Linguistics (research)

The Programme

The programme and its requirements

The Leiden University Research Master’s programme in Linguistics provides intensive and comprehensive training covering the entire range of present-day linguistic research. Students need to earn 120 EC in total, including a thesis of 30 EC.

The basic programme consists of:

• 40 EC of compulsory components

• 50 EC of electives

• 30 EC thesis

Compulsory Components (40 EC)
All the compulsory components are taught at research master level. This means they equal level 600 according to the programme structure at Leiden University.

• Core Courses (20 EC): Students have to take two compulsory core courses - one in each year - each worth 10 EC (20 EC in total). The core courses cover the broad theoretical and methodological aspects of diversity in linguistics.

• Topics in Linguistics (10 EC): Besides the core courses, students have to take two topics courses, each worth 5 EC (10 EC in total). These short, current-research-oriented courses change every year.

• LOT Research School (10 EC): Students must attend courses at a research school to obtain the remaining 10 credits of the compulsory package. The recommended research school to do so is LOT, the Netherlands National Graduate School of Linguistics.

Electives (50 EC)
The ways to obtain elective credits are as follows. Students can:

• take more courses offered in the programme of the research master’s in Linguistics; more Topics in Linguistics courses;

• choose courses within the Master’s programme in Linguistics from among the courses offered by the specialisations ‘Linguistics’ and ‘Modern Languages’ ;

• take courses via the RM Mobility Programme in ResMA Linguistics Programmes all over the Netherlands;

• select other linguistic courses within other Master's programmes in Leiden. You may search for such courses in this Prospectus, on the web pages and timetables of various departments. Such courses need to have at least the 500 level and are subject to prior approval by the Board of Examiners of Linguistics;

• organize tutorials with an LUCL professor. Tutorials are small-scale classes worth 5 or 10 EC (subject to prior approval by the Board of Examiners). Please discuss the possibilities with the expert lecturers and consult the study adviser;

• take some courses at another university in the Netherlands or abroad. Approval from the Board of Examiners is required in advance. The usual limit is a maximum of 15 EC at another Dutch university and maximum 30 EC abroad;

• take courses at Research Schools in the Humanities. Such courses are subject to prior approval by the Board of Examiners of Linguistics;

• do an internship (10 or 20 EC). For more information, please contact the Humanities Career Service and the study adviser.

First year

The information on this page is possibly not up-to-date. The information will be updated as soon as possible.

Second year

The information on this page is possibly not up-to-date. The information will be updated as soon as possible.

Career Preparation

Labour market preparation in Research Master Linguistics

In addition to offering you a solid university education, Leiden University aims to prepare you as well as possible for the labour market, and in doing so contribute to the development of your employability. In this way, it will become easier for you to make the transition to the labour market, to remain employable in a dynamic labour market, in a (career) job that suits your own personal values, preferences and development. 'Employability' consists of the following aspects that you will develop within your study programme, among others:

1. Discipline-specific knowledge and skills
   Knowledge and skills specific to your study programme.

2. Shared transferable skills
   These are skills that are relevant to every student and that you can use in all kinds of jobs irrespective of your study programme, for example:
   researching, analysing, project-based working, generating solutions, digital skills, collaborating, oral communication, written communication, presenting, societal awareness, independent learning, resilience.

3. Self-reflection
   This concerns self-reflection in the context of your (study) career, including reflecting on the choices you make as a student during your studies, what can you do with your knowledge and skills on the labour market?
   In addition, reflecting on your own profile and your personal and professional development. Who are you, what can you do well, what do you find interesting, what suits you, what do you find important, what do you want to do?

4. Practical experience
   Gaining practical experience through work placements, projects, practical (social) assignments, which are integrated into an elective, minor or graduation assignment.

5. Labour market orientation
   Gaining insight into the labour market, fields of work, jobs and career paths through, for example, guest speakers and alumni experiences in the field, career events within the study programme, the use of the alumni mentor network, speaking with people in the field, and walking along/visiting companies in the context of a particular subject.

Employability in Research Master Linguistics

You will also find these employability elements in your study programme. Examples of subjects that pay attention to this are the following.

Discipline-specific knowledge and skills

• Core: Samples of Linguistic Structure

• Core: Academic Skills for Linguists

• Individual Project

• Topics in Linguistics: Pragmatics

• Topics in Linguistics: Information Structure

• Topics in Linguistics: Language and the Human Past

• Research School courses in the humanities

• LOT Summer School/Winter School

Shared transferable skills

• Statistics: Advanced Linear Models

• Core: Academic Skills for Linguists

• Individual Project

• LOT Summer School/Winter School

Practical experience

• LOT Lab Rotation

• Core: Academic Skills for Linguists

• Individual Project

• Internship Linguistics

Labour market orientation

• LOT Lab Rotation

• Individual Project

• Internship Linguistics

Activities to prepare for the labour market alongside / outside the curriculum

Every year, various activities take place, within, alongside and outside of your study programme, which contribute to your preparation for the labour market, especially where it concerns orientation towards the work field/the labour market, (career) skills and self-reflection. These activities could be hosted by your study program to discuss the key decision stages within your program but also career workshops and events organised by the Humanities Career service or your study association.
For example:

• Workshops and (faculty) career events, organised by Humanities Career Service

• Humanities Career Event en Campus The Hague Career Event

• Minor's Information Market

• International internship info session

• Information about the different choices within your study program; (optional) subjects, minors, honours education, study abroad, internships, career prospects

• Information about the choice of a master's degree

• Study abroad festival

• Master's Open Day

• Workshops and career events of study association or your study program

• Leiden University Career Zone

Humanities Career Service, LU Career Zone and career workshops calendar

Humanities Career Service
The Humanities Career Service offers information and advice on internships, study (re)orientation and master's choice, orientation on the labour market and careers.

