Linguistics Graduate Degrees

• M.A. in Applied Linguistics
• Master of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages
• Online TEFL Certificate
• Graduate Courses & Resources
• Scholarships & Financial Support
• TESOL Endorsement for Teachers

The Linguistics Department at Ohio University offers a Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics with a strong theoretical foundation. The program prepares students to become professional teachers of English to speakers of other languages, as well as to join other professions specializing in the study and interpretation of language.

In addition, the department offers four non-European languages: Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian, and Swahili; and it trains future teachers of these languages.

All graduate students take a basic core of linguistics courses and pedagogical courses, including a teaching practicum requirement. A supervised thesis is an option.

Core courses include Phonetics and Phonology, Syntax, Semantics and Pragmatics, Sociolinguistics, Second Language Acquisition Research and Theory, Methods and Materials in TEFL, Assessing Language Abilities, Introduction to CALL, Reading and Writing Pedagogy, Grammar in Use, and Pedagogical Phonology.

Elective courses include Syntactic Description of English, Psycholinguistics, Research Practicum, Historical Linguistics, CALL Research, and selected courses from other departments. Various (paid) part-time positions also are available to give students an opportunity to gain professional experience in other teaching settings, including reading and listening lab tutorials, teaching English for children and nonacademic adults, curriculum development, and program administration.

An online certificate in Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) is also offered for individuals planning on teaching English overseas. (This certificate is it valid for teaching English in American public schools.)

The department has a strong record of preparing students for Ph.D. study elsewhere. Approximately one-fourth to one-third of the M.A. graduates go on to advanced study at some time in their careers, and they are admitted to top-ranked theoretical and applied programs in universities in America and other countries.