Engage with the language myths and ideologies active in the U.S. to discover how language is one of the last socially acceptable forms of discrimination, and learn the key aspects of the linguistic system that support a positive perspective on linguistic diversity.
What You’ll Study in the Bachelor’s Degree in Linguistics
Enter the captivating world of linguistics and learn to decode the intricacies of human communication. Study how languages work, create social relationships, and impact fields from evolutionary biology to artificial intelligence. Build the critical thinking and qualitative analysis skills essential for success at Reed and beyond with our bachelor of arts in linguistics.
Roadmap to the Linguistics BA at Reed
With its focus on language as a unique facet of human nature, linguistics bridges the divide between the cognitive sciences, social sciences, humanities, mathematics, logic, and philosophy. Take courses from the expert professors in our linguistics department, and complete language requirements and allied field classes to explore how languages vary across time and cultures.
Year One
Start Your Academic Journey
Explore the breadth of courses at Reed during your first year. Take your first linguistics class or explore options in allied fields, such as anthropology, mathematics, and psychology. You can also start to take courses for your foreign language requirement, choosing between Chinese, German, Latin, and more.
Finally, take Humanities 110, a yearlong course in which you study cultures and identities throughout history, engaging in rigorous intellectual inquiry and spirited debate. Through this cornerstone program, you are prepared for the serious academic work that happens at Reed.
Year Two
Gain Research Experience
Complete Introduction to Linguistic Analysis and Introduction to Sociolinguistics Patterns and declare your linguistics major. Decide which allied field you want to focus on and take additional courses.
You can also start looking into research opportunities on and off campus, especially for the summer months. Partner with your professors and contribute to their ongoing projects, or find outside opportunities. At Reed College, we offer scholarships and grants to support your research endeavors, enabling you to delve deeper into your studies.
Year Three
Learn on Campus and Beyond
Continue your exploration of linguistics by enrolling in advanced courses, such as Dialects of English or Language, Sex, Gender, and Sexuality. These classes and others will prepare you to take and pass the junior qualifying examination.
As a linguistics major, you can study abroad during your third year in countries such as Argentina, France, and Turkey. Through this immersive experience, develop a more nuanced understanding of language's role in shaping societies.
Year Four
Showcase Your Knowledge and Research Skills
Conduct research to complete your senior thesis. Work closely with one of your professors, who acts as your thesis adviser. Combine all you’ve learned from your linguistics, allied field, and language courses in this capstone project.
By the time you graduate, you’ll have a firm grasp of crucial linguistics concepts and honed the skills necessary to analyze languages. Our program cultivates your research abilities so you can conduct quantitative and qualitative analyses and effectively communicate your findings through writing and presentations. These experiences will propel you toward a wide range of career opportunities.
Why Study Linguistics at Reed College?
Exceptional Program and Course Options
Linguistics at Reed has an interdisciplinary orientation: through the allied field and language requirements, you’ll naturally cross traditional academic boundaries. Led by our three expert faculty members, you'll be introduced to formal analysis to study syntax, intonation, sociolinguistics, and more.
Reed professors teach all our linguistics courses, which cover fascinating areas, such as linguistic discrimination, experimental phonetics and phonology, quantitative analysis, and field methods. Additionally, our department periodically offers classes on the structure of lesser-known language families and regions, such as Austronesia.
Lab of Linguistics
Gather data and experiment in the cutting-edge research environment of Reed’s Lab of Linguistics (LoL). Equipped with a state-of-the-art sound booth, recording equipment, and data collection tools, the LoL provides a dedicated space for you to participate in research.
Access the resources and support needed to develop essential research skills, from making recordings and conducting interviews to running experiments for your thesis.
My Favorite Courses
Linguistics 220 - Language and Discrimination in the United States
Linguistics 321 - Phonology
Examine the connection between how we perceive language sounds and the actual sounds themselves. Explore how words and rules of grammar form in light of current linguistic research.
Linguistics 328 - Morphosyntactic Typology
Explore potential universal features of language, based on the comparative study of the morphology and syntax of the languages of the world. Study languages spanning Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia, Australia, and Oceania, and delve into intriguing topics like parts of speech, word order, and case marking.
Careers for Linguistics BA Graduates
Reed linguistics majors have the research and critical thinking skills to pursue a range of careers, including the following:
- Biomedical research assistant, Center for Spoken Language Understanding
- Designer, Cormius
- Director of programs and community relations, Communitas America
- Field instructor, Second Nature Wilderness Family Therapy
- Linguistic consultant, at Arrival
- Linguistic data specialist, QuillBot
- Network security lead, Intel
- NLP research scientist, Nuance+Microsoft
Graduate Schools Attended by Reed Linguistics Alumni
With their strong academic skills, graduates of Reed’s linguistics major enroll at many prestigious universities, including:
- Columbia University
- Georgetown University
- University of California, Berkeley
- University of California, Los Angeles
- University of Chicago
- University of Oregon
- University of Washington
Linguistic Diversity at Reed
Do you ever feel like you don’t fit in because of the way you speak? You’re not alone. Learn about the Reed Linguistic Diversity Project (RLDP), which combats linguistic bias on campus.
