Department of Linguistics

Contact Information: 
Campus Location: 1722 University Hall 
(312) 996-5218 
ling.uic.edu

Administration: 
Head and Director of Undergraduate Studies, Xuehua Xiang, xxiang@uic.edu

BA with a Major in Linguistics

The Major in Linguistics provides students with a comprehensive understanding of language, including its structure and use and the role that language plays in cognition, communication, and society. Combining theories and practical applications, the program aims to equip students with the skills to analyze language, understand the sociocultural context of language usage and change, and conduct research in various linguistic domains. The program also aims to develop critical thinking skills, foster cross-cultural understanding and communication skills, and promote interdisciplinary approaches to the study of language.

BS in Computer Science and Linguistics

The Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Linguistics is a collaborative program of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the College of Engineering designed to prepare students to pursue technical or professional careers in arts and sciences areas requiring a sound grounding in computer science. It is designed to meet an increasing demand for programming skills in various disciplines that include an aspect of language. This may include speech recognition, speech synthesis, machine-human interaction, narrative science/natural language generation, or more direct work with language analysis using computational tools, including documentation of indigenous languages, language learning, communication, and digital humanities and textual analyses.

Minor in Chinese

The Department of Linguistics offers coursework leading to the Minor in Chinese. It is aimed at students who wish to develop their language proficiency and cultural competence in Chinese. This minor is not intended for proficient native speakers of Mandarin Chinese.

Minor in Linguistics

The Department of Linguistics offers coursework leading to the Minor in Linguistics. The minor will engage students in the description and analysis of language structure, use, and learning. The minor will position students for further study in linguistics as well as for many careers in which critical thinking is required. Specifically, the minor provides knowledge and skills relevant for work in education, the teaching of English or other languages, the computer industry, translation and interpretation, language documentation, publishing and dictionary work, testing and assessment, government work, such as the foreign service, or consultant work in the fields of acting, advertising, law, or medicine.