The PhD program in Linguistics is designed with the interdisciplinary research goals of the department in mind. The curriculum aims to combine the best features of the knowledge-intensive model that is common in the humanities and the skills-intensive ‘apprenticeship’ model that is more common in the physical and life sciences. The course requirements provide more flexibility than most Linguistics PhDs, allowing students to acquire the broad training that is most appropriate to individual goals. Students can choose from a variety of core courses in theoretical linguistics, psycholinguistics and computational linguistics, and these can be supplemented with foundational or advanced courses in linguistics, cognitive (neuro-)science, computer science, philosophy, or electrical engineering, following an individualized course of study planned with the student's advisor(s). Course loads are designed to leave time for students to become involved in original research at an early stage of the program, and many students conduct a number of research projects before their qualifying paper project (known by its course number LING 895). Many students continue to pursue research in multiple areas through to their PhD dissertation, and it is common for students to be co-advised by multiple faculty members. A number of students in the department are currently studying for the new Certificate program in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science in addition to the PhD in Linguistics, and some students are pursuing a PhD in NACS instead of the Linguistics PhD.
The Linguistics PhD program is a 5-year program. All students receive funding for all 5 years, through a combination of teaching assistantships, research assistantships, and internal and external fellowships. Most students are funded by a combination of these mechanisms over the course of their studies, and most students are able to secure fellowship support that frees them from TA or RA duties for 1-2 years. Teaching assistants typically begin as section leaders in the department's large lower-level courses, Introduction to Linguistics and Language and Mind. More advanced students have opportunities to teach upper-level undergraduate seminar courses on special topics. These undergraduate seminars have proven popular with undergraduate students, because they provide more direct contact with primary research literature, and they have been valuable for graduate instructors who are developing a teaching portfolio for the academic job search.