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Our MA Applied Linguistics is designed for people who want to know more about how foreign or second languages (particularly English) are learned, and how different kinds of classroom practice might affect proficiency. You will learn about different approaches to understanding language and language acquisition, and we will teach you the methods that can be used to investigate language learning and teaching.
All students take modules that deal with Language Learning, and the Methods used for investigating language learning/teaching. You choose module options to build a customised course that directly meets your individual needs. Examples of options that are currently available are Second Language Vocabulary: Learning, Teaching and Use; The Role of Age in Bilingual Development; Teaching and Learning Grammar; Foundations of CALL; Literature and Language Teaching; and Individual Differences in L2 learning. You will also write a dissertation on a topic of your choice. This is written between April and September.
If you want to develop your understanding of language and language acquisition then this course is for you. You will improve your skills in researching, research design and essay writing. Our MA Applied Linguistics can lead you to a variety of careers including academia, journalism, teaching and public speaking.
Please note that this course is also available on a part-time basis.
Why study MA Applied Linguistics at Essex?
Our Department of Language and Linguistics offers you an outstanding teaching and research environment. In the 2012 Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey we received 87 percent overall satisfaction. At Essex you will experience a stimulating, but informal environment giving you many possibilities to pursue your own interests.
In the most recent Research Assessment Exercise (RAE, December 2008), we were rated as producing the highest proportion of world-leading linguistics research of any university in the UK. This means you will be taught, supported and supervised by staff with an international reputation for being at the forefront of research in a wide range of areas. We provide you with the ideal environment for your studies. We have a strong research group culture and run a weekly Departmental Seminar, which regularly features eminent outside speakers.
Our facilities
As a student on this course you will be able to take advantage of our extensive learning resources, including laboratories of networked computers. You will have access to our Albert Sloman Library which has a vast range of books and journals as well as more networked computers. Our Linguistics resource centre has four labs which will enhance your study.
These encompass; a Eye tracking lab allowing you to monitor eye movement while performing tasks, a Psycholinguistics lab measuring how long it takes to react to words, texts and sounds, a Visual World Experimental lab recording response times and eye movements when presented with pictures and videos and a Linguistics lab which has specialist equipment to analyse sound.
Career destinationsGiven the breadth of our provision within our Department of Language and Linguistics, career prospects for our graduates vary depending on the study undertaken. For example, many of our MA courses connect you with careers in computing, language disorders/speech therapy and management.
From most of our taught courses there is a natural progression to PhD study, using the research training in your MA. Often the career destination is university lecturing or research. Given the interdisciplinary nature of the areas of linguistics we cover, this could be in departments of English, linguistics, education, sociology or even cognitive science. Other careers our postgraduates have gone on to, where the generic skills they acquired with us are also valued, include publishing, social work, administration, retail and public speaking.
Your employability
A postgraduate qualification is a major achievement and greatly valued by employers. Recent surveys show that higher degree graduates are more likely to obtain jobs at professional or managerial level and less likely to be unemployed. For some jobs a postgraduate qualification may be essential, for others it offers a competitive edge. Our graduates go into a variety of jobs, where the key employability skills and knowledge they have gained through postgraduate study are put to good use.
Our Languages for All programme lets you study a language, alongside your course, at no extra cost. You can take one of 50 taught language modules on a part-time day-time basis, or undertake flexible web-based learning, or opt for a language module taught in the evening. As employers can struggle to find graduates able to speak more than one language, Languages for All places Essex graduates in a very advantageous position.
If you achieve your Masters, you may wish to extend your knowledge with a research degree and many who graduate from Essex choose to stay here for research study. Some of our Masters may be taken as the first part of an Integrated PhD, leading to your PhD after a further three years of full-time study.
Support for postgraduates
Our University has a range of support services designed to help you to achieve your full potential and get the most out of your studies. These form a co-ordinated network of support, and are an important part of your overall student experience at Essex.
Our staff operate an 'open door' policy so are available to discuss any concerns with you throughout the year.
Research study opportunities
Within our Department of Language and Linguistics, we offer supervision for PhD and MPhil. Comprising 24 academic staff, we offer teaching and research supervision in: language acquisition, language learning and language teaching; culture and communication; psycholinguistics; language disorders; sociolinguistics; and theoretical and descriptive linguistics.
A Masters course is an academically rigorous programme during which you explore your subject in depth, reaching a high level of specialist knowledge. You draw on knowledge and skills from your undergraduate study or your professional life to produce work of a high academic standard, informed by current thinking and debate.
A full-time Masters course lasts for twelve months, starting in October, and consists of taught modules during your autumn and spring terms, and normally a research-based dissertation or other project-based work submitted in September. A part-time Masters course lasts for 24 months, normally starting in October, and consists of taught modules spread out over two years, with normally a research-based dissertation or other project-based work submitted in September of the second year. Each of the taught modules you take in the Department of Language and Linguistics counts for 15 credits. The total credit weighting for a Masters course is 180: 120 for taught modules and 60 for the MA dissertation. (If you are from the EU, then our Masters courses are regarded as second-cycle qualifications under the Bologna Declaration and consist of 90 ECTS credits).
ModulesCore modules
* Ma Dissertation
Compulsory modules
* Assignment Writing And Dissertation Preparation
* Language Learning
* Research Methods I
* Research Methods Ii
Optional modules
* Foundations Of Computer Assisted Language Learning
* Foundations Of Intercultural And Professional Communication
* Graduate Research Assignment
* Individual Differences In L2 Learning
* Introduction To English Language Teaching Methodology 1
* Introduction To English Language Teaching Methodology 2
* Introduction To Teaching English For Academic Purposes
* Literature And Language Teaching
* Materials Design And Evaluation
* Second Language Acquisition And Linguistics Theory
* Second Language Vocabulary: Learning, Teaching And Use
* Teaching And Learning Grammar
* Teaching English To Young Learners: Principles And Practice
* Teaching, Listening And Speaking
* The Role Of Age In Bilingual Development
Core modules must be taken and passed.
Core with options modules selected from limited lists must be taken and passed.
Compulsory modules must be taken.
Compulsory with options modules selected from limited lists must be taken.
Optional modules are selected from course specific lists.
Scholarship We offer many funding opportunities to support students, including a broad range of University of Essex scholarships, bursaries and research council funding to awards funded by charities and other external organisations.
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