Applied Linguistics Honours

Offered by: Faculty of Arts
Convenor: Dr Johanna Rendle-Short (Sem 1)

Applied Linguistics Honours Advisor: Dr Phil Rose

Administration: School of Language Studies

Admission requirements
Honours in Applied Linguistics requires:
(a) completion of the BA pass degree requirements; including
(b) a minimum of 10 approved courses totalling at least 60 units.

Students must attain at the very least a high Credit average in these 10 courses as well as some Distinctions to be considered for admission.

In Honours in Applied Linguistics, students concentrate on the many areas in which linguistic knowledge can be applied, for example in language teaching, language learning, language planning, language maintenance, or forensic phonetics.

Students are formally admitted into Honours in the Applied Linguistics Program only in the fourth year. However, the Program invites students to consider doing honours on the basis of their first year marks. Intending honours students should therefore plan the second and third years of their course carefully so as to make sure that they qualify for admission to fourth-year honours, and to decide whether they will do Honours in Linguistics or Applied Linguistics. Students are advised to make an appointment with the honours coordinator and Honours Advisor to discuss their options. The prerequisite courses for entry to fourth-year honours are set out below.

Approved courses for Honours in Applied Linguistics:
Students should normally have taken 10 courses (i.e. at least 60 units worth) from Lists A and B above under 'Major in Applied Linguistics'. They must also have satisfied the requirements for the Applied Linguistics Major (q.v.). This means that their 10 courses must include LING1001/2001 Introduction to the Study of Language and at least one of the 'basic three' core courses - List A:
LING1010/LING2010 Phonetics: Sounds of the World's Languages
LING2003 Introduction to Syntax
LING2008 Semantics

Note: Students who have taken LING1004/2004 Phonetics and Phonology can substitute this one course for LING1010/LING2010 Phonetics: Sounds of the World's Languages.

Also compulsory for entrance into Applied Linguistics Honours is the course LING3009 Research Design in (Applied) Linguistics. This course can be taken as part of your fourth year.

Finally, at least one course must be chosen from the following list of Applied Linguistics courses:
LING2013 Teaching Languages
LING2101 Second Language Acquisition
LING3011 Conversation Analysis
LING3021 Children's Language Acquisition

For other courses that may be included in the Applied Linguistics Honours, please see the list of additional courses in the Applied Linguistics major.

It is important that prospective honours students consult with the designated honours coordinator at least once a year, to discuss their choice of courses and ensure that they are recommended to the Faculty for entry to fourth-year honours when the time comes.

Honours year work:

In their Honours year, students normally take three Linguistics courses as their coursework component, and write a substantial sub-thesis reporting the results of their own research. Both Thesis and coursework count equally (i.e. 50%) to their final mark. All fourth-year honours coursework is assessed at fourth-year (i.e. postgraduate) level.

An early start is very important to successful completion of honours. As soon as, or even before, they finish the requirements of their pass degree, they should consult with the honours coordinator to determine a sub-thesis topic and supervisor.

Combined honours:
It is possible to combine honours in Applied Linguistics with honours in a language offered by either the Faculty of Arts or the Faculty of Asian Studies, as well as with a number of other disciplines, for example Political Science or International Relations. Prerequisites for entry to fourth year for combined honours in the Arts Faculty are as follows. The student must have completed a total of 8 courses in each of the two relevant subjects, including at least a major in each discipline area and possibly certain specified overlapping courses. Their choice of Applied Linguistics courses must be consistent with either the general or applied stream as set out above.

Interested students are asked to consult the honours coordinators of both Programs from their second year and have their topic and program formally approved. The fourth year should involve coursework in both discipline areas and a sub-thesis combining aspects of both disciplines, which is supervised and examined by staff from both Programs. The exact structure and the weighting of the various components is negotiated between the two relevant programs.

Courses Offered in 2009

LING4105F Applied Linguistics IV Honours (full time)
LING4105P Applied Linguistics IV Honours (part time)

Graduate Studies
The Graduate Program in Linguistics offers the following courses. For details see the Graduate School website.
Graduate Diploma in Arts (specialising in Linguistics)
Graduate Diploma in Applied Linguistics
Graduate Diploma in Translation Studies
Master of Translation Studies
Master of Applied Linguistics (by coursework and research)
Master of Linguistics (by coursework and research)
Master of Philosophy (by research only)
Doctor of Philosophy

Go to the List of Undergraduate Courses offered by Faculty of Arts.