Master's degree Foreign and Regional Languages, Literature and Civilisations Track Multilingual Linguistics
This programme is taught in French.
field(s) of training :
Arts, Literature, Languages
diploma level :
Master's degree (five-year degree)
duration of the program :
2 years
Course overview
You wish to improve your proficiency in your language of study? You want to improve your knowledge in a precise cultural area? The master’s programme in Foreign and Regional Languages, Literature and Civilisations (LLCER) specialised in Multilingual Linguistics introduces you to a scientific approach to language.
The master’s in Multilingual Linguistics relies on both
- An in-depth theoretical training in the main branches of linguistics (syntax, semantics, pragmatics, cognition…) jointly organised with the master’s in Linguistics of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
- A large field of studies encompassing various European languages (English, Russian, Nordic languages, Spanish, German, Italian)
During this two-year full-time programme, you will acquire the skills necessary to the scientific comprehension of your language of study, and be prepared to pursue in research (higher education, human and social sciences, public research…) or in applications of linguistics in the language industry.
Highlights
Once a year, the master's programmes in Cultural Studies and in Linguistics jointly organise a study session. This seminar day allows you to experience the organisation required to host a research event, which can be particularly useful if you wish to pursue in research:
- Call for communication on a given topic
- Presentation selection
- Logistics (venue booking, administration contacts, budget…)
- Presentation of various publications followed by a round table discussion at the end of the day
Welcoming international students
Since 2019, the University of Caen Normandy has been awarded the "Bienvenue en France" label by Campus France, highlighting the quality of the university's welcome for international students.
Application requirements
Entry requirements
To enter this master’s, you should be able to
- Graduate from a bachelor’s degree in Foreign and Regional Languages, Literature and Civilisations (LLCER) or in Linguistics
- Have oral and writing skills in French and in your language of study (equivalent to a C1 level in both languages)
- Master linguistics tools used in various communication and comprehension situation, in any context and any form of speech, in French and in your language of study
- Analyse the spoken production of a native speaker, based on phonology and phonetics
- Communicate, analyse and discuss with a critical approach, in written or oral form in French and in your language of study
- Mobilise linguistics concepts regarding your language of study
- Link productions of a linguistic and cultural area at various times or with other cultural areas, in a comparative approach
- Take a step back to get an overview of a situation
- Identify the production, diffusion and knowledge valorisation processes
- Work in team, in network, in autonomy and in responsibility for a project
- Analyse your actions in a professional situation to assess and improve your practice
Language proficiency requirements
Minimum French proficiency level required: C1
Minimum English proficiency level required: B2
Specific conditions
Entry requirements for Year 2
If you have completed Year 1 of this master’s, you will automatically access Year 2.
If you have completed Year 1 of another master’s in Translation, with French as a first language, English as a second language, and a third language among these offered by the master’s, you can also apply to Year 2.
Apply and register
The registration process takes place in 3 steps:
Application process
Admission and registration requirements may vary depending on your nationality, country of residence, foreign secondary school leaving certificate, and the nature of your programme of study. Discover how to apply to the University of Caen Normandy.
Course structure
Courses
- Take place on site on campus 1 of the University of Caen Normandy
- Amount to 390 hours for the 2 years of master’s, with an important part of the programme is dedicated to personal research activities
- Are completed by the organisation of a seminar day
Course units
The master’s programme in Linguistics essentially provides courses in the main branches of linguistics, as well as in improving your knowledge in you language of study:
- Pragmatics
- Language structure: sounds and sentences
- Written and spoken language improvement practice
- Natural language processing (NLP), jointly organised with the master’s in Computer Science of the Faculty of Sciences
- Studies of linguistic objects in English and other European languages
- Conferences of the Centre of interlingual researches on signification within context (CRISCO · UR 4255)
- Syntax and semantics of European languages
- Introduction to linguistic theories
- Language variation in time and space
- Semantics
Beyond the linguistic courses, you will also attend transferrable courses:
- Digital methodology
- Research in linguistic methodology
- Introduction to teaching positions with the MOOC “Teaching in Higher Education” by the University of Caen Normandy (optional)
As this programme focuses on research, the writing of your master’s thesis replaces the internship and the research activities make your professional experiences.
