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Electives: Summer 2026
Need an elective for Summer 2026? Enroll in LING 220: Introduction to Linguistics, the key prerequisite for upper division courses. learn more →
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Many worlds: Experiences working in Indigenous language revitalization outside academia
Join us for a colloquium by Kyra Borland. This is the keynote event for SFU Multilingual Week 2026, a university-wide celebration of embracing diversity, breaking barriers and building connections. learn more →
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Becker Undergraduate Award
Deadline to submit: April 28, 2026. learn more →
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News and Events
Closures during February include Family Day and Reading Break. Please refer to the SFU Academic Calendar for details. learn more →
Hear from our students
“What I love about Linguistics is that language is such a human thing. And what Linguistics does is instead of enforcing or prescribing rules for how people should speak, it describes and seeks to understand how languages evolve and develop and how they work.”
— Student of LING 220: Introduction to Linguistics
Watch video of our undergraduate students sharing their experiences of falling in love with linguistics.
The science of language
Linguistics is the scientific study of language, including language analytics, how languages evolve, and how we use language to communicate. Linguistic research advances knowledge on how we socialize, how we understand or misunderstand one another, and how we use language to interpret the world around us. Areas of study include sounds (phonetics and phonology), words (morphology), sentences (syntax), pattern and variation analysis (corpus linguistics), narratives and conversations (discourse analysis), meaning (semantics and pragmatics) and the study of individual languages, including Indigenous languages.
SFU Linguistics is one of the largest and most diverse linguistics programs in Canada. We offer a wide range of courses about language at the undergraduate level, including certificate programs in Linguistics of Speech Science and Teaching English as a Second Language. We also offer graduate programs for MA and PhD degrees. The work conducted in our research labs aims to address questions such as how language is acquired in infancy, how second languages are acquired, and how language can be processed by computers.
Career options related to linguistics are expanding each year, as the value of skills such as computational text analysis, practical application of phonetic science, and sociolinguistic analysis is being recognized in the increasingly data-driven job market. Linguistics graduates may choose to work in analytics, language data management, ESL instruction, speech language assistance, and natural language processing (NLP). With further education, a student can become an audiologist, speech-language pathologist, forensic linguist, and more.
News and events
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February 10, 2026
Yves Ferstler joins the Discourse Processing Lab
“I am currently beginning my PhD in Computer Science at the University of Québec in Montréal, specializing in Natural Language Processing (NLP). I found the work of Maite Taboada’s research lab to be very interesting.” -
February 09, 2026
In sync: Integrating and aligning social and linguistic cues
Says colloquium speaker Paul Compensis, “I’m passionate about experimental research, interpersonal processes, and the brain. To achieve a better understanding of dynamic social processes, I combine classical socio-cognitive and affective paradigms with human–agent interaction and psychophysiological measures.” -
January 22, 2026
Progress over perfection: How student athlete Kelsey Loeun stays motivated
“I’m motivated by the process of growth. Wrestling teaches me to stay focused when things get tough, and academics give me the challenge to apply that same persistence mentally.” -
January 20, 2026
Students gain hands-on experience at Science World
First Language Acquisition (LING 350) students gained valuable skills and put theory to the test during a practicum with kids aged 2-5 years. -
January 09, 2026
Going the distance: My journey in graduate studies at SFU Linguistics
In this feature story told in her own words, Vanja Vekić Chen shares her experience as the first graduate of our project-based MA program. -
January 08, 2026
Many worlds: Experiences working in Indigenous language revitalization outside academia
Join us for a colloquium by Kyra Borland. This is the keynote event for SFU Multilingual Week 2026, a university-wide celebration of embracing diversity, breaking barriers and building connections. -
December 23, 2025
Year in Review: The Department of Linguistics in 2025
Reflecting on the achievements of 2025, we at the Department of Linguistics and the Indigenous Languages Program have much to celebrate. We're incredibly proud of our students and faculty for all of their accomplishments throughout this calendar year.