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1. Admissions/ Management Information
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MA in Comparative Syntax and Semantics
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Masters MA in Comparative Syntax and Semantics
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Postgraduate Diploma PGDip in Comparative Syntax and SemanticsPlease indicate if the Postgraduate Diploma is available as an entry point, ie. is a programme on which a student can register, is an exit award, ie. is only available to students exiting the masters programme early, or both.Exit
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Postgraduate Certificate PGCert in Comparative Syntax and SemanticsPlease indicate if the Postgraduate Certificate is available as an entry points, ie. is a programme on which a student can register, is an exit award, ie. is only available to students exiting the masters programme early, or both.Exit
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Level of qualificationLevel 7
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This document applies to students who commenced the programme(s) in:2019
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Awarding institutionTeaching institution
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Unviersity of York University of York
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Department(s):
Where more than one department is involved, indicate the lead department		Board of Studies
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Lead Department Language and Linguistic Science
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Other contributing Departments:
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Route code
(existing programmes only)		PMLINSCSS1
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Admissions criteria
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A Bachelors degree or equivalent qualification, normally at the level of a good upper second class honours award.
For non-native speakers an IELTS score of 7.0, with a minimum of 7.0 in both Writing and Speaking and no less than 5.5 in all other components; or approved equivalent qualification.
Pre-requisite study of both (generative) syntax and (formal) semantics. We would expect you to have taken at last 40 credits (20 ECTS) in the areas of Syntax and Semantics before embarking on this programme.
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Length and status of the programme(s) and mode(s) of study
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ProgrammeLength (years/ months) Status (full-time/ part-time)
Please select		Start dates/months
(if applicable – for programmes that have multiple intakes or start dates that differ from the usual academic year)		Mode
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Face-to-face, campus-basedDistance learningOther
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MA1Full-timeSeptemberPlease select Y/NYesPlease select Y/NNo
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MA2Part-timeSeptemberPlease select Y/NYesPlease select Y/NNo
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Language(s) of study
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English
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Language(s) of assessment
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English
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2. Programme accreditation by Professional, Statutory or Regulatory Bodies (PSRB)
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2.a. Is the programme recognised or accredited by a PSRB
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Please Select Y/N: Noif No move to section 3
if Yes complete the following questions
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3. Additional Professional or Vocational Standards
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Are there any additional requirements of accrediting bodies or PSRB or pre-requisite professional experience needed to study this programme?
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Please Select Y/N: Noif Yes, provide details
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4. Programme leadership and programme team
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4.a. Please name the programme leader for the year to which the programme design applies and any key members of staff responsible for designing, maintaining and overseeing the programme.
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The programme leader is George Tsoulas. The overall responsibility for the designing, maintaining and overseeing of the programme rests with the Department's Teaching Committee.
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5. Purpose and learning outcomes of the programme
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5.a. Statement of purpose for applicants to the Masters programme
Please express succinctly the overall aims of the programme as an applicant facing statement for a prospectus or website. This should clarify to a prospective masters student why they should choose this programme, what it will provide to them and what benefits they will gain from completing it.
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The world’s roughly 6500 languages are remarkably different yet startlingly similar. Understanding how this is possible is perhaps the greatest conundrum of modern theoretical linguistics. The MA programme in Comparative Syntax and Semantics will provide you with the theoretical knowledge and skills of research and analysis that you need in order to explore in depth questions in syntax and semantics bringing to bear data from a variety of languages and their comparison. This programme is generally intended for those with a good background in generative syntax and formal semantics.

You will be taught by a variety of researchers and become part of a large and very active community of scholars researching questions central to the content of the programme. These questions include:

● What are the basic building blocks of Universal Grammar?
● What is the range and scope of linguistic variation?
● Which aspects of meaning and structure are subject to variation across languages and which are not?
● What is the status of large scale typological generalisations?
● How do we account for linguistic variation in theoretically elegant and cognitively meaningful way?

