Oxford offers two Joint Degree courses that include Linguistics: Modern Languages & Linguistics, and Psychology, Philosophy & Linguistics. The Faculty of Linguistics, Philology & Phonetics lies at the heart of undergraduate Linguistics in Oxford. The Faculty has thriving units in General Linguistics and Phonetics, and has close links with the Faculty of Medieval & Modern Languages, the Faculty of Philosophy, and the Department of Experimental Psychology.
The linguistic and philological study of European Languages is a long-standing strength of the Faculty and is seen to best advantage in the joint degree course of Modern Languages & Linguistics. This course combines the different elements to give a mutually reinforcing package of theoretical study of what human language is and how it works and more detailed study of specific issues of language structure and change applied to the language you are studying. Students in Modern Languages who are not doing a joint degree with Linguistics may still choose one of more Linguistics papers, with a wide range of options available.
The Psychology, Philosophy & Linguistics course offers the opportunity to study language from a theoretical and experimental perspective, in the tradition of Cognitive Science. The Psychology & Linguistics joint course emphasises the experimental study of linguistic systems in the mind/brain. The Philosophy & Linguistics joint course emphasizes the theoretical understanding of language and connections between linguistics and the philosophical study of the mind/brain.
Information on how to apply is available at: Undergraduate admissions
From 2021 entry, there is no longer an admissions test for the Linguistics component of the degree. Information on the MLAT test for the Modern Languages & Linguistics degree is available here, and information on the TSA test for the Psychology, Philosophy & Linguistics degree is available here.
Courses
For both degree courses (Modern Languages & Linguistics, and Psychology, Philosophy & Linguistics) a portion of the course focuses on linguistics, where you will be introduced to the analysis of the nature and structure of human language. Topics include:
- the structure and history of languages
- how words are formed, how sentences are constructed, how we make and hear sounds, and how these sounds behave in particular languages
- how age, sex and social status affect language use
- how children learn to speak
- how languages change and how the same language can vary according to where it is spoken
- how words and sentences mean what they mean – and how they sometimes don’t mean what they seem to mean
- how language is used in literature, the media and by various social groups
- what happens to language abilities when the brain is damaged by stroke or injury
The reading list for the first year of the Linguistics course for both degrees is available here.
Open Days
For the Modern Languages & Linguistics degree (i.e. Linguistics with a Modern Language), we hold two open days per year in conjunction with the Faculty of Medieval and Modern Languages. The main open day, where you can find out more about linguistics and meet a tutor and student representatives, is held in April or May each year. A shorter open day, focusing mainly (but not exclusively) on the admissions process, is held every September. This coincides with open days in many of Oxford’s colleges so that you can find out about both the University and College side of being a student here.
Open days for Psychology, Philosophy & Linguistics are also held twice yearly, in conjunction with the Department of Experimental Psychology.
More information on Oxford’s Open Days, and a schedule for this year, is available here.
Modern Languages & Linguistics
This joint degree allows students to study one modern language alongside linguistics, the study of language itself. More information on the course, including a short video, is available from the course description on the Admissions website, together with information on entrance requirements and links to application materials.
The study of Linguistics constitutes half of this course. The other half of the course is in Modern Languages, giving you practical linguistic training and an extensive introduction to the literature and thought of the European language you have chosen. More information about the Modern Languages component of the degree is available on the Modern Languages website.
Psychology, Philosophy & Linguistics
In this joint degree in Psychology, Philosophy, & Linguistics, you can apply for admission to read any pair of the three subjects to start with. Subject to college approval, you may be permitted to study all three after two terms, or you may continue with your choice of two subjects. The range of topics in linguistics in this degree is not materially different from those in the Modern Languages & Linguistics degree, except that PPL students are not required to study the linguistics of specific European languages. For more details, including a short video, visit the admissions website for the course. Additional information is available on the PPL page in the Department of Experimental Psychology.
Linguistics options in other degrees
A number of options in Linguistics, Philology and Phonetics are offered as part of different degree courses, in various subjects such as: English, Classics, Human Sciences, Modern Languages, and the various joint degrees.
