PhD in Psycholinguistics
Ask questions about how language is produced and understood in real time through a detailed, interdisciplinary research project.
| Length | Start dates (semester dates) | |
|---|---|---|
| PhD |
3 years full-time |
September, January |
Join an interdisciplinary research community to draw on the knowledge of applied linguistics and psychology and apply it to educational settings.
Your research
You'll design, conduct and write up an independent research project, while simultaneously developing a broad perspective on psycholinguistic research.
You'll participate directly in the Psycholinguistics@York programme. This is an extensive network of psycholinguistic researchers from across the University. As part of this, you'll attend an annual presentation day, talks by invited speakers, and social and networking events.
Your research will be supported by specialist facilities available across the departments of Language and Linguistic Science, Psychology and Education. This will help you to research:
- eyetracking and pupilometry
- EEG and psychophysiology
- behaviour
- polysomnography (sleep tracking)
Our equipment will allow for informed individual and group testing, as well as the ability to monitor focus groups.
The culmination of your PhD will include a dissertation and a viva voce exam. Your dissertation may be in monograph format of 60-80,000 words in length, or by articles, where you will produce at least three works of publishable quality. Your work will be assessed by internal and external examiners during a viva voce examination, who will feed back on your work, and may require corrections.
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Funding
Discover funding for postgraduate researchers in the Department of Language and Linguistic Science.
Supervision
Explore the expertise of our staff and identify a potential supervisor.
Training and support
You'll be paired with a relevant supervisor who has expertise in your research topic. You'll meet with them regularly and be supported to carry out your project. You'll be able to sit on MA and MSc modules without needing to complete assessments. This will develop your skills and knowledge to support your research.
You'll have access to the expertise of our department and the Departments of Psychology and Education. In your first year, your supervisors will work with you to create a bespoke programme of study, drawing on the expertise of all three departments. These can include psycholinguistic research methods, data science and a range of advanced discipline-specific modules.
You'll also benefit from the rich array of research and training sessions at the Humanities Research Centre.
Course location
This course is run by the Department of Language and Linguistic Science.
You'll be based in Vanbrugh College on Campus West.
Careers and skills
Our research degrees will equip you with the vital skills needed to make a meaningful contribution to the field of linguistics. You'll gain key skills including use of specialist software, and data management and analysis.
Our dedicated careers team offer specific support including a programme of professional researcher development and careers workshops and 1:1 career support sessions. They will help you to build up your employability portfolio and to engage in activities that will build up your skills and experience within and outside your research work.
Career opportunities
- academia
- finance and accountancy
- voice recognition and natural language processing software development
- artificial intelligence
- speech and language therapy
- language teaching
Entry requirements
You'll need a first class or 2:1 undergraduate degree, as well as a Masters degree in a relevant subject.
We'll also take other relevant experience and expertise into account. You're welcome to include a narrative of any relevant life experiences in your personal statement. For example, you could tell us about caring responsibilities, career breaks, barriers you have faced, or belonging to an under-represented group.
English language requirements
If English is not your first language, you must provide evidence of your ability.
Check your English language requirements
Applying
Apply for Psycholinguistics (PhD)
You'll need to submit a 1,500-2,500 word research proposal that covers the title, background and a data analysis of your project. You should also write about how your project fits within the research interests of our department and identify two potential research supervisors from Language and Linguistic Science, Education or Psychology.
Have a look at the supporting documents you may need for your application.
Find out more about how to apply.
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