Masters in Applied Linguistics (M.Phil.)
Online applications for 2025/26 are open until 30 June 2025
Please note for this course we require a minimum Band C English proficiency as detailed here.
The deadline for providing all required documentation (e.g. final transcripts, English certification, references etc.) for 2024/25 applications is 10 August 2024.
All MPhil students are required to attend CLCS orientation sessions which will take place in the first week of September 2024 prior to the start of teaching in September.
Course Co-ordinator: Dr Craig Sailor
Applications Co-ordinator: Dr Elaine Uí Dhonnchadha
Full-time: one year, 6 to 8 hours per week of classes.
Part-time: two years, 2 to 6 hours per week of classes.
To apply please see: Postgraduate Taught Courses
Course Handbook 2024-25: PDF|
Module Descriptions 2024-25: PDF
Frequently Asked Questions: PDF
Queries: please contact Elaine Uí Dhonnchadha
The Master’s degree in Applied Linguistics has been offered by CLCS for nearly 30 years. It offers a unique opportunity for you to engage deeply and critically with the discipline, and to provide a solid and rigorous foundation for your career aspirations.
Our M.Phil. offers you:
- Elite, tailor-made programme
- Flexible design shaped by your interests in Applied Linguistics
- Small class size, taught by world-class experts
- Wide choice of elective modules offered every year
- Competitively-priced tuition
- The chance to study at a premier university in the heart of vibrant Dublin
- Two-year visa extension for non-EU M.Phil. in Applied Linguistics graduates to seek employment in Ireland
Students do not need to have a background in linguistics or applied linguistics, but they are normally expected to have language teaching experience. Indeed, many of our students have been practising teachers who wish to expand their career horizons by deeper study of the current state of the art in language education.
Our alumni have followed various career paths in language education and other language professions, with many opting to pursue research at a higher level through the Ph.D., here in CLCS or elsewhere. For some, Ph.D. research has led to professional academic employment.
Application Requirements
In keeping with Trinity College's admission requirements for postgraduate students (see here), applicants should have at least a 2.1 honors degree from an Irish university or an equivalent degree from another country (for example, a Bachelors degree with a GPA of at least 3.2). For overseas applicants, country-specific information regarding admission to Trinity College can be found here. Applicants whose first language is not English and who have not been educated through the medium of English must have a minimum Band C English proficiency as detailed here.
What does the programme look like?
You take four obligatory ‘core’ modules:
- Describing Grammar
- Language Acquisition
- Second Language Curriculum Planning and Implementation
- Language Testing
...and choose two from among the following menu of elective modules available every year:
- Corpus Linguistics
- Computer Assisted Language Learning
- Linguistic Pragmatics
- Multilingualism
- Psychology of Language Learning and Teaching
- Speech and Language Technology in Education
- Technology, Language, and Communication
The modules are taught in Michaelmas and Hilary terms, and students prepare and write a 15,000-word dissertation which is due on the 31st of August.
Further information
Read our Frequently Asked Questions on the M.Phil. in Applied Linguistics and related M.Phil. programmes.
For a more in-depth insight into the shape and content of the programme, please consult our current course handbook. Note that the information provided in the handbook is subject to change from year to year.
Contact information
Telephone: +353-1-8961560
Email: clcs_mphil_info@tcd.ie