Undergraduate Degrees

Graduate Degrees

Courses of Instruction

Grace Ford Salvatori 301
(213) 740-2986
FAX: (213) 740-9306
E-mail: lingdept@mizar.usc.edu

Chair: Barry Schein, Ph.D.

Faculty

Andrew W. Mellon Professorship in Humanities: Jean-Roger Vergnaud, Ph.D.

Professors: Elaine S. Andersen, Ph.D.; Joseph Aoun, Ph.D. (Dean of Faculty); Bernard Comrie, Ph.D.*; Edward Finegan, Ph.D.*; John A. Hawkins, Ph.D.*; William E. Rutherford, Ph.D.; Mario Saltarelli, Ph.D. (Spanish and Portuguese); Mark Seidenberg, Ph.D. (Psychology)

Associate Professors: Hajime Hoji, Ph.D.; Audrey Li, Ph.D. (East Asian Languages and Cultures); Maryellen C. MacDonald, Ph.D.; Maria Polinsky, Ph.D. (Slavic Languages and Literatures); Barry Schein, Ph.D.; Roger D. Woodard, Ph.D. (Classics); Maria Luisa Zubizarreta, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor: Alicja Gorecka, Ph.D.

Adjunct Assistant Professor: Anne D. Dunlea, Ph.D.

Emeritus Professor: Robert B. Kaplan, Ph.D.

*Recipient of university-wide or college teaching award.

Degree Programs

The Linguistics Department offers undergraduate (B.A.) and graduate (M.A. and Ph.D.) programs. A wide range of courses allows students to study formal grammar (syntax, morphology, phonology, semantics); universals and typology; sociolinguistics (quantitative approaches to style, discourse, literacy); psycholinguistics (natural language processing, first language acquisition, language and aging); second language acquisition; historical linguistics; Arabic linguistics; East Asian linguistics (Chinese, Japanese, Korean); Germanic linguistics; Indo-European linguistics; Romance linguistics; Slavic linguistics.

Undergraduate Degrees

The Linguistics Department emphasizes the study of language both as an abstract system and in its psychological and social contexts. In addition to introductory linguistics and courses in linguistic analysis, students take courses in psycholinguistics (language acquisition and processing) and/or sociolinguistics (language and society). The undergraduate major in linguistics focuses on how the human mind structures, processes and acquires language as well as how similar communication goals are met by diverse means in the languages of the world. Students are encouraged to pursue combined majors in Linguistics/Philosophy, Linguistics/Psychology, Linguistics/Anthropology and Linguistics/Sociology, as well as double majors with computer science or a language. Please contact the department advisor for more information.

Department Major Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts

For the lower division, LING 210 is required. For the upper division, the following courses are required: LING 401ab, 402ab and 480; a course in psycholinguistics (LING 395, 396 or 408) or in sociolinguistics (LING 315 or 375); and in addition three upper division courses in linguistics or a related field to be chosen in consultation with the department advisor.

Linguistics Major with Honors

The linguistics major with honors requires the student to complete the requirements for the major with a GPA of 3.5 or above and to complete in addition LING 497x Honors Thesis with a grade of B or better. Intent to complete the linguistics major with honors should be registered with the undergraduate advisor no later than the second semester of the junior year.

Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts with a Combined Major in Linguistics and Philosophy

For the lower division, LING 210 is required. For the upper division the following courses are required: LING 401a and 402a; PHIL 350 and 465; three courses selected from LING 401b, 402b, 408 and 480; and three courses selected from PHIL 450, 460, 462 and 470.

Combined Major in Linguistics and Philosophy with Honors

The combined major in linguistics and philosophy with honors requires the student to complete the requirements for the major with a GPA of 3.5 or above and to complete in addition LING 497x Honors Thesis or PHIL 494 Senior Thesis with a grade of B or better. Intent to complete the major with honors should be registered with the undergraduate advisor no later than the second semester of the junior year.

Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts with a Combined Major in Linguistics and Psychology

For the lower division: LING 210, PSYC 100 and PSYC 274 are required. For the upper division the following courses are required: LING 401a and 402a; PSYC 314L or 318L; three courses selected from LING 395, 396, 401b, 402b, 480, 485, LING 408/PSYC 406; three additional courses selected from PSYC 301L, 326, 336L, 337L, 348, 424, 433, PSYC 406/LING 408.

Combined Major in Linguistics and Psychology with Honors

The combined major in linguistics and psychology with honors requires the student to complete the requirements for the major with a GPA of 3.5 or above and to complete in addition either LING 497x Honors Thesis or PSYC 380 Junior Honors Seminar and PSYC 480 Senior Honors Seminar, with a grade of B or better. Intent to complete the major with honors should be registered with the undergraduate advisor no later than the second semester of the junior year.

Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts with a Combined Major in Linguistics and Anthropology

For the lower division, LING 210 and ANTH 201 are required. For the upper division, the following courses are required: LING 401a, 402a and 380, and ANTH 410a and 440; LING 485 or ANTH 410b; two additional courses selected from LING 315, 375, 401b, 402b, 412, 480, 485; one or two additional courses selected from ANTH 320, 345, 355, 360, 370, 372, 375, 380, 385.

Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts with a Combined Major in Linguistics and Sociology

For the lower division: LING 210 is required. For the upper division, the following courses are required: LING 401a and 402a; SOCI 313 or 314; SOCI 320, 345 or 370; three courses selected from LING 315, 375, 401b, 402b, 412, 480, 485; two additional courses selected from SOCI 303, 320, 340, 342, 345, 360, 422, 425, 435, 475, 492.

