Georgia Southern University

What you'll study

This programme offers an integrated curriculum across Romance linguistics, literary studies, and applied language pedagogy. Students build advanced competence in one or more Romance languages while studying linguistic theory, research methods, and literary criticism. Typical topics and modules include:

• Romance Linguistics: comparative Romance morphology and syntax, historical development of Romance languages, sociolinguistics of Spanish/French/Portuguese-speaking communities.
• Descriptive and Theoretical Linguistics: phonetics and phonology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics, and research methods for language analysis.
• Literatures and Cultural Studies: modern and contemporary literatures in the target languages, literary theory, film and media studies related to Romance-language cultures.
• Applied Linguistics and Pedagogy: second-language acquisition, curriculum design, assessment, and methods for teaching Romance languages at secondary and post-secondary levels.
• Translation and Editing: practice in translation and sight translation, editing for bilingual/multilingual contexts, and professional communication.
• Research and Thesis/Capstone: options commonly include a research thesis supervised by faculty or a non-thesis capstone project involving applied research, curriculum development, or curriculum assessment.

The degree is typically structured around advanced coursework, seminars, language practicum, and a substantial research or applied project. Electives and directed readings allow students to tailor the programme to interests such as bilingual education, heritage language maintenance, literary translation, or computational approaches to language.

Entry requirements

Applicants are normally expected to hold a recognised bachelor’s degree. Typical admission criteria include:

• A completed undergraduate degree from an accredited institution; degrees in languages, linguistics, literature, education or related fields are directly relevant.
• A competitive undergraduate GPA (programmes commonly specify a minimum equivalent to a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale, or a department-determined equivalent).
• A statement of purpose outlining academic and professional goals, and how the programme fits those goals.
• Academic transcripts from all post-secondary institutions attended.
• Letters of recommendation (usually two or three) from academic or professional referees.
• Evidence of language ability in the target Romance language(s); this can include prior coursework, grades, or a writing sample. International applicants whose first language is not English are normally required to provide proof of English proficiency (for example, recognised test scores), unless exempt under university policy.
• Some applicants may be invited to provide a writing sample, a translation sample, or to attend an interview depending on the focus of their proposed programme of study.

Applicants should consult the department for any programme-specific forms or additional requirements, and for guidance on language prerequisites and possible preparatory coursework.

Career prospects

Graduates of the programme pursue a variety of career paths in education, research and the language professions. Common trajectories include:

• Secondary and post-secondary language teaching (with appropriate certification where required), including community college and adult education.
• Further academic study—many graduates progress to doctoral research in linguistics, literature, or applied linguistics.
• Translation, interpretation and localisation roles in private sector, non-profit and government organisations.
• Curriculum design, language assessment and educational publishing.
• Careers in international business, diplomacy, cultural organisations, and NGOs where advanced language skills and cross-cultural competence are valued.
• Research and policy roles related to language planning, bilingual education, and sociolinguistic work in community settings.

The programme’s combination of language skills, theoretical training and applied practicum prepares graduates for roles that require both high-level linguistic competence and research or pedagogical expertise.

Why study at Georgia Southern University

Georgia Southern offers a supportive departmental setting with faculty who specialise in Romance linguistics, comparative literature and language pedagogy. Small seminar sizes foster close mentorship and opportunities for collaborative research. The department provides access to language labs, multimedia resources and opportunities to gain supervised teaching experience.

Students benefit from the university’s regional connections and community partnerships for practicum placements and outreach, and from a campus environment that supports graduate research through workshops, colloquia and funding opportunities. The programme is designed to be flexible, accommodating students who wish to pursue research, classroom teaching, or professional language careers, while preparing those who aim to continue to doctoral studies.