• UNM Catalog 2020-2021
• >Colleges
• >College of Education
• >Educational Linguistics
• >Graduate Program

Graduate Program

Student Information Contact
Debra Schaffer
Hokona Hall, Room 140
(505) 277-0437
schaffer@unm.edu

Application materials and degree program information

Graduate Studies application link

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Degree Offered

• Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Linguistics (Ph.D.)

The department of Language, Literacy and Sociocultural Studies (LLSS) in the College of Education and the Department of Linguistics in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of New Mexico offer a multidisciplinary program leading to the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Educational Linguistics. Educational Linguistics faculty from across the university share an understanding of the influence of communities and educational contexts on language learning. The program supports a variety of interrelated interests, such as language maintenance and language revitalization, language policy and planning, bilingualism, Spanish as a heritage language, English as a Second/Foreign Language, and issues of assessment. Communities and languages of the Southwest and signed languages are of particular interest.

Application Deadline
The deadline for Ph.D. candidates is December 1, for admittance for the following Fall semester. Applications to the doctoral program are reviewed shortly after this deadline.

Entrance Requirements
M.S. or M.A. in Education, Linguistics or complementary field.

Exit Requirements
72 credit hours of coursework beyond B.A., plus 18 credit hours of dissertation.

Program Requirements

The program of studies for each student is tailored by the individual in consultation with his/her faculty advisor and Committee on Studies, and is approved by the Committee on Studies. Requests for transferring courses are submitted to the Committee on Studies along with appropriate course descriptions and syllabi. If the transfer is approved by the Committee on Studies, the transferred courses are listed on the Program of Studies submitted as part of the Application for Candidacy. 

Each Program of Studies must meet the following requirements:

1.  At least 72 credit hours beyond the Bachelor’s degree. This requirement must include the following (the same course may be counted in two or more of the following areas, but only once for the 72 credit hour requirement):

	Core Courses (24 credit hours)
EDPY 502	Survey of Statistics in Education (or similar course as determined by an advisor)
LING 504	Phonological Analysis
LING 522 -or- LING 523	Grammatical Analysis Functional Syntactic Theories
LING 531	Language in Society
LING 567	Psychology of Language
LLSS 640	Seminar in Language-Literacy
LLSS 645	Seminar in Educational Studies
	One course in Advanced Research Methods in Linguistics and/or Education (other Research Methods courses may be recommended by an advisor based on area of inquiry). Suggested courses include:
LLSS 605	Advanced Qualitative Research Methods
LLSS 623	Ethnographic Research
	Area Electives (24 credit hours)
	Courses selected to fulfill area electives should supplement and strengthen the student’s professional preparation in education, educational research, linguistics, and the area of research focus, and should be selected in conjunction with the student’s advisor and Committee on Studies. No more than 12 credit hours may be taken in any one department. Course options include, but are not limited to:
EDPY	500- or 600-level
LING	500- or 600-level
LLSS	*400-, 500- or 600-level
OILS	500- or 600-level
PORT	500- or 600-level
SPAN	500- or 600-level
	Area of Focus (24 credit hours)
	At least 24 credit hours in an area of focus in Educational Linguistics. Courses in this area are determined in consultation with an advisor and/or Committee on Studies.

2.  At least 18 credit hours of dissertation (699) must be completed. No more than 9 credit hours may be taken each semester,

Other Course Requirements

• At least 24 credit hours must be completed at UNM.
• A maximum of 45 credit hours may be transferred from other institutions.
• At least 18 credit hours must be completed at the 500- or 600-level.
• No more than 24 credit hours may be completed in "Problems", "Readings", or "Workshops".
• Competency in a language other than English is required for graduation. The minimal acceptable level of competency is a grade of "B" in a fourth semester of a college-level course, or its equivalent.

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