Start of Studies – Master Linguistics
Welcome to the Linguistics Department!
Why study Linguistics at HHU?
Our study program is characterized by three features in particular. It is...
skill-oriented: Core modules focus on the development of key skills such as academic writing, linguistic data collection, statistical evaluation, qualitative analysis, and theoretical reflection.
research-oriented: The teaching staff are very active in research and are constantly designing new courses to incorporate the latest findings and methods of linguistics into teaching.
multilingual: BA courses are taught in both English and German, the MA program is taught in English. Students and lecturers generally also speak other languages. Language courses and/or programming courses are also part of the degree program. Students thus learn to navigate confidently in multilingual contexts.
Course of study
In the first and second semester, students identify the focus of their own interests by exploring the interface between linguistics and related disciplines such as philosophy, English and American studies, German studies, Romance studies or computer science. They also learn to critically evaluate empirical research, replicate published studies, and carry out their own case studies. The modules are designed specifically to train students in academic writing and presentation and to deepen their skills in empirical methods such as data collection, annotation, corpus work and statistical analysis.
In the third semester, students pursue their own research questions and develop a first plan for their thesis while gaining their own research and teaching experience. The fourth and final semester focuses solely on the final thesis, by an accompanying colloquium and peer review, and prepares students for the time after graduation.
The program is a full-time course with a total of 120 ECTS, which corresponds to 30 ECTS of work per semester. For the course organization, students choose the courses that suit them each semester from our range of courses, allowing them to distribute the workload individually.
Every summer semester, we hold a Study Perspectives Week. During this week, some classes are canceled and the following events take place instead:
- An introduction to studying abroad with the Erasmus representatives and testimonials from former exchange students
- A job café where alumni/ae talk about their career paths and experiences in professional orientation
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| Semester |
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| 1 |
Exploration
| Skills 1. Scientific reasoning 2. Scientific methods |
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| 2 |
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| 3 | Specialization | Research | Teaching |
| 4 | Finalization
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Dates and events
The dates for the introductory events for the start of the 2025/26 academic year will follow.
| details tba | First semester introductory events of the student representatives (only in german language) |
| details tba | Orientation tutorial of the study subject (only in german language) |
| 13.10.2025 | Lecture start |
| 13.10.2025 at 10:30 a.m. in lecture hall 3A (Building 23.01) Broadcast of the speech in lecture halls 3B-3D and 2A-2D | Welcome speech by the principal |
| details tba | Introductory event of study subject (in German) |
Frequently asked questions
To activate your university ID and other online services, you will need your matriculation number* (see below) and your activation code (which will be sent to you automatically by email or post after a short while). Enter both in the Identity Management (IDM) system: https://idm.hhu.de/sspr/public/activate. You will then receive your university ID and can set a password.
Please also watch the explanatory video.
*If you applied online via the HHU application portal, you can find your matriculation number at https://digstu.hhu.de (see video).
If you did not register via the HHU application portal, your matriculation number will be sent to you by post.
Once you have activated your university ID, various study certificates (e.g. for BAföG) are available for download at https://digstu.hhu.de. We explain how this works in this video.
The winter semester 2025/26 begins on October 1. Lectures start on October 13. Please note that some events, such as placement tests for language courses, may take place before this date.
Further information on dates and lecture times can be found here.
Course registration is done via HISLSF.