University Catalog 2024-2025

Linguistics (Minor)

The Department of English offers a minor in Linguistics to NC State students, except English majors in the Linguistics and Rhetoric and Professional Writing concentrations. The minor is designed to investigate the structure and function of language as a cognitive and behavioral science. Five courses in designated areas of linguistics are required in the minor. Among students likely to be attracted to this minor are those who expect to pursue graduate study in linguistics, those interested in world languages or English as a second language, and those interested in communication sciences. No courses for the minor may be taken for S/U credit.

Admissions and Certification of Minor

Students can apply for admission to any university minor program in MyPack Portal. Admission will be based on the student’s academic record, and in most cases no longer requires departmental review. The minor must be completed no later than the semester in which the student expects to graduate from their degree program. Students can monitor their progress toward completing the minor by viewing their Minor Degree Audit online, anytime, in MyPack Portal. 

Questions regarding unmet course requirements on your Minor Degree Audit (indicated by a red ‘X’) should be directed to the Minor Coordinator.

Contact Person

For more information, including program contact information, visit the Department of English website.

SIS Code:  16LIM

Plan Requirements

  • Completion of 15 credit hours of designated courses, all at the 200 level or above.
  • At least 3 courses must be above the 200 level.
  • Must also complete the study of a foreign language through the 201 level.
  • Must have an overall GPA of 2.0 in the minor and may count no course lower than a ‘C-‘.
  • At least 9 hours must be taken in residency at NC State.
  • Transfer credits must be evaluated by the coordinator of the minor, regardless of their disposition by any other office of the University.
  • A maximum of two (2) courses may be used (double-counted) towards both departmental major requirements and minor requirements.
Area I
ENG 210Introduction to Language and Linguistics3
Area II
Select one of the following:3
Phonetics
Special Projects in English
Modern English Syntax
Spoken and Written Traditions of American English Dialects
History of the English Language
Language and Gender
Language and Writing
Language in Globalization
The Sounds of Spanish
Area III
Select one of the following:3
Language and Culture
Language Development
Linguistics for Teachers of Multilingual Learners
Philosophy of Language
Introduction to Cognitive Science
Language and Society
Area IV
Select two of the following:6
Special Projects in English (where relevant)
Phonetics
Modern English Syntax
Spoken and Written Traditions of American English Dialects
History of the English Language
Language and Gender
Language and Writing
Language in Globalization
Speech Science
Honors in English (where relevant)
Special Topics in Linguistics
Special Topics in English (where relevant)
Second Language Acquisition Research: Interlanguage Development
Variety in Language: French
The Sounds of Spanish
Introduction to Spanish Linguistics
Spanish-English Comparative Grammar
Linguistic Structure of Spanish
Spanish Applied Linguistics
Spanish Language Change and Variation
Spanish Phonetics and Phonology
History of Spanish Language
Total Hours15