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Admission to graduate programs in Linguistics is through online application to the Graduate School of the University of Colorado.

The Department encourages PhD applications from strong applicants with any interests served by the range of specializations within the department. But for the 2025-26 application cycle, we especially encourage PhD applicants whose interests align or intersect with the research programs of Professors Calder, Gutierrez, Michaelis, and Scarborough. All applications, however, will be closely reviewed.

Application requirements

  • statement of purpose
  • unofficial transcripts
  • three letters of recommendation
  • GRE scores (optional)
  • TOEFL or IELTS scores (for applicants from non-English speaking institutions)
  • writing sample (for PhD applicants)

The statement of purpose should explain your interest in pursuing a graduate degree in linguistics. It might include a description of your background or past work that led you to your current interests, as well as a discussion of where you see your interests developing now and in the future. You might have very specific plans to describe, but such detailed, specific plans are not necessary. It is most useful for the admissions committee to have your thoughtful reflection on the issues you are passionate about within linguistics and the ways in which our graduate program will support those passions.

You are required to upload an unofficial copy of the transcript from each undergraduate and graduate institution that you have attended, including community colleges, summer sessions, and extension programs, regardless of the length of attendance and whether or not courses were completed. Failure to list and submit transcripts from all institutions previously attended is considered to be a violation of academic ethics and may result in the cancellation of your admission or dismissal from the university. See instructions for uploading unofficial transcripts to your application. Only after you are recommended for admission will you need to provide official transcripts. 

Your letters of recommendation should come from faculty or mentors who know your work and can speak to your past performance as well as their assessment of your promise as a student and researcher. Our advice is to confirm with each of your potential recommenders (well in advance of the application deadline) that they are able and willing to submit a recommendation for you. The most impactful letters are those written by recommenders who have information about your preparation and goals for graduate study. You should share your draft statement of purpose with each of your recommenders, as well as any other information that might inform their recommendation. 

In addition, applicants may optionally submit GRE (Graduate Record Examination) scores. Visit the Educational Testing Service GRE website for information about the format of the GRE, exam dates and locations, registering for the exam and ordering score reports.

Applicants whose language of post-secondary education was not English must show evidence of English proficiency by earning a score of 90 or higher on Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or a score of 7 or higher on the IELTS. At this time, the Department is also accepting the Duolingo English Test (DET) as evidence of English proficiency; the required score on the DET is 120. Applicants who have studied in a country in which English is a primary language for at least one year and within two years of the desired start term at CU Boulderare not required to submit proficiency test scores. Please note, that participation in a program that was taught in English is not sufficient on its own to meet the English proficiency requirement. Full information on CU Boulder's English proficiency requirements for international students, including the exceptions to these requirements, can be found here.

PhD applicants are required to submit a writing sample of 15 pages or less. (If you submit more than 15 pages, no more than the first 15 pages will be reviewed.) Your writing sample might be a term paper from a previous class or an excerpt from a BA or MA thesis. You are welcome to, but not required to, edit the paper from its previous version as a term paper or thesis.

  To receive more information, click here 

Application Fee Waivers

The Graduate School offers fee waivers based upon affiliation with a number of programs and organizations. More information can be found here. The Linguistics department is also able to offer a limited number of application fee waivers. To be considered for a departmental fee waiver, please submit a brief statement explaining your circumstances, along with a draft of your statement of purpose, to the department by Nov. 1. Students will be notified of whether they have received a waiver after that date.

Current Students

You can apply to the PhD program after having been admitted to the MA program, generally in your second year of matriculation in the MA program. If you are a current Linguistics MA student seeking admission to the Linguistics PhD program, submit the hard copy internal application, which must be accompanied by a statement of purpose (both of which the applicant submits to the department directly) and threeletters of recommendation (sent directly to the department by the recommenders). Internal applicants may also optionally submit a writing sample.

