English Linguistics

The M.A. program English Linguistics provides a full understanding of current linguistics and a thorough training in the empirical methods used in linguistic research. The combination of empirical research with theoretical modeling is an internationally renowned hallmark of linguistics in Tübingen.

The core teaching of the M.A. program consists of the modules Descriptive Linguistics, Linguistic Methodology, Applied Linguistics, and Theoretical Linguistics. Students are introduced to current theoretical and empirical issues in class and deepen their knowledge in workgroups. The module Interdisciplinary Extensions adds expertise in forms of courses taken in other departments with which English Linguistics collaborates. In the module Practice, students can do a non-academic internship or get experience in academic teaching. Students benefit from the support of a structured program. For example, M.A. theses are written in three steps: students prepare and present their research question in the module Research I; they conduct an empirical study in the module Research II; they interpret and write up their results in the module Thesis and Exam.

Linguistic departments in Tübingen co-operate in Collaborative Research Centers (Sonderforschungsbereiche) since the 1990s. The current Collaborative Research Center 833 on the construction of meaning investigates how meaning arises in context, during linguistic processing, how it develops over time and how it varies across languages. The Research Training Group 1808 (DFG Graduiertenkolleg) on the topic of ambiguity in production and perception, offers interdisciplinary dissertation projects in linguistics, literary studies, psychology, law, theology, and rhetoric.