Department Minor Requirements

Lower division: LING 210. Upper division: LING 401a and 402b, one course in psycholinguistics (LING 395, 396 or 408) or in sociolinguistics (LING 315 or 375), and one additional upper division course.

Graduate Degrees

The graduate program in linguistics trains individuals to engage in the scientific study of human language. Course work emphasizes the structural aspects of language and the mechanisms of language change. Students work closely with faculty members on problems in linguistic theory, the description of particular languages, and variation across different users and contexts, focusing on their implications for understanding of social and cognitive structures.

Admission Requirements

Applicants for admission to graduate standing are expected to have a bachelor's degree in linguistics or other appropriate field and knowledge of at least one foreign language. Letters of evaluation from at least three professors (no standard form is required) and scores on the GRE General Test should be submitted as early as possible. A detailed statement of purpose should accompany the application. Students are expected to have had at least an introductory general linguistics course.

Degree Requirements

These degrees are under the jurisdiction of the Graduate School. Refer to Requirements for Graduation and the Graduate School for general regulations. All courses applied toward the degrees must be courses accepted by the Graduate School.

Master of Arts in Linguistics (32 units)

Note: The department does not normally admit students with a terminal M.A. objective.

Students pursuing the Ph.D. program in linguistics must first fulfill the requirements of the M.A. in linguistics. This is accomplished by completing a minimum of 32 units in linguistics or cognate disciplines. The choice of courses is subject to approval by the Graduate Studies Committee.

One course may be established by transfer from another accredited institution (with A or B grade only) upon approval of the Graduate Studies Committee. Additionally students are required to demonstrate knowledge of a foreign language or research tool in one of the following ways (A through C) listed under Foreign Language/Research Tool Requirement.

M.A. Research Papers

In addition to course work and the language requirement, students are also required to write two research papers the contents of which represent two distinct areas. The completed papers must be submitted to the Graduate Studies Committee by the fourth semester at the deadline established for that academic year. Oral defenses of the two papers will be conducted by each student following submission of the papers.

Foreign Language/Research Tool Requirement

Students are required to demonstrate knowledge of a foreign language or research tool by choosing one of the following ways (A through C):

(A) A working knowledge of a second language demonstrated by:

1. Scoring above the 65th percentile on the ETS Graduate School Foreign Language Test (either Humanities or Social Sciences option), or

2. Passing a department-internal written translation examination administered by a faculty member, or

3. Demonstrating native speaker competence in a language other than English.

(B) A working knowledge of statistics and experimental design demonstrated by passing with grade B or higher, LING 501a (or its equivalent) and a second course, such as LING 578 or 501b (or its equivalent), where this knowledge is applied to a linguistic research problem. The approval of the student's advisor or guidance committee chair and the Graduate Studies Committee will be required for substituting comparable courses not listed here.

(C) Ability to use the computer as a research tool. Such ability is demonstrated by passing with grade B or above LING 585 (or its equivalent) or by carrying through a linguistically related programming project; this project should be equivalent in magnitude to a term project for a semester course. The approval of the student's advisor or guidance committee chair and the Graduate Studies Committee will be required for substituting comparable courses not listed here.

Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics

Screening Procedure

Before a doctoral guidance committee can be established for applicants for the Ph.D. program, a student must pass a screening procedure. This procedure consists of a review of the student's graduate work at USC by the departmental faculty and will be based on the following criteria: course work, including grades and papers; faculty recommendations; and evaluation of research papers (completed prior to the end of the fourth semester of study). After successfully completing the screening procedure, the candidate forms a Ph.D. guidance committee. Refer to the Graduate School section of the catalogue for specific direction on forming a guidance committee.

Course Requirements

Satisfactory completion of 60 units beyond the baccalaureate is required. In addition to all M.A. requirements, the following courses are required: three 600-level seminars and 794ab Doctoral Dissertation. Students must consult with their guidance committee chair not later than the end of the fourth semester of graduate work to establish a Ph.D. course program in preparation for the dissertation; this course program must be approved by the Graduate Studies Committee.

Students seeking the Ph.D. in linguistics must demonstrate knowledge of two foreign language/Research tools in the following ways (A through C) listed under the M.A. Foreign Language/Research Tool Requirement, with at least one of them falling under (A).

Petition to Take the Qualifying Examination

The request to take the qualifying examination should be filed with the guidance committee and the Graduate School the semester before and not later than 30 days prior to the beginning date of the written examination. The student cannot take the written examination without the approval of the guidance committee. Prior to the written examination, the student must submit to each member of the guidance committee a dissertation prospectus and an original research paper.

Qualifying Examination

Ph.D. qualifying examinations are both written and oral. Once a student's petition to take the examination has been approved, the guidance committee will set and administer the written examination. The written examination consists of a limited number of questions in the fields related to the student's research. Students will receive the written examination two weeks after submitting the qualifying paper and will have 30 days to complete the questions. An oral examination will be scheduled by the guidance committee two weeks after the written examination has been submitted. The successful completion of the qualifying procedure is represented by the approval by the guidance committee of: (1) the prospectus, (2) the original research paper, (3) the written examination and (4) the orals.

Dissertation

Doctoral students must submit a dissertation according to the policies and procedures described in the Graduate School section of this catalogue.

Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics

Specialization in Slavic

Students interested in Slavic linguistics take the Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics with a specialization in Slavic linguistics. In addition to all requirements for the M.A. in Linguistics, the following courses are required: LING 542; SLL 510, 512, 514 and 516; three LING 600-level seminars; and 794ab Doctoral Dissertation. Students must pass reading examinations in one Slavic language and either French or German.

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