What is the difference between BA Applied Linguistics and BA Linguistics?

BA Linguistics centres on the theoretical structure of language. BA Applied Linguistics centres on language in use — learning, teaching, assessment, policy, discourse. At LSJHML the BA Applied Linguistics is the more vocationally applicable of the two.

Do I need a second language to enrol in BA Applied Linguistics?

Strongly recommended but not required. A second language gives you richer data to work with and supports modules in sociolinguistics, assessment and SLA. Many BA Applied Linguistics students develop a second language alongside the degree.

Can I qualify as an EFL teacher through BA Applied Linguistics?

The BA Applied Linguistics gives you the academic grounding. EFL teaching requires a separate teaching qualification — CELTA or equivalent — which many of our graduates take alongside or after the degree.

Is BA Applied Linguistics suitable for someone interested in NLP or AI language models?

Yes. Modules in corpus linguistics, discourse analysis and language and technology give you a working linguistic grounding for NLP and language-model work. Paired with technical study elsewhere, BA Applied Linguistics is an unusually strong foundation for the AI language space.

What sort of dissertation will I write on BA Applied Linguistics?

A 10,000-to-12,000-word empirical or analytical study on a topic you agree with your supervisor in your second year. Past examples include corpus studies of UK news discourse, classroom-observation studies in London ESOL settings, and assessment-validation pieces.

BA Applied Linguistics in London | LSJHML | Harold International College of London

Course Overview

The BA Applied Linguistics at the London School of Journalism, Humanities & Modern Languages (LSJHML) is a three-year UK honours degree for students who want to understand how language actually works in the wild — how it is learned, how it shapes identity, how it carries authority, and how it changes under pressure from technology, migration and policy. The degree is grounded in current British Association for Applied Linguistics scholarship and the working questions a serious language professional needs to answer.

You graduate able to design and run a small research study, analyse a discourse with rigour, and apply linguistic insight to a real-world setting — a classroom, an assessment body, a tech product, a courtroom. The final-year dissertation gives you a substantial piece of independent work to take into postgraduate study or a graduate job.

Key Features

BAAL-aligned curriculum covering the major sub-fields of applied linguistics.
Research methods training — qualitative, quantitative and corpus-based methods across all three years.
Sociolinguistics module drawing on UK and international research traditions.
Discourse analysis laboratory using current digital tools and corpora.
Final-year dissertation on a topic you negotiate with your supervisor.
Three study modes — on-campus in central London, fully online, or distance learning with structured deadlines.

What You Will Learn

The BA Applied Linguistics is structured around the core sub-fields of the discipline and the methods that hold them together. You graduate able to read an academic article in applied linguistics, design a small empirical study, analyse a body of language data, and write up the result for an academic or professional audience.

Second-language acquisition — the major theories and their empirical bases.
Sociolinguistics — variation, identity, language and power.
Discourse analysis — conversation analysis, critical discourse analysis, multimodal discourse.
Corpus linguistics — building, querying and analysing language corpora.
Language assessment — test design, validity, fairness, washback effects.
Language policy — multilingual education, minority languages, English as a global language.
Forensic linguistics — authorship attribution, courtroom discourse, the BAAL forensic SIG.
Language and technology — natural-language processing, large language models from a linguistic standpoint.

Who This Course Is For

School leavers with a strong interest in language and the social sciences.
International students seeking a UK honours degree in applied linguistics taught in the centre of London.
Career-changers from teaching, publishing, translation or social research moving into a research-grounded language specialism.
Working language teachers ready to formalise their practice with a degree-level credential.

Career Pathways

Graduates of the BA Applied Linguistics go into language-adjacent professional roles across education, technology, assessment, publishing and research. Typical first roles include:

Applied Linguist (research support role, university or assessment body)
ESL Curriculum Designer (publisher, language school chain)
Language Assessment Specialist (Cambridge Assessment-style body)
Discourse Analyst (consultancy, government research)
EFL Teacher (with appropriate teaching qualification on top)
Linguistic Data Annotator (technology firm, NLP team)

The degree is the natural prerequisite for an MA in Applied Linguistics, TESOL, or a related specialism.

Entry Requirements

Three A-Levels at BBC or above (or international equivalent — IB 28 points, BTEC DMM, or accepted national qualification).
GCSE English Language at grade 5 or equivalent English proficiency test.
IELTS 6.0 overall (no band below 5.5) for non-native English speakers.
A short personal statement; some applicants are invited to interview.
Mature applicants (21+) without standard qualifications may apply with a portfolio and short interview.

Why Study at LSJHML

The London School of Journalism, Humanities & Modern Languages is a specialist higher-education provider based in central London. Our programmes are designed in dialogue with working professionals — journalists, translators, civil servants, academics, broadcasters, editors, publishers and policy researchers — so what you learn in seminar on Monday is what your future employer is using on Tuesday. We deliberately keep cohorts small, give every student named tutor support, and treat employability as a structural part of every programme rather than an optional add-on.

London is the work — politics, courts, capital markets, theatre, broadcasting, publishing, public service, the global press. Your studies are taught in the same square mile where the stories you read about happen. Whether you join us on-campus, online or by distance learning, the city is your classroom and our industry network is your launchpad.