You will be guided through the old and established field of comparative syntax and the nascent yet burgeoning one of comparative semantics and learn to use some of the most innovative techniques deployed in the study of variation in meaning and structure. You will grow as an independent thinker and researcher, and you will be able to formulate new and exciting problems in the study of linguistic structure and meaning. Students graduating from this MA programme usually continue to PhD level work.
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5.b.i. Programme Learning Outcomes - Masters
Please provide six to eight statements of what a graduate of the Masters programme will be able to do.
If the document only covers a Postgraduate Certificate or Postgraduate Diploma please specify four to six PLO statements in the sections 5.b.ii and 5.b.iii as appropriate.
Taken together, these outcomes should capture the distinctive features of the programme. They should also be outcomes for which progressive achievement through the course of the programme can be articulated, and which will therefore be reflected in the design of the whole programme.
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PLOOn successful completion of the programme, graduates will be able to:
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1Approach with confidence intricate, complex and unfamiliar syntactic and semantic phenomena fro0m a comparative and crosslinguistic perspective, discern and analyse relevant patterns in the data, and convey their significance effectively and with appropriate technical conventions.
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2Select and deploy appropriate research methods acquired through the study of formal syntax and semantics of various unrelated languages and gain a global understanding of syntactic and semantic processes.
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3Propose creative and principled solutions to comparative syntactic and semantic problems, within a formal theoretical framework, and contribute them effectively to written reports, and other media.
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4Communicate clearly and effectively at an appropriate level for different audiences the nature and relevance of comparative syntactic and semantic questions and controversies and the pivotal significance of meaning, structure and crosslinguistic investigation for the understanding of human cognition and human nature more generally.
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5Demonstrate advanced reasoning and critical perspectives on linguistic and cultural diversity by synthesising and critically engaging with arguments from a variety of standpoints
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6Use specialist software and databases in order to carry out formal comparative research on large sets of languages.
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7Create detailed and persuasive, academically and ethically informed, project proposals, and initiate, develop and complete a substantial independent research project.
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8Manage their own development as researchers and professionals, demonstrating the ability to reflect on their own practice and on feedback received, and seeking assistance where appropriate.
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5.c. Explanation of the choice of Programme Learning Outcomes
Please explain your rationale for choosing these PLOs in a statement that can be used for students (such as in a student handbook). Please include brief reference to:
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i) ... in what way will these PLOs result in an ambitious, challenging programme which stretches the students?
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The learning outcomes represent an ambitious mix of breadth and depth of knowledge of comparative syntax and semantics, combined with practical skills in research methods, data analysis, and critical engagement with theory, data, and the process of research. The development of various skills is supported holistically through the pursuit of the PLOs as a whole. These skills include syntactic and semantic analysis along with the collection, collation, management of data, use of database tools, communication and collaboration, problem solving, and understanding of the implications of syntax and semantics in theor comparative dimension research for language and human cognition more generally,. The acquisition of these skills is supported by the various modes and methods of delivery and assessment including small group seminars, data analysis practice, oral and poster presentations, and a range of academic written work from incisive abstract writing to essays, to a dissertation.
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ii) ... in what way will these PLOs produce a programme which is distinctive and advantageous to the student?
