Linguistics Student Reflections

"After taking LIN 150 as my freshman seminar, I found that I really enjoyed discussing the themes of the class and wanted to learn more about linguistics by declaring the minor. As soon as I heard the program was launching a linguistics major, I jumped at the opportunity to declare it as a second major because I wanted to further challenge myself in this area. To me, any branch of linguistics can be connected to any conversation I participate in or witness.

Studying linguistics has allowed me to be able to identify the deeper meanings behind my own communication with others while also understanding the subliminal messages behind how others communicate with me. Linguistics has been a fundamental and enjoyable theme throughout my first semester until my very last semester at Saint Joseph's, and the program has challenged me to grow into my own type of linguist. I value the education I have received through the linguistics program and look forward to seeing how my knowledge of linguistics will contribute to my future success."

— Stephanie Kubu '15, Spanish and linguistics double major

"I’ve been a 'language person' my whole life. I’ve loved reading and writing ever since I learned how to do so, and ever since my first Italian class in the 6th grade, I haven’t been able to get my fill of the Italian language and culture. I, like so many others, sort of stumbled into linguistics through a 101 Intro to Linguistics course, and my love for the field has done nothing but grow since then. I am so lucky to have found an unabashedly enthusiastic, endlessly curious and tremendously supportive community here in Saint Joseph's linguistics program. I found my niche in the area of language learning and teaching, though I found my courses on phonetics and sociolinguistics to be equally as fascinating. Through the linguistics program, I have completed two English teaching internships – one in Florence, Italy with 4th- and 5th-grade students and the other here at the SJU Summer Academy with Chinese high school students. Pursuing my studies in linguistics was without a doubt one of the best decisions I’ve made in my college career, and if you think you might be a language nerd like us, don’t hesitate to dive headfirst into the weird, wild world of language."

— Dana Mingione '15, linguistics, English and Italian triple major

"Choosing to take the Introduction to Linguistics course at the beginning of my career at Saint Joseph's, and every other linguistics class after that, dramatically changed how I look at and appreciate language. My linguistics professors did an incredible job of guiding us to open our minds and see language and how we communicate in new and fascinating ways. After graduating with a Spanish major, I worked in Bucaramanga, Colombia on a Fulbright Scholarship teaching English to university students. My background in linguistics made me a more effective teacher who could dissect where and why students struggled in certain areas and how to make them more confident and self-sufficient English language learners. Linguistics helped me fall in love with education, and I am now beginning my newest adventure as a 2013 Teach for America Corps member with an elementary, bilingual placement in the Twin Cities in Minnesota. No matter what you choose to pursue professionally after St. Joe's, linguistics will be a relevant and enjoyable field to explore!"

— Kerry Burns '12, Spanish major

"Like many, I used to have very little idea about what linguistics actually is. I thought it was basically the study of words (their origins, their meanings…).  And basically, I was wrong. Linguistics is so much more!  Many folks have chosen to define linguistics as the study of language; and that’s an okay definition — a bit one-sided and ambiguous, though.  Rather, linguistics (as a field of study) focuses on how communication is constructed on the lexical, syntactic, and semantic levels and explores how a string of utterances causes a wide range of pragmatic effects on an individual or a series of individuals. So you can see why as a Spanish major I would be interested in minoring in linguistics. However, a minor in linguistics is not just beneficial for people interested in modern languages, but rather a minor in linguistics complements well anyone who plans on communicating with people — that is to say, everyone!"

— Kane Puga '13, Spanish major