Linguistics

The master's degree requires the completion, with a B average or better, of nine courses in linguistics. All students are required to take Linguistics 200A, 200B, 200C and two of 201A, 201B, 201C. Students also must take one course chosen from Linguistics 204C, 209A, 213A, 213B, 213C, 217, or 236. The remaining three courses must be chosen from Linguistics 201A, 201B, 201C, 202 through 209C, 211 through 216, 218, 219, 239, 244, 104, 111 or 140. All second-year students must take Linguistics 444.

The following undergraduate courses or the equivalent are prerequisite to graduate courses in the corresponding areas: Linguistics 103, 110, 120A, and 120B. Linguistics 103, or an examination in practical phonetics, must be completed with a grade of B or better as a prerequisite to Linguistics 210A, a required course for the doctoral degree that may be taken at the pre-master's degree level.

It is strongly recommended, but not required, that students take Linguistics 210A and 210B during the second year of study.

A student may petition to apply up to a maximum of two courses toward the master's degree that were completed with grades of B or better at institutions outside the University of California and not used toward another degree.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

The capstone plan is only for students who will be receiving a terminal degree. After completing the required courses and the foreign language examination, the student must pass a comprehensive examination administered by a committee of the faculty. The committee, consisting of four members, is appointed by the chair. This examination is normally an oral examination, general in scope, and results in a terminal master's degree. Requirements for receiving a master's degree include the filing of a petition for advancement to candidacy form early in the quarter during which the student expects to receive the degree.

Thesis Plan

Every master's degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research.

The thesis plan is the normal option and is required for all students who are continuing on for the doctoral degree. After completing the required courses for the master's degree and the foreign language examination, the student submits a thesis based on original research to a thesis committee for approval. For students who wish to be considered for advancement into the doctoral program, copies of the thesis, complete and clearly legible but not necessarily in final form, must be given to the committee and the student affairs officer at least two weeks before the last day of classes of the quarter. Requirements for receiving a master's degree include the filing of a petition for advancement to candidacy form early in the quarter during which the student expects to receive the degree. The thesis must be prepared in accord with formatting standards set by the University; information on these is available on the Graduate Division website.

By petition to the department chair, students may request one additional quarter of time to complete the master's thesis. Justification for this additional quarter includes time needed to conduct fieldwork or experimental work. Leaves of absence may also be considered.

If earlier graduate work was done at UCLA, admission into the doctoral program is considered on the basis of the following: (1) completion of all requirements for the master's degree and (2) the faculty's evaluation of the quality of the master's thesis and of overall work and promise.

Time-to-Degree

Six quarters is considered the normative time to the master's degree (excluding pre-approved quarters required to make up deficiency courses, to complete field work/experimental work, and approved medical leave of absence). All students must complete the master's degree requirements and be considered by faculty vote for further advancement through the program. Students who are not considered for admission to the doctoral program by the end of seven quarters are required to take an oral comprehensive examination and a terminal master's degree, or are recommended for dismissal from the program for insufficient progress to degree.

MAXIMUM TTD

Advising

Students are required to formally nominate a doctoral committee prior to the oral qualifying examination. The chair of the doctoral committee is the primary adviser at this stage, and provides intellectual guidance and advice in the student's area of interest. Students are encouraged to consult the department's director of graduate studies at any time and for any academic advice or purpose.

All students also undergo an annual evaluation at the end of the academic year, and are notified of the results.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Students may specialize in syntax, semantics, phonology, phonetics, language change, typology, neurolinguistics, psycholinguistics, computational linguistics, and many language areas, notably African languages and American Indian languages. Other specializations may be possible, depending on the availability of faculty expertise.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

To receive the doctoral degree, students are required to take 36 units of graduate course work beyond the master's degree requirements. Normative time to complete these 36 units is by the end of the 10th quarter of graduate study. These units must include Linguistics 210A, 210B, and eight units in an area distinct from that of the student's major area of concentration. The 36 units may not include Linguistics 275 (colloquium), any 300- or 400-level course, 597, or 599. Of the 36 units, no more than 12 units may be in Linguistics 596A. A maximum of four two-unit seminars may be included in the 36 units.

In the tenth quarter of doctoral study, students are required to meet in a dissertation prospectus meeting with the appointed doctoral committee to discuss the topic of the dissertation research, and the background necessary to pursue it. A written prospectus of the dissertation is to be submitted to the doctoral committee, with a copy for the departmental file, at least one month prior to this meeting. Following the meeting, the doctoral committee is to report, via a departmental form, to the department that the filed prospectus is satisfactory, and that the student has completed the required 36 units of post-master's course work.

Students who fail to provide an approved prospectus and/or complete the required 36 units of post-master's course work by the end of the tenth quarter may not be eligible for departmental teaching assistantships or fellowships.

At some point in time, some of the results of the student's research must be presented at a meeting of the Department of Linguistics Colloquium. This presentation is a requirement for the degree.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

In order to be advanced to candidacy, the student is required to prepare and submit one substantive research paper.

The University Oral Qualifying Examination is administered by the doctoral committee. Students must satisfactorily complete this examination and advance to candidacy no later than the tenth quarter of graduate study. This examination may coincide with the prospectus meeting.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy and awarded the Candidate in Philosophy (C.Phil.) degree upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)

Not required for students in the program. The decision as to whether a defense is required is made by the doctoral committee.

Time-to-Degree

Full-time students with no deficiencies upon admission to graduate study in the department should be able to complete requirements for the doctoral degree in 15 academic quarters (five calendar years). The normative time-to-degree cannot be changed, but accrued time may be adjusted to allow time for students to make up deficiencies and for leave of absence. The absolute time limit for the doctoral degree from the first quarter of graduate study in the department, including leaves of absence or interruptions of any kind, is seven calendar years.

In addition, there are departmental policies that link progress through the program to financial support. These policies are based on the normative times for advancement through the program, not on the absolute limits mentioned above.

MAXIMUM TTD

Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

A student who does not complete the M.A. degree in seven quarters, excluding quarters needed to make up deficiencies and quarters of approved leave of absence, is subject to a recommendation for termination. Any student who has not completed the M.A. degree in three years and one quarter is subject to a recommendation for termination. A student who completes the M.A. degree but who is denied admission into the Ph.D. program will not be permitted to continue to register beyond the end of the academic year in which the M.A. degree is awarded.

UCLA is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and by numerous special agencies. Information regarding the University's accreditation may be obtained from the Office of Academic Planning and Budget, 2107 Murphy Hall.