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The PLOs reflect York’s own approach to comparative syntax and semantics, which combines a focus on formal and theoretical questions combined with careful empirical analysis.
PLOs 1, 2, 3 and 4 highlight the core content-related elements of the programme, namely data, qualitative and quantitative analysis, research techniques, and theory. PLOs 5, 6, 7 and 8 emphasise the M-level skills that students will gain through the programme. PLO 5 indicates development of communication skills. PLO 6 highlights critical reasoning. PLO 7 focuses on project management skills. PLO 8 indicates development of the student as an independent researcher. Taken together, the PLOs convey the manner in which the student’s subject knowledge and their ability to manage, shape, and mobilise their thinking will be substantially advanced.
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iii) ... how the design of the programme enables students from diverse entry routes to transition successfully into the programme? For example, how does the organisation of the programme ensure solid foundations in disciplinary knowledge and understanding of conventions, language skills, mathematics and statistics skills, writing skills, lab skills, academic integrity
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While students on the MA in Comparative Syntax and Semantics vary a little in terms of their previous education, only students with a strong interest and background in syntax and semantics are admitted on this programme. Autumn term modules that are specifically designed for students on this MA aim to further deepen and broaden students’ knowledge and skills in core areas, while also filling in gaps that may exist in the students' backgroud. At the same time more general skills such as critical reading, project management, data collection and essay writing. A year-long Research Training Seminar provides training in writing in linguistics, academic integrity, ethics, and other tools. Prior knowledge in these areas is not assumed, and hands-on workshops, formative and summative assessments in the Research Training Seminar provide opportunities to practise these skills, while the work in other modules (short and long essays, data analysis exercises, informal presentations) provide opportunities to apply skills. Further training in writing is provided partly by the Research Training Seminar during the autumn term, and partly through mid-length essays in the spring-term modules. Written feedback is provided on formative and summative work, allowing students to identify where they need to further develop their skills. Students are introduced to the opportunities within Careers and the support offered by the Maths and Writing centres in the programme induction meeting at the start of the academic year, and these opportunities are also signposted in the handbook. Similarly, the postgraduate York Award Gold and the York Futures online skills evaluation are introduced in induction week and in the department’s taught postgraduate handbook. The programme leader also meets with students several times over the year to draw their attention to career opportunities and to direct them towards scholarships and other sources of funding.
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iv) ... how the programme is designed to enable students to progress successfully - in a limited time frame - through to the end of the award? For example, the development of higher level research skills; enabling students to complete an independent study module; developing competence and confidence in practical skills/ professional skills. See QAA masters characteristics doument http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/Publications/Documents/Masters-Degree-Characteristics-15.pdf
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The programme is designed to ensure that the students receive the grounding they need, intellectually and in terms of specific study and related skills, at a pace that is commensurate with and supports their progress through the developing challenges of the MA. In the autumn term, the modules on issues at the syntax semantics interface and Comparative syntax and syntactic typology ensure that all students possess the high-level specialist knowledge and skills that provide a foundation for the rest of the programme. In the spring term modules, the students progress to modules focussing on advanced and specialised topics . Across these modules, students receive research-led teaching, and this key facet of the programme ensures that the methods and materials they encounter are sufficiently challenging, field defining, and recent for them to approach as an example of how to proceed in the undertaking of advanced academic work. Individual feedback is provided on formative and summative assessments.

