Course details

Summary

The Bachelor of Arts (BA) is Otago's most flexible undergraduate degree programme, enabling students to study from a selection of more than 40 arts and social science subjects, as well as papers offered elsewhere in the University. Academic breadth is complemented by in-depth knowledge gained through majoring in one or two subjects with the option of minors in one or two others.

Students are taught by research-active scholars, are expected to undertake a diverse range of learning tasks and are challenged to develop their intellectual independence. Graduates of the programme are well-informed, versatile, independent thinkers with the information literacy, communication, research and interpersonal skills necessary for a career or further academic study. The completed BA is an entry qualification for the PGDipArts in the major subject of the degree.

English and Linguistics

It is possible to complete a specialised major in English and Linguistics for a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree.

Language is power. We use language for the whole range of activities that make us human, from passion to politics; we negotiate through language in every waking moment of our lives. Literature is language at its most effective.

English at Otago is designed to fulfill three main aims: opening up the vast and delightful range of literatures written in English; providing a grasp of the concepts and techniques for analysing texts; and improving communication skills of every kind.

By taking English you will find your perceptions sharpened, your understanding deepened and your enjoyment enhanced - for life. Above all, you will equip yourself for a career in almost any sector of society.

Linguistics comprises different areas of specialisation:

• phonetics (the study of speech sounds)
• phonology (the study of sound systems)
• morphology (the study of the internal structure of words)
• syntax (the study of how words are combined into sentences)
• semantics (the study of meaning)
• pragmatics (the study of meaning in relation to the way language is used)
• socio-linguistics (the study of language in its social context)
• historical linguistics (the study of language change)
• universal typology (the study of language universals and differences)
• acquisition (the study of how first and second languages are learned)
• applied linguistics (the application of linguistics to language teaching and other professional activities)

Programme Requirements

100-level

• One 100-level ENGL paper (excluding ENGL 126 English for University Purposes)
• LING 111 Language and Its Structure

200-level

• Two 200-level ENGL papers
• LING 214 Syntax
• One further 200-level LING paper (excluding LING 231)

300-level

• Two 300-level ENGL papers
• Two 300-level LING papers

Plus

198 further points; must include 36 points at 200-level or above.

Up to 90 points may be taken from outside Arts

Entry criteria

The minimum requirement for students is the completion of a high school qualification plus satisfactory completion of one year's study at an approved tertiary institution or successful completion New Zealand Foundation Year programme.

We also accept the following International qualifications: International Baccalaureate: IB Diploma with a minimum of 26 points; GCE Advanced Levels: minimum grade of 8.

English Language Requirements:

IELTS score of 6.0 in the academic module (with no individual band below 6.0); Internet-based TOEFL Score of 80 (writing 20); Paper-based TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) score of 550 (TWE 4.5); CIE Cambridge International Examinations Grade E or better in AS English; Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English (CAE) - Overall score of 176 (with no individual band below 169); Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) - Overall score of 176 (with no individual band below 169); GCE 'A' Level or 'AS' Level English Language or English Literature - grade C or higher; GCE 'AS' Level General Paper (English) - grade C or higher; APIEL (Advanced Placement International English Language) Examination - grade 3 or higher; IB International Baccalaureate - English at Higher or Standard level in Language A: literature, Language A: language and literature, or at Higher level in Language B; Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic - Overall score of 58 with no communicative skills score below 50.