Turkish Linguistics?

[mrs12]

Hello,

 

I'm hoping one of you lovelies has a bit of advice or expertise for me! I'm currently studying Turkish Studies as a BA, and I'm considering all of my options for Grad School. I'm leaning towards wanting to teach Turkish as a foreign language, and thus I'm trying to figure out if any schools out there actually offer courses on Turkish Linguistics? 

 

I've looked at Chicago University, which claims that you can get a PhD in Turkish/Ottoman Language with a focus on linguistics, but then they don't seem to actually offer classes that you'd take for that focus. I know a few other schools do some dabbling in Turkic Linguistics, but I'm primarily interested in Turkish itself right now.

 

Have any of you heard anything or seen anything? What do you think about studying Linguistics to get into teaching that language? 

[fuzzylogician]

My main question would be what you hope to do after you graduate. Would it be teaching at a high school? At a university? I am afraid I can't think of too many opportunities for teaching Turkish myself (but, I am also not an expert). My advice would be to first identify the kinds of positions -- or perhaps even the precise positions -- that you would like to hold after graduation. Then familiarize yourself with the kind of teachers they hire: what are their credentials? You want to have the same credentials as the people who are currently holding the jobs that you might want to have. I don't know if that's concentrating on Turkish studies or on general linguistics, but if I had to guess I would say that a more applied route and a teaching certificate is probably a better bet than a general linguistics program.

[mrs12]

Mhm, Turkish is becoming more of a language now in college settings, though it is possible to teach it in High School if you go abroad to Turkey and look at some of the international student schools there. I'd be looking to teach either at University or in the government, both of which require a degree in Turkish Studies or Linguistics. Ideally I'd like to find a school that offers classes in Turkish linguistics and have my actual degree be something along the lines of NELC, Middle Eastern Studies, or Turkish Studies, depending on how they classify their majors.