AspiringLinguist

Wow, Cornell. You, sir, are a boss.

Do PhD/DPhil programs in the UK (for linguistics) ever provide funding for international students?

Phono, Very sorry to hear about that! Unbelievable. :\ I hope everything works out for you in the end.

Thanks. Not sure if I'll actually end up doing it... but it interests me.

Actually, I've been interested in computational linguistics, so I was happy to see this post answered. It wasn't for naught, afraymi.

Stats/credentials?

To put it simply, you most likely wouldn't receive funding.

Superb advice! Thank you again, Phonolog. I'm going to do readings on classical theory (e.g., De Saussure) to reinforce my knowledge of broad concepts... and then work my way up toward contemporary linguistics--trending articles and ongoing discussions. Hopefully, through auto-didactism, I'll be able to comfortably speak at an academic level with scholars in the field. (Also, Google Scholar is an excellent resource; I can't believe I overlooked it.) I think my GPA will be 3.6+, so that seems like a non-issue, luckily. I'll try. Maybe I'll email some professors... Hell, maybe I'll go to a symposium. I just need to make sure that I am confident enough with my knowledge of the field to approach these people.

First of all, I like that you said that you wish to devote your career to this - make sure that the graduate program in of itself is not the dream. Yeah. For me, grad school would just be a valuable means to an even more valuable end. [N]ever, and I mean never, use the word passion... Very good call. What is your personality like? Outgoing? Do you speak well? Is your appearance pleasant? I think I would be fine on all fronts. It means as an undergrad you can warm up to your profs like a graduate would. I wish. :\ The reality, though, is that all of the professors here do deal with graduate students in their own fields (since no one works exclusively in linguistics, as I noted before.) Interested in learning languages? Find out schools you would like to go to and find out the first language of some of the professors (often, not English). Good idea. take advantage of student symposia, professor access, and keep the grades up ... and most of all: READ EVERYTHING YOU EVER POSSIBLY COULD ABOUT LINGUISTICS Is there a list of literature somewhere that I should refer to? Any journals you would recommend? --- Phonolog, thank you so much for your response. Excellent tips! And moreover, congratulations on your acceptances! (Hopefully I'll be in the position that you're in one day.)

Thank you! Very helpful.

Thank you for your thoughtful response, zapster. I'll address all of the questions/points you posed: Can you demonstrate reasonable research experience - even if it is not closely connected to linguistics? I can try to do some independent research in linguistic anthropology (maybe ethnographic, if scheduling permits), since I could find advisors in that subject area at my university. Also, I am considering working on research regarding a subtopic of the sociology of language. Is it difficult to get published as an undergraduate? How much research should I aim for before I graduate? Any chances of an exchange program...? Well, exchange programs here tend to be conducted with international universities. Even though some of these universities have excellent linguistics departments, I would assume that their professors would not be able to get me connections in the United States--since they probably aren't in any close-knit US academic circles. And I don't want to get an international degree. Identify people you may like to work with early on, and write to them asking the same question... How early on? How do I go about contacting them? What would I say? Grab hold of visiting linguistic PhDs (if any) and follow up with them shamelessly My university unfortunately has none of these. *sob*

Hi, everybody! Background: I am a sophomore studying at a large research ("public ivy") university. I intend on double majoring in anthropology (with a focus on linguistic anthropology) and linguistics. My GPA is pretty high, but--as it stands--I lack experience when it comes to research that is closely connected with linguistics. I'll also note that my university does not have a linguistics department; rather, it has a linguistics program. This means that there are no linguistics PhD's teaching here--and hence, the linguistics major structures itself around a pretty interdisciplinary curriculum, involving a diverse range of fields, such as anthropology and psychology (as well as coursework in specific languages, obviously.) My Goal: As the title of this thread implies, I want to directly enroll in a doctoral program (MA/PhD) in linguistics after I acquire my undergraduate degree(s.) I have particular interests semantics, syntax, and sociolinguistics. I am fluent in English and German and have basic proficiency in French (I'm actively working on expanding my repertoire of languages.) And I would ultimately like to work in academia (as I'm sure most people who seek doctoral degrees in linguistics do.) The Obstacle: I recognize that gaining entry into graduate programs is difficult. I would be facing competition from people with Master's degrees who have serious research experience, publications, conference presentations, teaching positions, etc. Getting into a doctoral-level program in linguistics--especially a reputable one--is going to be a formidable task. As difficult as this path will be, it is my dream. I have a serious passion for language, and I want to devote the entirety of my academic and professional career to its study. That's why I'm here looking for some guidance from people who know what it takes. Questions: How do I stay competitive, aside from maintaining a high GPA and doing well on the GRE? Where/when/how should I get experience, given my current academic atmosphere (as I described it above)? How should I start preparing? Any tips/pointers? Thoughts/reflections? (If you think I ought to to clarify some details, let me know and I'll try to elaborate. Feel free to private message me!) Thank you.

I see this topic has somehow triggered a feud. Anyway, thanks for explaining some of the politics behind the two fields. I have a lot of deciding to do.

That's very interesting. I'm glad that this sort of method of analysis is related to sociology (since I need to connect my linguistics minor to it somehow.) Thanks!

What exactly is "conversation analysis" in sociology?