A year-long module underpins students’ progress through the programme: the Research Training Seminar (RTS). This module is carefully designed to teach students particular skills at the moment when they first need to them. The early part of the module is devoted to core research, writing and critical reading skills. In the spring term the focus shifts to preparing for the dissertation, with training on ethics, writing a proposal, and research methods. Early in the summer term students are prepared for presenting a poster on their dissertation topic at a departmental presentation day, and for the writing of the dissertation itself. RTS therefore feeds directly into the students’ preparations for their dissertation, the transition to which offers the key progression point of the MA year.

Progression through the dissertation module is supported first by a two-member dissertation advisory panel (DAP) which meets twice (in the late spring and early summer terms) with the student to advise on, and foster reflection on, the dissertation proposal and the framing of the project. Thereafter, one member of the DAP becomes the student’s specialist research supervisor, and the student has five one-hour meetings with this supervisor during the summer term and vacation. In addition to this one-on-one mentoring, the student also receives feedback from peers and staff at the dissertation presentation day. As such, the student is thoroughly supported in undertaking the most challenging element of their MA.
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v) ... how this programme (as outlined in these PLOs) will develop students’ digital literacy skills and how technology-enhanced learning will be used to support active student learning through peer/tutor interaction, collaboration and formative (self) assessment opportunities (reference could be made to such as blogging, flipped classroooms, response 'clickers' in lectures, simulations, etc).
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The programme is focussed on formal and theoretical issues and analytical skills are paramount. Therefore digital skills are secondary although students learn to use online databases like SSWL and WALS. Students develop advanced word processing skills in order to present linguistic data according to the standard conventions of the field. Training in the relevant conventions is provided and assessed in the Research Training Seminar. If required, students are directed to the University’s central training in Word for additional support. Training in a number of digital tools for specific purposes is offered through optional workshops within the Research Training Module, for example: LaTeX for word processing, PsychoPy for running online experiments, Qualtrics for online questionnaires. Training in PRAAT for acoustic analysis is offered as an optional part of RTS. Students typically use Powerpoint to create a poster presentation for the summer term presentation day, and training on poster design and Powerpoint templates is provided in an RTS session. Most students also use Excel for data management. Students who need basic training in Excel are directed to the University’s central training. Training on some specific statistics functions in spreadsheets is offered within an RTS optional workshop on statistics. Students are introduced to the digital literacy training opportunities offered by the Library (“Digital Wednesdays”) in induction week and via the department’s taught postgraduate handbook.
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vi) ... how this programme (as outlined in these PLOs) will support and enhance the students’ employability (for example, opportunities for students to apply their learning in a real world setting)?
The programme's employablity objectives should be informed by the University's Employability Strategy:
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http://www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/support-and-admin/careers/staff/
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The PLOs support and enhance student employability by focusing on the development of advanced analytical skills and the ability to mobilize subject knowledge through critical engagement, which is a sought-after skill in the employment market. The development of digital literacy skills (see above), collecting, collating and managing data, communication and collaboration, and problem solving, and reflection on practice, are supported holistically through the pursuit of the PLOs as a whole. The acquisition of these skills is supported by the various modes and methods of delivery and assessment including small group seminars, formative oral and poster presentations, and the writing of both short, incisive reports and longer research essays. Crucially, through the dissertation, students gain experience of management of a complex project that requires application of their academic and practical knowledge and skills from across the programme, including subject knowledge, IT skills, critical thinking, ethical considerations, data collection and analysis, time management, and communication skills.
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viii) ... how learning and teaching on the programme are informed and led by research in the department/ Centre/ University?
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The department has always valued and promoted research-led teaching. Specialist autumn and spring term modules are designed with flexibility in mind so that they can provide a structured environment for teaching that is centred around the research interests of members of individual members of the department. With the opportunities for extended independent study in the dissertation, as well as formative and summative assessment in the taught modules, students are able both to be taught in the subjects and areas where staff are most research active, and to contribute to those areas under the supervision of staff members who are, at that particular time, some of the leading experts in the topic.
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5.d. Progression
For masters programmes where students do not incrementally 'progress' on the completion of a discrete Postgraduate Certificate and Postgraduate Diploma, please summarise students’ progressive development towards the achievement of the PLOs, in terms of the characteristics that you expect students to demonstrate at the end of the set of modules or part thereof. This summary may be particularly helpful to students and the programme team where there is a high proportion of option modules and in circumstances where students registered on a higher award will exit early with a lower one.

