The Department of Linguistics offers courses in the core areas of the discipline and in specific focal areas including: (1) linguistic analysis and theory (phonology, morphology, syntax and semantics); (2) articulatory and acoustic phonetics; (3) historical linguistics (including courses on the history of English and Indo-European); (4) language acquisition (both first and second); (5) analysis of Aboriginal languages of Canada; (6) psycholinguistics. Occasionally the Department offers courses dealing with the structures of particular (usually non-Indo-European) languages.
The Major in Linguistics is designed to provide students with foundational and advanced training in the core and specific focal areas of the discipline. Students can also pursue Concentrations in Applied Linguistics or Speech-Language Sciences. Applied Linguistics is a wide-ranging field involving career paths in a variety of areas including Second Language Teaching, Translation, Indigenous Studies, Language Policy Development and Machine Translation. The Concentration in Speech-Language Sciences is of most interest to students intending to enter graduate school in Speech-Language Pathology or Audiology. Students interested in these Concentrations should consult with the Undergraduate Advisor in the Department of Linguistics as soon as possible in their program so that a specific degree (Major/Minor, Double Major) and sequence of courses can be selected in accordance with the student's interests and goals and the requirements of the various programs and courses.
Any student who has declared a Linguistics Major is eligible to declare a Concentration in either Applied Linguistics or Speech-language Sciences.