Linguistics and Communication Sciences (Research)
Whenever we use language – whether it’s written, spoken or signed – we’re communicating. How does this work, and how and why does miscommunication occur? How does language fit together and how do we learn to understand each other?
Something for you?
- You'll develop a unique professional profile by specialising in an area that meets your interests and research ambitions.
- You’ll gain substantial hands-on research experience during two lab rotations.
- Radboud University has excellent facilities for doing research.
The Research Master’s programme in Linguistics and Communication Sciences offers a multidisciplinary perspective on how the fields of linguistics and communication studies complement one another. This approach is unique in the Netherlands. This Research Master’s programme focuses strongly on empirical research. You’ll study language in real-life situations and use your observations to develop possible theories. Later, you’ll test these theories against everyday reality. In this way, you’ll discover the richness of both language and communication and be well prepared to conduct original research on language-related issues. This programme is initially intended to prepare its students for a career in research, in particular for PhD positions, although other career options in the fields of Linguistics and/or Communication Sciences are also open to you.
Students of the research Master’s in Linguistics and Communication Sciences must take the following components. For both the research and research-associated components, students are free to choose their subject matter, allowing them to tailor the programme to their own academic and professional interests. There is a total of 78 EC of fixed components, 30 EC in specialisation courses and 12 EC in skills and methods electives.
Your admission to this programme depends on your previous education. You are admissible if you have a completed Bachelor's degree from a Research University, in:
- Linguistics;
- Communication Studies;
- a modern language or a related area.
The Admission Board will determine if an international student has the required knowledge to be admitted.
This research Master’s aims to train students to become skilled empirical linguists with a deep understanding of language and communication. By the end of the programme you’ll
- Have acquired empirical research skills at an advanced level, including a thorough understanding of approaches and techniques that support corpus-based, experimental, and computational research;
- Be able to describe and apply general knowledge on the historical roots and modern developments within the fields of Linguistics and Communication Studies, and are capable of relating these fields to each other;
- Have become a specialist in a certain area within the fields of linguistics and communication studies: the start of your professional profile;
- Be able to engage in the social debates regarding linguistics and communication issues.
- Have acquired English academic writing skills and have practiced writing a publishable scholarly article and a proposal for a PhD project;
- Have started to build up a professional (inter)national network.
Academia and beyond
The primary goal of the programme is academic training, which makes it ideal for those wishing to embark on a research career, for example by taking a PhD. But it also caters for the growing demand from the public and private sectors for people with academic insight and research skills. Many graduates will join research groups in the public and private sector. These may address a wide range of topics such as advanced Internet and enhancing professional communication in an international context.
