Core Knowledge. Students should be able to:

• Understand important questions, theories, findings and historical trends in the scientific study of language, known as “language science”
• Be able to integrate knowledge across the disciplines and traditional frameworks that compose language science, including the ability to explain and understand landmark findings and theories
• Use acquired knowledge as context for understanding the current state of affairs and for fostering a more complete understanding of the human communication system
• Acquire expertise and empirical grounding in a specific domain within an area of language science
• Demonstrate breadth of knowledge related to language science outside of their chosen domain
• Recognize linguistic diversity through in-depth knowledge of at least one non-English language
• Critically evaluate scientific information and synthesize literature available in both the lay media and in specialized research journals

 

Research Methods and Analysis. Students should be able to:

• Formulate appropriate research designs and analytical techniques to address novel scientific questions in language science
• Exhibit statistical and computational literacy in using, conveying, and interpreting sophisticated and appropriate quantitative analyses in their area of expertise
• Be aware of modern technological advances that apply to language science
• Understand how research methods and design choices constrain possible inferences from data
• Exhibit critical thinking to solve problems in language science

 

Independent Research. Students should be able to:

• Complete an original, creative project that demonstrably advances language science
• Construct a compelling research (grant) proposal that identifies critical high impact gaps in the current state of the field
• Synthesize the primary research literature in their chosen area of expertise
• Effectively disseminate the findings and impact of their own original research

 

Pedagogy. Students should be able to:

• Communicate effectively to large and small groups in pedagogical settings
• Integrate lecture and discussion material succinctly and cohesively
• Demonstrate overall teaching effectiveness

 

Scholarly Communication. Students should be able to:

• Give clear, cogent, and effective oral and visual presentations about language science content
• Integrate their own research with the relevant literature and discuss its significance
• Write a research proposal, including abstract and motivation
• Use the current professional writing conventions (e.g., APA format) to describe and convey empirical research
• Demonstrate effective oral communication skills in a variety of formats (e.g., discussion, lecture) aimed at both scientific and non‐scientific audiences
• Present their work publicly

 

Professionalism. Students should be able to:

• Work in a wide variety of professional careers, including those in academia, industry, and government
• Participate in appropriate conference venues for their core areas of research
• Contribute to the profession, department, and university through service