Linguistics and English Language Integrated PhD

Overview

Our Linguistics and English Language Integrated PhD (IPhD) combines taught modules with original research. The course is for those who haven't completed a programme that leads to PhD study. It will suit those with a background in linguistics, English Language or related disciplines. You'll strengthen your knowledge base and research skills before embarking on writing a thesis.

Studying for an IPhD at Newcastle University offers many benefits and advantages, including:

• a track record in student satisfaction
• diverse staff expertise
• activities and events
• career development
• funding opportunities

We're one of the largest centres for linguistic research in Europe. This gives you the opportunity to enrich your research. You'll gain exposure to a wide range of methodologies and diverse theoretical perspectives.

We offer supervision in the following areas:

Linguistic theory

• phonetics and phonology
• (morpho)syntax
• pragmatics
• the lexicon
• cross-linguistic variation
• the architecture of the language faculty
• language's place in human cognition
• the philosophy of linguistics

Language variation and change

• dialectology
• (variationist) sociolinguistics
• the sociology of language
• English historical linguistics
• corpus creation (e.g. the Diachronic Electronic Corpus of Tyneside English)

Language evolution, acquisition, and development

• typical and atypical child (L1) and adult (L2) language acquisition
• cognitive science
• information theory
• psycholinguistics

Important information

We've highlighted important information about your course. Please take note of any deadlines.

Your course and study experience - disclaimers and terms and conditions

Please rest assured we make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the programmes, services and facilities described. However, it may be necessary to make changes due to significant disruption, for example in response to Covid-19.

View our Academic experience page, which gives information about your Newcastle University study experience for the academic year 2024-25.

See our terms and conditions and student complaints information, which gives details of circumstances that may lead to changes to programmes, modules or University services.

 

What you'll learn

Year one forms the taught element of the Linguistics and English Language IPhD course. You'll study compulsory and optional modules and select a specialist pathway.

You'll then complete a 60-credit independent research project (15,000 words).

Work experience

You can gain valuable experience in journal editing and conference organisation by joining:

• the editorial team of the annually published Newcastle and Northumbria Working Papers in Linguistics
• the organising team of the annual Postgraduate Conference in Applied and Theoretical Linguistics

Modules

You will study modules on this course. A module is a unit of a course with its own approved aims and outcomes and assessment methods.

Course content changes

Module information is intended to provide an example of what you will study.

Our teaching is informed by research. Course content changes periodically to reflect developments in the discipline, the requirements of external bodies and partners, and student feedback.

Full details of the modules on offer will be published through the Programme Regulations and Specifications ahead of each academic year. This usually happens in May.

To find out more please see our terms and conditions.

Optional modules availability

Some courses have optional modules. Student demand for optional modules may affect availability.

 

Language acquisition, development and evolution pathway modules

Compulsory modules

• Research project for IPhD students (60 credits)
• Research methods for IPhD students (20 credits)

Optional modules 

You must choose one of the following modules:

• Generative Syntax (20 credits)
• Issues in Phonological Theory (20 credits)
• Minimalist Syntax: Data and Theory Building (20 credits)
• Advanced Topics in Phonology (20 credits)
• Advanced Pragmatic Theory (20 credits)

You will take three of the following modules and one 20 credit option to be chosen from a list of modules given in the Programme Handbook:

• Topics in Multilingualism (20 credits)
• Advanced Topics in Second Language Acquisition (20 credits)
• Origins and Evolution of Language (20 credits)
• Learning and Learnability (20 credits)
• Foundations in Second Language Acquisition (20 credits)

Language variation and change pathway modules

Compulsory modules

• Research project for IPhD students (60 credits)
• Research methods for IPhD students (20 credits)

Optional modules

You must take one 20 credit module in advanced phonology OR in advanced syntax:

• Generative Syntax (20 credits)
• Issues in Phonological Theory (20 credits)
• Minimalist Syntax: Data and Theory Building (20 credits)
• Advanced Topics in Phonology (20 credits)
• Advanced Pragmatic Theory (20 credits)

