The Research Master's programme Linguistics and Communication Sciences is a two-year course of study that consists of 120 EC. It focuses on the various ways language is used in real-life situations and relies on research in the domains of cognition, the social context of communication, linguistic and communicative competence, and the technological implementation of theories on language and communication. Much of this research puts a strong emphasis on empirical behavioural data, elicited under natural and empirical conditions.
The programme aims to train students to become skilled empirical linguists or communication experts with a deep understanding of language and communication. Students take obligatory courses covering the foundations of and the links between these fields, as well the methods used. In addition, they take a number of elective classes that go deeper into aspects of their chosen areas of interest. Specialisation areas include Language Processing and Acquisition, Language and Speech Technology, and Communication and Language Behaviour. Moreover, they take a number of elective classes on various research methods (for instance, eye tracking and programming in Python). In the course of their studies, students spend increasingly more time on getting acquainted with and participating in on-going research projects of the Centre for Language Studies (CLS, RU) or elsewhere, for example in internships where they gain hands-on experience with various aspects of empirical research. During the fourth semester, students write their master's thesis on a topic of their choice in their specialization area.