of topics surveying the breadth of linguistic subfields we offer courses in at Georgetown, and the various approaches to studying language represented therein.
Tier II: In the second tier, majors take any three of the following courses, which are each offered at least once a year. Again, we recommend that LING majors take these courses as soon as they can, but any order is allowed:
- LING 2010: The Sounds of Language: An introduction to phonetics and phonology, the linguistic subfields concerned with describing and explaining how speech sounds are made, used, heard, and mentally organized.
- LING 2020: The Science of Sentences (formerly Grammatical Analysis): An introduction to syntax, the subfield concerned with understanding how the meaning-bearing units of language are assembled into larger sense-making phrases
- LING 2030: Language and Society: An introduction to sociolinguistics, in which we learn how language use by the individual and in the community can be studied using quantitative and qualitative methods
- LING 2040: Computational Language Processing: An introduction to a field that combines linguistics and computer science, offering a broad overview of Natural Language Processing.
- LING 2050: How Languages are Learned: An introduction to the central questions, theories, debates, and research findings in the areas of second language acquisition (SLA) and teaching,
TIER III: The other 5 courses you can choose based on your interests and according to the following criteria:
- Two of these classes should be numbered between 4000-5999: these grad-level courses involve more advanced engagement with the literature in a specific area and often involve more writing (for that reason, they satisfy the College’s Integrated Writing Requirement). These courses might have prerequisites!
- The other 3 classes are any other LING course with any number. Often, majors who study abroad will count some of that work towards LING electives (up to 2 for a semester-long program).
The Linguistics major also has a language requirement consisting of 12 credits of coursework on at least one ancient or modern language other than English. Such courses must be taught in the language or must be advanced courses about the structure of the language (i.e., linguistics courses). They may double-count toward other major/minor requirements, and/or toward school-level or university-level language requirements. Linguistic structure courses in other departments may count with Department approval.