Leiden University Career Zone
The Leiden University Career Zone is the website for students and alumni of Leiden University to support their (study) career. You can find advice, information, (career) tests and tools in the area of (study) career planning, career possibilities with your study, job market orientation, job applications, the Alumni Mentor network, job portal, workshops and events and career services.

Workshops and events
On the Workshops calendar you will find an overview of career and application workshops, organised by the Humanities Career Service.

More info

Objectives Programme Admission Structure Requirements for graduation

Objectives

The Leiden University research master’s programme in Linguistics provides intensive and comprehensive training covering the entire range of present-day linguistic research. The end of the 20th century witnessed a return of the interest in the diversity of human languages in virtually all existing approaches to linguistics. While descriptive, historical, and anthropological linguists have traditionally emphasised the variability of languages, scholars working in structuralist traditions aiming to uncover specific linguistic universal themes have also recognised the challenge posed by the immense variation between and within languages, and have started to develop theories and methods in attempts to meet it. Students in the Research Master’s Linguistics programme receive education and training that introduces them to and prepares them for innovative research at the front line of present-day linguistic investigation along the lines presented above.

Completion of a Research Master’s degree in Linguistics qualifies graduates for the pursuit of a PhD research project. At the same time, graduates will have acquired good credentials for working as a consultant or employee for an international or governmental agency, multinational business enterprise or non-governmental organisation. Because of the unique curriculum of the programme and the research experience accrued, graduates are an asset to any undertaking in the areas of sustainable development, investigative journalism, social engineering, education planning, and human resource management in a multicultural and multilingual context.

Programme

The Research Master in Linguistics is a specialised research-based programme offered at the Leiden University Centre for Linguistics (LUCL). This two-year programme is designed to prepare students for a career in research, for example as a PhD student. The programme is based on the expertise present within LUCL, specifically in the areas of language diversity and the languages of the world.

The students need to earn 120 EC in total. The programme consists of obligatory and elective courses, worth in total 90 EC. In the first year, all students of Linguistics (research) follow two core courses. The first core course is Research Methods in Linguistics.
In the core course Samples of Linguistic Structure, you get an overview of the grammar of typically four or five languages from different language families. This course gives you a broad overview of language variation – the focus point of linguistic research in Leiden. All students should take two Topics courses during their programme and are advised to take at least one, preferably two of these courses in their first year.

You can choose the remaining EC in the first year from a list of various courses on topics ranging from approaches to language variation and language change to more disciplinary courses in syntax, phonology, semantics and phonetics or courses about the linguistics of individual languages. In addition, numerous conferences, workshops and lecture series are organised by LUCL and all students are encouraged to attend. Students should also do 10 EC worth of courses from the LOT summer/winter schools.

In the third semester, you are encouraged to take further courses from this broad range, and are further expected to follow (at least) two or three short research seminars in which researchers talk about their current research. In the fourth and last semester you write a thesis under supervision of one of the LUCL Professors, who can also guide you towards a submission for a PhD Position, if this is what you wish.

Admission

• A BA-degree with a relevant specialisation from a recognised university;

• Good grades comparable with an average mark of at least 7.5 (Dutch grading system) for the entire bachelor’s programme, and a grade for the bachelor’s thesis of an 8 or higher;

• Sufficient command of English (IELTS 7.0, TOEFL 100 (internet-based) or Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE); for the ‘speaking’ and ‘writing’ components a minimum score of IELTS 6.5 or TOEFL22 is required)

Selection takes place by considering not only the final mark for the Bachelor’s thesis and the level of command of the English language, but several other aspects as well. Important factors are motivation and eagerness to carry out scientific research, as should be demonstrated in the documents required for the admission procedure and/or interview with the candidate.

Structure

All students admitted to the programme participate in a common set of courses providing them with the necessary foundations for further training and research, through confrontation with research methods and results in different approaches to linguistic diversity, presented by specialists in the field. By choosing a particular composition of courses within this common framework, a student may opt for an established or personalised study track, also aimed at a specific type of career. Tracks may also be characterised by special emphasis on the combination of studied languages.

Requirements for Graduation

In order to graduate, students must have completed 90 EC worth of courses and have written a Research Master’s thesis. The thesis needs to be written under the supervision of a lecturer affiliated with the LUCL (Leiden University Centre for Linguistics) and evaluated by the supervisor and a second reader (selected by the supervisor). It must show that the student is capable of analysing existing literature in a critical manner, and of conducting independent research. Moreover, this process must be recorded in an academically sound report. A research master’s thesis is worth 30 EC. It should consist of max. 30,000 words.

Also see: Course and Examination Regulations (OER)