The minor consists of a minimum of 5 full courses (or the equivalent) and a portfolio.
Note: Students must earn minimum grades of C- or P for all courses that apply toward the minor.
Linguistics is the discipline concerned with the study of human language. Courses in linguistics include training in the deductive techniques that linguists use to figure out the structures underlying natural language systems. These principles may be applied to learning or analyzing any human language and so courses in linguistics are broadly relevant to all students engaging in the study of any modern or classical language(s). Moreover, as the capacity for language is often taken to be one of the defining characteristics of the human species, an understanding of how language works is a key to understanding what it means to be human.
Language is vital to many disciplines across the liberal arts curriculum, so courses in linguistics often appeal to and are relevant for a wide variety of Oberlin students, including those majoring in Anthropology, Psychology, Neuroscience, Philosophy, Computer Science, any of the classical or modern world languages including English, Comparative Literature, and still others.
Visit the Linguistics webpage for more information.
Students wishing to complete the Linguistics minor should complete the Minor Add or Drop form. The form requires the signature of the curricular committee chair, Jason Haugen.
Download the Minor Add or Drop form.