Note: it is not expected that a position statement is written for each masters PLO, but this can be done if preferred.
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On completion of modules sufficient to obtain a Postgraduate Certificate students will be able to:
If the PG Cert is an exit award only please provide information about how students will have progressed towards the diploma/masters PLOs. Please include detail of the module diet that students will have to have completed to gain this qualification as an exit award.
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Partial progress in all of the PLOs. None - no set prescribed diet of modules.
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On completion of modules sufficient to obtain a Postgraduate Diploma students will be able to:
If the PG Diploma is an exit award only please provide information about how students will have progressed towards the masters PLOs. Please include detail of the module diet that students will have to have completed to gain this qualification as an exit award.
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Partial progress in all of the PLOs. 20-credit Diploma Essay module must be taken in addition to the 100 credits of taught modules indicated in the MA progamme diet. The dissertation is not part of the Postgraduate Diploma.
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6. Reference points and programme regulations
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6.a. Relevant Quality Assurance Agency benchmark statement(s) and other relevant external reference points
Please state relevant reference points consulted (e.g. Framework for Higher Education Qualifications, National Occupational Standards, Subject Benchmark Statements or the requirements of PSRBs): See also Taught Postgraduate Modular Scheme: Framework for Programme Design:
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6.b. University award regulations
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The University’s award and assessment regulations apply to all programmes: any exceptions that relate to this programme are approved by University Teaching Committee and are recorded at the end of this document.
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7. Programme Structure
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7.a. Module Structure and Summative Assessment Map
Please complete the summary table below which shows the module structure and the pattern of summative assessment through the programme.

IMPORTANT NOTE:
If the structure of your programme does not fit the usual academic year (for instance students start at the beginning of September or in January) please contact your Academic Quality Team contact in the Academic Support Office for guidance on how to represent the structure in an alternative format.

To clearly present the overall programme structure, include the name and details of each invidual CORE module in the rows below. For OPTION modules, ‘Option module’ or 'Option from list x' should be used in place of specifically including all named options. If the programme requires students to select option modules from specific lists by term of delivery or subject theme these lists should be provided in the next section (7.b).

From the drop-down select 'S' to indicate the start of the module, 'A' to indicate the timing of each distinct summative assessment point (eg. essay submission/ exam), and 'E' to indicate the end of teaching delivery for the module (if the end of the module coincides with the summative assessment select 'EA'). It is not expected that each summative task will be listed where an overall module might be assessed cumulatively (for example weekly problem sheets).

Summative assessment by exams should normally be scheduled in the spring week 1 and summer Common Assessment period (weeks 5-7). Where the summer CAP is used, a single ‘A’ can be used within the shaded cells as it is understood that you will not know in which week of the CAP the examination will take place. (NB: An additional resit assessment week is provided in week 10 of the summer term for postgraduate students. See Guide to Assessment, 5.4.a)
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Full time structure
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CreditsModuleAutumn TermSpring Term Summer Term Summer Vacation
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CodeTitle12345678910123456789101234567891012345678910111213
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20L68MIssues at the Syntax Semantics InterfaceSEA
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20L67MComparative Syntax and Syntactic TypologySSEA
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20L34MResearch Training SeminarSAAE
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20L61MAdvanced comparative syntactic or semantic typologySEA
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20L64MComparative semanticsSEA
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80DissertationSEA
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Please indicate when the Progression Board and Final Exam board will be held and when any reassessments will be submitted.
NB: You are required to provide at least three weeks notice to students of the need for them to resubmit any required assessments, in accordance with the Guide to Assessment section 4.9
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Progression BoardSummer Term Week 8
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ReassessmentSummer Term Week 2 to mid-July
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Exam BoardAutumn Term Week 7
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Part time structures
Please indicate the modules undertaken in each year of the part-time version of the programme. Please use the text box below should any further explanation be required regarding structure of part-time study routes.
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Year 1 (if you offer the programme part-time over either 2 or 3 years, use the toggles to the left to show the hidden rows)
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CreditsModuleAutumn TermSpring Term Summer Term Summer Vacation
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CodeTitle12345678910123456789101234567891012345678910111213
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20L68MIssues at the Syntax Semantics InterfaceSEA
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20L67MComparative Syntax and Syntactic TypologySSEA
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20Option List BSEA
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20L34MResearch Training SeminarSAAE
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Please indicate when the Progression Board and Final Exam board will be held and when any reassessments will be submitted.
NB: You are required to provide at least three weeks notice to students of the need for them to resubmit any required assessments, in accordance with the Guide to Assessment section 4.9
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Progression BoardSummer Term Week 8
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ReassessmentSpring and Summer Terms Week 8
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Exam BoardAutumn Term & Week 7
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Year 2