While the internships are not compulsory, you can still do one (or more), especially within the CRISCO research unit, and work on the synonym dictionary and its expansion to English or on data processing. You may do as many internship as you wish, as long as they are related to language industry.
Coursework and assessment
The course lasts 2 years and is divided in 4 semesters, each comprising several courses units. Examinations vary depend the courses (dissertations, oral presentations, synthetic reports…) and are held through coursework from 0 to 20, 20 being the best grade. Grade compensation is organized without eliminatory marks and on the basis of the general average obtained in every course unit.
To successfully complete a semester, you must have an average mark of at least 10 points out of 20. If you have not completed your semester, you can retake the courses units you failed; you do not have to retake the courses in which you have obtained at least 10 points out of 20.
Language
- French
- English or German or Spanish or Italian or Nordic languages or Slavic languages
Study abroad
“Languages differ essentially in what they must convey and not in what they may convey.” In order for you to experience first-hand this theory of linguist Roman Jakobson and to improve your language skills, the master’s offers travel opportunities in the countries of your language of study. You can study abroad as part of:
- Erasmus+ European exchange programmes
- Joint-programme with the École normale supérieure of Tunis: with this programme, students specialising in English can obtain both the master’s of the university of Caen Normandy and the master’s of the ENS Tunis in Interdisciplinary Approaches to English-speaking Literatures
- University exchanges through networks and programmes such as the Quebec student exchange programme (BCI), the ISEP and Asia Exchange, allowing you to travel in various destinations: Africa, South America, Asia, Australia, Canada, United States of America, Europe, United Kingdom (including Warwick and Birmingham). You can't speak Thai, Korean or Norwegian? Don't worry: many universities offer courses in English.
Is going abroad expensive? It may be, depending on the destinations. You can go abroad for less than 500 euros, and you can benefit from cumulative financial supports (including scholarships).
When can I go abroad? Most students go abroad in Year 3, for a year or for the second semester. To do so, you need to apply for an exchange during the previous year.
You want to learn more about financial supports or discover other ways to go abroad? Read more (all resources are in French) on the dedicated page of the Faculty of Foreign Languages and or that of the Service for the international mobility programmes, which co-organises study exchanges and international internships. You will also discover the experiences of other students who took these opportunities!
Learning outcome
By the end of this course, you will be able to
- Make use of your language skills:
- Oral and written practice your language of study
- Theoretical analysis of your language of study
- Research topic
- Relevant study topic
- Consistent study corpus
- Write a research publication making the use of your synthetic, organisational, presentation, elucidation and writing skills, as part of a hypothetico-deductive model and a homogenous theoretical approach
- Master the various digital and computer tools for research, corpus analysis and data processing
- Master computer and digital skills required in contemporary fields
Further study
This master’s in Linguistics is research-oriented. As such, you are encouraged to pursue doctoral studies. The level of proficiency and knowledge in the language of study acquired through the master’s also allows you to prepare the teaching examination such as the Agrégation of your language of study.
Careers
With an expertise in linguistics, you can work in various fields, especially language industry. Main opportunities include:
- Speech synthesis
- Human-computer interaction
- Information extraction
Other positions are also available in fields requiring great language skills, such as:
- Communication
- Advertisement
- Journalism
- Publishing
- Writing
- International relations
Address
Université de Caen Normandie
UFR LVE · Langues vivantes étrangères
MLI · Maison des langues et de l’international
Esplanade de la Paix · CS 14032 · 14032 CAEN cedex 5
France
Course leader
formation : Emmanuelle Roussel · emmanuelle.roussel@unicaen.fr