You will take three of the following modules and one 20 credit option to be chosen from a list given in the Programme Handbook:

• Language and society (20 credits)
• Lexical Innovation (20 credits)
• The Social History of English (20 credits)
• Metropolitan Sociolinguistics (20 credits)
• English Historical Semantics (20 credits)

Formal linguistics pathway modules

Compulsory modules

• Research project for IPhD students  (60 credits)
• Research methods for IPhD students  (20 credits)

Optional modules

You will take three of the following modules: 

• Generative Syntax (20 credits)
• Issues in Phonological Theory (20 credits)
• Minimalist Syntax: Data and Theory Building (20 credits)
• Advanced Topics in Phonology (20 credits)
• Advanced Pragmatic Theory (20 credits)

You will also take two of the following modules:

• Origins and Evolution of Language (20 credits)
• Language and Society (20 credits)
• Lexical Innovation (20 credits)
• Topics in Multilingualism (20 credits)
• Melody in Language (20 credits) 
• English Historical Semantics (20 credits)
• Foundations in Second Language Acquisition (20 credits)

How you'll learn

Delivery and teaching methods

In year one you take compulsory and optional 12-week modules. Between mid-May and early September of year one, you'll also work on a 15,000-word research project.

Years two, three and four constitute the research-based element of the course. You'll write an 80,000-word thesis under the guidance and direction of two supervisors.

The course is delivered at our Newcastle city centre campus. During the research phase of the course, you can request a temporary change in the study location. This is to allow for fieldwork and data collection.

Assessment methods

Depending on your modules, you'll be assessed through a combination of:

• Essay
• Professional skills assessments
• Oral examination
• Oral presentation
• Practical lab report
• Poster
• Research proposal
• Research paper
• Written examination
• Written exercise

Postgraduate student support

Our mission is to help you:

• stay healthy, positive and feeling well
• overcome any challenges you may face during your degree – academic or personal
• get the most out of your postgraduate research experience
• carry out admin and activities essential to progressing through your degree
• understand postgraduate research processes, standards and rules

We can offer you tailored wellbeing support, courses and activities.

You can also access a broad range of workshops covering:

• research and professional skills
• careers support
• wellbeing
• health and safety
• public engagement
• academic development

Your development

Research groups

Our research groups also facilitate researchers with common interests to share ideas, develop new skills and gain feedback on their work. The groups meet regularly and include: 

• Language & Cognition Research Group
• Sociolinguistics Discussion Group
• Romance Linguistics Circle
• North East Syntax Seminar
• Phonetics and Phonology Research Group

In addition to these formal groups, there are a number of informal research clubs that meet on an ad hoc basis. 

Newcastle seminar series in linguistics

Throughout each semester we host a regular seminar series where internationally renowned linguistic researchers give presentations on their recent research.

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (HaSS) researcher development programme 

Each faculty offers a researcher development programme for its postgraduate research students. We have designed your programme to help you:

• perform better as a researcher
• boost your career prospects
• broaden your impact

Through workshops and activities, it will build your transferable skills and increase your confidence.

You’ll cover:

• techniques for effective research
• methods for better collaborative working
• essential professional standards and requirements

Your researcher development programme is flexible. You can adapt it to meet your changing needs as you progress through your doctorate.

Find out more about the Researcher Education and Development programme

Your future

Career development

You'll develop your career within a research-led community and benefit from funding opportunities. Our recent MPhil and PhD graduates have gone into a variety of careers, including: 

• academia
• education
• publishing
• university administration

Additionally, you can involve yourself in a range of activities and events. As a PhD student, you can gain experience in conference organisation.  You'll have the opportunity to get involved in the organising team of the annual Newcastle and Northumbria Postgraduate Conference in Linguistics (Toon Taaks). 