Eligibility 

Master’s Degree Program

Admission requirements are not rigid, and the Department encourages applicants with varying backgrounds. A BA in linguistics is not the most usual preparation for the MA program in Linguistics, nor is it necessarily more desirable than other possible preparations. Linguists traditionally have identified their interest in the field relatively late; successful linguists have come from areas as diverse as teaching, English literature, foreign languages, law, anthropology, history, chemistry, physics, mathematics and computer science. Applicants who have not taken at least one general linguistics course should work through a modern introductory text on their own before beginning the application. Your statement of purpose should reveal knowledge of the field of linguistics, even if you have not as yet trained in the field.

Despite the Department's flexible entrance requirements for the MA, the admissions committee does give strong preference to those applicants who are able to demonstrate focused interests in linguistics and a general understanding of what linguistic analysis entails, as well as aptitudes that facilitate success in linguistic analysis.

Upon entry into the MA program, native speakers of English are required to demonstrate proficiency in a language other than English; MA students who lack this level of proficiency will need to acquire it in addition to their linguistics training.

To be eligible for consideration to enter the doctoral program, an applicant must demonstrate substantial preparation in linguistics and present a record that suggests a strong capacity to perform original research in the field. The application dossier must include a writing sample that demonstrates this capacity, in addition to the statement of purpose, eligibilty statement, letters of recommendation, transcript(s) and test scores. Admission to the doctoral program is highly competitive, with only 10-15 percent of applicants admitted each year. Note that the admissions process does not consider financial need; all applicants will be evaluated in the same manner, whether they will require funding from the Department or have independent means of support.

In order to be considered for admission to the PhD program you must have taken at least four of the following five qualifying courses: phonetics, phonology, morphology & syntax, semantics & pragmatics, and diachronic linguistics. Courses that study mostly one language (e.g., Syntax of English) are not adequate. Please append an eligibility statement to your statement of purpose describing courses that you have taken that satisfy the above prerequisites. Exceptional applicants may be considered with three of the five qualifying courses. If you are accepted having satisfied fewer than four of the prerequisite courses, you will be expected to satisfy the remaining deficiency within the first two years of matriculation in the PhD program.

In addition, you must show that you have proficiency in at least one language not native to you. PhD applicants with preparation in related areas, but with less background in linguistics and/or little knowledge of other languages, or who have not completed enough of the prerequisite courses, may be considered for admission to the MA program rather than the PhD. Please note, however, that a PhD applicant who is judged to have met doctoral prerequisites but who is not accepted into the PhD program will not be automatically offered admission to the MA program. Those who enroll in the MA program will have the opportunity to apply to the PhD program by submitting an internal application, typically at the beginning of the second year of MA study. However, admission to the MA program in no way guarantees eventual admission to the PhD program. If you have questions about any of these policies, please contact the Department.

The Colorado Linguistics graduate program participates in the Western Regional Graduate Program (WRGP). Through the WRGP, graduate students who are residents of 15 participating states may enroll in select programs at public institutions like Colorado Linguistics on an in-state resident tuition basis. The following states currently participate in the WRGP: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. Also included are Guam and the Commonwelth of Northern Mariana Islands. If you are currently a non-resident of Colorado and believe you are eligible for the WRGP benefit, answer 'yes' to the WRGP question in the Supplemental Information section of the online application, or email tuitclass@colorado.edu, Tuition Classification Officer, in the Registar's office. Click here for more information about the WRGP.

The MA admissions process in Linguistics is competitive, and the PhD admissions process is highly competitive.

Deadlines

For admission to the following Fall term:

PhD Applicants: the deadline is December 15 for both domestic and international applicants.

MA Applicants: the deadline is January 3 for both domestic and international applicants. 

CLASIC Applicants: for international applicants, the deadline is December 15. For domestic applicants, the deadline is January 15.

These deadlines are when all materials, including your letters of recommendation, should be received. Requests for recommendation letters are sent to the people you specify in the online application only after you submit your application. Therefore, please begin the application process well in advance of the deadlines. Applicants are accepted only for fall program starts.

Admission to our PhD program is highly competitive. If you are submitting an application for doctoral study, but would potentially be interested in our MA program, you can opt to be considered for it in addition to the PhD in your application, without paying an additonal fee.