Undergraduate Program
General Information
The Department of Linguistics offers undergraduate majors and minors in:
- Linguistics (major and minor)
- Signed Language Interpreting (major)
- American Sign Language Minor
- Navajo (Diné) Language (minor)
Linguistics Department Undergraduate Advisors:
Linguistics
Dawn Nordquist
Please email for appointment: nordquis@unm.edu
Signed Language Interpreting
Erin Wilkinson
Please email for appointment: ewilkins@unm.edu
Navajo Language Program
Melvatha Chee
Please email for appointment: mchee@unm.edu
The Arts and Sciences Advisement Center can assist you in managing your degree requirements. Visit their website to make an appointment.
The Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures offers a major in Languages. For information on this program of study, please visit their website.
Major Study Requirements
B.A. in Linguistics
The B.A. major in Linguistics requires a minimum of 30 hours numbered 300 and above (18 in required courses, 12 in approved electives) and completion of a fourth semester language course (e.g., SPAN 202, NVJO 202, SIGN 310) or the equivalent. Required courses are: LING 301, 302 or 303, 304, 322, 331, 367. The remaining 12 hours come from focus area course work.
Starting in the Fall
| Fall Semester I | Spring Semester I | Fall Semester II | Spring Semester II |
|---|---|---|---|
| 301 | 322 | 331 | 304 or 367 |
| 303 | 304 or 367 | Start Focus Area Coursework | Continue with Focus Area Coursework |
Starting in the Spring
| Spring Semester I | Fall Semester I | Spring Semester II | Fall Semester II | Spring Semester III |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 301 | 322 | 304 | Start Focus Area Coursework | Continue Focus Area Coursework |
| 303 | 331 | 367 |
Focus Areas: Choose 12 hours from one focus area, or 6 hours from two focus areas listed below.
Bilingualism, Language Acquisition & Cognition:
- Child Language (LING 460)
- Childhood Bilingualism (LING 462)
- Experimental Psycholinguistics (LING 469L)
- Structure of American Sign Language (SIGN 305)
- Language and Culture in the Deaf Community, Part 1 (SIGN 352)
Language Documentation & Revitalization:
- Language Documentation (LING 411)
- Morphosyntax (LING 412)
- Field Methods (LING 413)
- Native American Languages (LING 415)
- Typology and Universals (LING 417)
Linguistic Diversity, Variation & Use:
- Language & Gender (LING 334)
- Language & Culture (LING 359/ANTH 318)
- Typology & Universals (LING 417)
- Semantic Analysis (LING 425)
- Discourse Analysis (LING 429)
- Sociolinguistic Variation (LING 433)
- Language Contact (LING 435)
- Introduction to Language Change (LING 446)
Navajo Linguistics:
- Language and Culture (LING 359/ANTH 318)
- Native American Languages (LING 415)
- Navajo Verb System I (NVJO 311)
- Navajo Verb System II (NVJO 312)
- Navajo Linguistics (NVJO 401)
A second major in Linguistics requires 24 hours of linguistics courses at the 300/400 level: 18 required credit hours (LING 301, 302 or 303, 304, 322, 331, 367) and 6 additional credit hours selected from a focus area.
The following is the list of basic courses offered by the Linguistics Department
Information in parentheses shows how often the course is normally offered.
- 2110 Introduction to the Study of Language. (Every semester)
- 2996 Special Topics in Current Language Issues. (Occasionally)
- 301 Introduction to Linguistic Analysis. (Formerly Ling 292) (Every semester)
- 302 Phonetic Analysis. Prerequisite: 301 (Spring)
- 303 Introduction to Phonetics. (Fall)
- 304/504 Phonological Analysis. Prerequisites: 301 and either 302 or 303. (Spring)
- 322/522 Grammatical Analysis. Prerequisite: 301 or SIGN 305 or SPAN 351. (Spring)
- 331/531 Language in Society. Prerequisite: An introductory linguistics course. (Fall)
- 334/534 Language and Gender. (Occasionally)
- 359/559 Language and Culture. Prerequisite: An introductory linguistics course. (Every semester)
- 367/567 Psychology of Language. Prerequisite: 2110 or 301 or ANTH1155 or introductory Psychology course. (Spring)
- 412/512 Morphosyntax. Prerequisite: 322 (once a year)
- 425/525 Semantic Analysis. Prerequisite: 301 or SIGN 305 or SPAN 351 (once a year)
- 429/529 Discourse Analysis. Prerequisite: 322 (once a year)
- 446 Introduction to Language Change. Prerequisites: 304 and 322 (once a year)
- 460/560 Child Language. Prerequisites: LING 367 or PSYC 324 or PSYC 360 or PSYC 367 (once a year)
- 462/562 Childhood Bilingualism. Pre/Coreq: one of the following: LING 301, SPAN 351 LING 303 (once a year)
Minor Study Requirements
The minor in Linguistics requires at least 21 hours of linguistics courses numbered above 300 or above: 12 required credit hours (LING 301, 302 or 303, 304, 322) and 9 additional credit hours selected from courses in linguistics or from other departments which are approved by the department advisor. For information about the minor in Navajo, please see the page for the Navajo (Diné) Program.
Departmental Honors
Undergraduates seeking departmental honors in the Department of Linguistics should identify a research project during the junior year in consultation with an appropriate professor/mentor and should submit a proposal in the form of a letter to the department chair.
If the proposal is approved by the department chair, the student should enroll in LING 498 the first semester of the senior year and LING 499 the second semester of the senior year. These six hours of honors work are in addition to the minimum number of hours required for the major.
Shared-Credit Undergraduate/Graduate Degrees Program
Juniors or seniors majoring or minoring in Linguistics may seek admission to the Shared-Credit Undergraduate/Graduate Degrees Program. This program enables well-qualified students to complete a BA and MA more rapidly and at lower cost than if both degrees were done separately. This is achieved by allowing some course credits to be counted towards the requirements of both degrees. For full information on this program, please see the Shared-Credit Undergraduate/Graduate Degrees Program Manual.
If you are enrolled in the College of Arts & Sciences and have declared a major or a minor in Linguistics, you may be eligible for the Shared-Credit Program. The requirements are:
- Your overall UNM GPA is 3.0 or above.
- Your GPA in Linguistics courses is 3.5 or above.
- A Linguistics faculty member is willing to nominate you for the Program.
- You should have completed at least two of the four courses that are prerequisites for the MA Program. These are:
- Ling 301 Introduction to Linguistic Analysis
- Ling 302 Phonetic Analysis or Ling 303 Introduction to Phonetics
- Ling 304 Phonological Analysis
- Ling 322 Grammatical Analysis
It is recommended that students seek admission to this program during their junior year. In order to apply to the program, students are nominated by or may seek nomination from a Linguistics faculty member and submit a one page application along with unofficial transcripts for review by March 31 for Fall admission and October 31 for Spring admission. Students admitted to the Shared-Credit program are not automatically admitted to the MA program and must also apply to the MA program. Students in the Shared-Credit program who are admitted to the MA program must continue directly from the BA to the MA without deferral in order for courses completed during the BA to be counted toward the MA.
