Speech, Language & Sociolinguistics

    Speech, Language & Sociolinguistics

    Duration12 month(s)
    Tuition Fee
    GBP 35,160 / Year
    Next IntakeSeptember 19, 2026

    Speech, Language & Sociolinguistics

    About

    This Masters will enable you to explore the links between producing and processing speech and language as part of everyday social interaction. The range of courses available for this programme provide the key linguistic, technical, and research skills to investigate different aspects of spoken and written language, to carry out your own sociolinguistic studies, and to design and implement speech and language experiments of your own.

  • This programme is suitable for students who have little or no background in linguistics and also for students with some background who wish to carry out more sophisticated independent research in a particular area.
  • You'll be taught by expert academic staff who have directed and are currently directing research projects in speech, language and sociolinguistics (e.g. Seeing Speech, Sounds of the City, One Speaker Two Dialects, the Scots Syntax Atlas (SCOSYA), Scottish Corpus of Texts and Speech (SCOTS), and SPeech Across Dialects of English (SPADE)).
  • Our facilities include the Glasgow University Laboratory of Phonetics (GULP), which includes a speech recording studio, eyetracker and portable ultrasound, and the Scottish Graduate School for Arts and Humanities (SGSAH), providing you with relevant training courses for graduate students in speech, language and sociolinguistics.
  • English Language and Linguistics is currently within the Linguistics pathway for the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Doctoral Training Partnership, which is based at the Scottish Graduate School of Social Science (SGSSS). The SGSSS offers excellent additional training courses for graduate students working in the social sciences in Scotland.
  • Requirements

    Entry Requirements

    2.1 Hons (or non-UK equivalent) in Linguistics or English or other Modern Languages or Psychology or English Language Teaching or Computing Science or any other relevant subject.

    We may also accept degrees in any other subject.

    Please include a short personal statement of approximately 200 words, outlining your interest in the programme.

    We also require a sample of written work, approximately 2,000 words in length written in English. While the content does not need to relate specifically to this programme, it should demonstrate the potential to engage successfully with postgraduate-level studies, demonstrating analytical skills and familiarity with appropriate scholarly methods and conventions. This could be a piece of work from a previous degree.

    English Requirements

    • PTEMin 60
    • IELTSMin 6.5
    • TOEFLMin 90

    English Program Requirements

    For applicants whose first language is not English, the University sets a minimum English Language proficiency level.

    International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Academic and Academic Online (not General Training)

    • 7.0 overall with no subtest less than 6.5
    • IELTS One Skill Retake Accepted
    • Tests must have been taken within 2 years 5 months of start date. Applicants must meet the overall and subtest requirements using a single test.

    Common equivalent English language qualifications accepted for entry to this programme

    TOEFL (ibt, my best or athome)

    • 96 overall with Reading 23; Listening 23; Speaking 23; Writing 24
    • Tests must have been taken within 2 years 5 months of start date. Applicants must meet the overall and subtest requirements, this includes TOEFL mybest.

    Pearsons PTE Academic

    • 66 overall with no subtest less than Reading 60; Listening 59; Speaking 59; Writing 74
    • Tests must have been taken within 2 years 5 months of start date. Applicants must meet the overall and subtest requirements using a single test.

    Cambridge Proficiency in English (CPE) and Cambridge Advanced English (CAE)

    • 185 overall, no subtest less than 176
    • Tests must have been taken within 2 years 5 months of start date. Applicants must meet the overall and subtest requirements using a single test.

    Oxford English Test

    • 8 overall with Reading and Listening no less than 7 and Writing and Speaking no less than 8
    • Tests must have been taken within 2 years 5 months of start date. Applicants must meet the overall and subtest requirements using a single test.

    LanguageCert Academic SELT

    • 75 overall with two subtests at 75 and no subtest less than 70
    • Tests must have been taken within 2 years 5 months of start date. Applicants must meet the overall and subtest requirements using a single test.

    Password Skills Plus

    • 7.0 overall with no subtest less than 6.5
    • Tests must have been taken within 2 years 5 months of start date. Applicants must meet the overall and subtest requirements using a single test.

    Trinity College Tests

    • Integrated Skills in English II & III & IV: ISEIII Pass with Pass in all sub-tests
    • Tests must have been taken within 2 years 5 months of start date. Applicants must meet the overall and subtest requirements using a single test.

    University of Glasgow Pre-sessional courses

    Tests are accepted for 2 years following date of successful completion.

    Alternatives to English Language qualification

    • Degree from majority-English speaking country (as defined by the UKVI including Canada if taught in English)
      • students must have studied for a minimum of 2 years at Undergraduate level, or 9 months at Master's level, and must have completed their degree in that majority-English speaking country within the last 6 years.
    • Undergraduate 2+2 degrees from majority-English speaking country (as defined by the UKVI including Canada if taught in English)
      • students must have completed their final two years study in that majority-English speaking country within the last 6 years.

    For international students, the Home Office has confirmed that the University can choose to use these tests to make its own assessment of English language ability for visa applications to degree level programmes. The University is also able to accept UKVI approved Secure English Language Tests (SELT) but we do not require a specific UKVI SELT for degree level programmes. We therefore still accept any of the English tests listed for admission to this programme.

    Pre-sessional courses

    The University of Glasgow accepts evidence of the required language level from the English for Academic Study Unit Pre-sessional courses. We would strongly encourage you to consider the pre-sessional courses at the University of Glasgow's English for Academic Study (EAS) Unit. Our Pre-sessional courses are the best way to bring your English up to entry level for University study. Our courses give you:

    • direct entry to your University programme for successful students (no need to take IELTS)
    • essential academic skills to help you study effectively at University
    • flexible entry dates so you can join the right course for your level.

    For more detail on our pre-sessional courses please see:

    We can also consider the pre-sessional courses accredited by the below BALEAP approved institutions to meet the language requirements for admission to our postgraduate taught degrees:

    • Heriot Watt
    • Kingston Upon Thames
    • Middlesex University
    • Manchester University
    • Reading University
    • Edinburgh University
    • ST Andrews University
    • UCL
    • Durham

    For further information about English language requirements, please contact the Recruitment and International Office using our enquiry form

    Career

    Some students take our programme as a secondment from an ongoing teaching or professional education position.  Others continue into employment in language teaching, journalism, or other kinds of industrial or commercial research. The programme is also an excellent foundation to doctoral research, and/or further training in speech and language therapy. 

    Fee Information

    Tuition Fee
    35,160 / year

    Speech, Language & Sociolinguistics

    University of Glasgow

    University of Glasgow

    United Kingdom

    United Kingdom, Glasgow