Our Careers Service

Our award-winning Careers Service is one of the largest and best in the country, and we have strong links with employers. We provide an extensive range of opportunities to all students through our ncl+ initiative.

Visit our Careers Service website

Quality and ranking

All professional accreditations are reviewed regularly by their professional body

Recognition of professional qualifications outside of the UK

From 1 January 2021 there is an update to the way professional qualifications are recognised by countries outside of the UK

Check the government’s website for more information.

Facilities

The School of English Literature, Language and Linguistics is a lively and diverse community. We have over 700 undergraduates and 200 postgraduates.

We are based in the Percy Building. Our purpose-built postgraduate suite has dedicated computer clusters, meeting rooms, a kitchen and a lounge.

Linguistics researchers also have access to the LingLab. This space provides access to linguistics and experimental software, such as:

• CHILDES
• ELAN and CLAN
• Praat
• SONA
• LabVanced
• Gorilla
• ShinyApps

There is also a range of specialised equipment available for loan or use, including professional-quality recording equipment:

• a portable eye tracker
• a portable ultrasound machine
• a portable electroglottograph
• ultrasound tongue imaging
• multiple sound booths
• iPads

Finally, the lab also has access to several linguistic corpora, including:

• DECTE
• Transana
• ICE-GB Corpus of English
• ICE-GB Great Britain Sound Files
• BYU Corpora

We have two postgraduate research student study rooms. The larger room was recently upgraded with more workstations and a soft seating area. We have a Resource Centre and two on-site clinics:

• Tavistock North East Aphasia Centre
• Children's Speech and Language Therapy Clinic

The School also houses the Language Resource Centre. It has an extensive range of language learning facilities and resources, including:

• access to 24 satellite television channels from around the world
• listen and record facilities for speaking practice
• interactive language learning software
• an international film collection of over 800 titles

The award-winning Philip Robinson Library has an extensive audio-visual collection.

Fees and funding

Tuition fees for 2025 entry (per year)

PGR Home fee note

Home fees for research degree students

For 2024-25 entry, we have aligned our standard Home research fees with those set by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). The standard fee was confirmed in Spring 2024 by UKRI.

For 2025-26 entry, we will be aligning our standard Home research fees with those set by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). The standard fee will be confirmed in Spring 2025 by UKRI.

 

Tuition fee increases

As a general principle, you should expect the tuition fee to increase in each subsequent academic year of your course, subject to government regulations on fee increases and in line with inflation.

EU, other EEA and Swiss nationals - tuition fee status

Depending on your residency history, if you’re a student from the EU, other EEA or a Swiss national, with settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme, you’ll normally pay the ‘Home’ tuition fee rate and may be eligible for Student Finance England support.

EU students without settled or pre-settled status will normally be charged fees at the ‘International’ rate and will not be eligible for Student Finance England support.

If you are unsure of your fee status, check out the latest guidance here.

Scholarships

We support our EU and international students by providing a generous range of Vice-Chancellor's automatic and merit-based scholarships. See our searchable postgraduate funding page for more information. 

What you're paying for

Tuition fees include the costs of:

• matriculation
• registration
• tuition (or supervision)
• library access
• examination
• re-examination
• graduation

Find out more about:

• living costs
• tuition fees

Deposit

If you are an international student or a student from the EU, EEA or Switzerland and you need a visa to study in the UK, you may have to pay a deposit.

You can check this in the How to apply section.

Funding deadlines

If you're applying for funding, always check the funding application deadline. This deadline may be earlier than the application deadline for your course.

For some funding schemes, you need to have received an offer of a place on a course before you can apply for the funding.

Search for funding

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How to apply

Using the application portal

The application portal has instructions to guide you through your application. It will tell you what documents you need and how to upload them.

You can choose to start your application, save your details and come back to complete it later.

If you’re ready, you can select Apply Online and you’ll be taken directly to the application portal.

Alternatively you can find out more about applying on our applications and offers pages.

Apply Online  

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Visit our events calendar for the latest events