Length

1 year full-time

Department

Department of Education

Start date

September 2025 (semester dates)

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Extend your knowledge of the processes that underpin and facilitate language learning.

This MA programme offers two pathways: the MA in Applied Linguistics for Language Teaching, as well as the MA in Applied Linguistics for English Language Teaching.

You'll learn about new developments in applied linguistics research and will be able to reflect on these in light of your own practical expertise.

The course is designed for experienced language teachers. You should have at least 12 months' experience of full-time, classroom-based teaching (or equivalent).

Leading research

Ranked 1st in the UK for the quality of our research - according to the Times Higher Education’s ranking of the latest REF results (2021).

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Join an active academic community

Talks, workshops and seminars give you opportunities to get involved with our active academic community and keep up to date with cutting edge research

UK top 10

We're ranked 9th in the UK and World Top 50 for Education (QS World Rankings by Subject, 2023)

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Course content

This course is designed for applicants from the UK or overseas who wish to pursue a career in teaching foreign languages, including English as a foreign language.

The course offers advanced enquiry into the processes of language learning, with specific reference to second and foreign language learning. You will take a total of 180 credits, including four core modules, two option modules and a dissertation.

Modules

Core modules

Students on the MA Applied Linguistics for English Language Teaching pathway will also study:

Teaching World Englishes

Option modules

Students on the MA Applied Linguistics for Language Teaching pathway take two option modules.

Students on the MA Applied Linguistics for English Language Teaching pathway take one option module.

Our modules may change to reflect the latest academic thinking and expertise of our staff, and in line with Department/School academic planning.

Dissertation

Independent Study Module (Dissertation)

You will develop, design, implement and manage your own original research project, supervised by a member of staff with the relevant experience for your topic. To complete this masters degree, you will produce a 12,000-word dissertation based on your research project.

The York approach

Every course at York is built on a distinctive set of learning outcomes. These will give you a clear understanding of what you will be able to accomplish at the end of the course and help you explain what you can offer employers. Our academics identify the knowledge, skills, and experiences you'll need upon graduation and then design the course to get you there.

Students who complete this course will be able to:

Use their sophisticated understanding of applied linguistics and foreign language (FL) teaching to engage with educational issues at the forefront of the discipline.
Select and deploy cutting-edge applied linguistics techniques and methodologies in order to investigate foreign language learning and teaching.
Analyse complex, incomplete or contradictory areas of knowledge, and to synthesise the information in innovative ways to create original insights at the forefront of the discipline of applied linguistics.
Communicate complex information and arguments clearly, confidently and in a professional manner, making use of oral, written and visual formats.
Initiate and conduct independent, focused research projects in the area of applied linguistics and foreign language teaching by engaging in thorough planning, rigorous ethics procedures, and the selection and application of appropriate principles, methodologies and approaches.
Collate, manage and critically analyse complex empirical data using appropriate software in order to support presented arguments.

Fees and funding

Annual tuition fees for 2025/26

Study mode	UK (home)	International and EU
Full-time (1 year)	£11,200	£25,900

Students on a Student Visa are not currently permitted to study part-time at York.

Fees information

UK (home) or international fees? The level of fee that you will be asked to pay depends on whether you're classed as a UK (home) or international student. Check your fee status.

Find out more information about tuition fees and how to pay them.

Postgraduate taught fees and expenses

Additional costs

There are no mandatory additional fees, but we do recommend that you set aside some money for photocopying. Course books will be available from the Library and online reading packs are available for most modules, but you may wish to buy your own copies. Each book typically costs £20 to 40.

Funding information

Discover your funding options to help with tuition fees and living costs.

We'll confirm more funding opportunities for students joining us in 2025/26 throughout the year.

If you've successfully completed an undergraduate degree at York you could be eligible for a 10% Masters fee discount.

Funding opportunities

Chevening Scholarships

We are pleased to work with Chevening Scholars to offer funding for our Masters programmes. Chevening Scholarships provide one year of fully-funded postgraduate study in the UK for international (including EU) students. The scholarships are open to early and mid-career professionals who have the potential to become future leaders.

Living costs

You can use our living costs guide to help plan your budget. It covers additional costs that are not included in your tuition fee such as expenses for accommodation and study materials.

Teaching and assessment

You’ll work with world‐leading academics who’ll challenge you to think independently and excel in all that you do. Our approach to teaching will provide you with the knowledge, opportunities, and support you need to grow and succeed in a global workplace.

Teaching format

You will be taught through a combination of formal lectures, seminars, practical exercises and workshops.

You will spend time working on your own, reading assigned texts and researching supporting materials, as well as working with others in seminars to discuss and present your work.

A member of teaching staff will act as your supervisor throughout the degree to help guide your studies and monitor your progress.

Teaching location

You'll be based in the Department of Education on Campus West. Teaching for this course takes place at various locations on Campus West, including Derwent and Vanbrugh Colleges, and the Spring Lane teaching building.

About our campus

Our beautiful green campus offers a student-friendly setting in which to live and study, within easy reach of the action in the city centre. It's easy to get around campus - everything is within walking or pedalling distance, or you can always use the fast and frequent bus service.

Assessment and feedback

Types of assessments used throughout this course include:

four 3,500-word assessed essays
online exams
research proposal and ethics audit
a 12,000-word dissertation on an original piece of your own research.

Careers and skills

This masters is an ideal grounding for postgraduate students looking to go on to further study such as PhD or for a career in the education sector.

Many of our graduates become language teachers around the world: in private language schools, state schools, and universities. Others find employment opportunities in course and syllabus design, or writing in publishing houses.

Our postgraduate courses can be used to complement teacher training/development programmes and voluntary or paid roles which focus on the more practical elements of teaching. However, other than our PGCE, our courses are not teacher training programmes in themselves.

Career opportunities

English teacher
Modern foreign language teacher
Teacher trainer
Language materials developer
Educational consultant
Researcher
Manager of research & development within an educational institution

Transferable skills

Research methods
Data analysis
Design and completion of original research
Critical reasoning
Communication skills (including intercultural communication)
Academic and professional language skills in English
Team working
Problem solving
Time-management
Information management
Working independently

Entry requirements

	Typical offer
Undergraduate degree	2:2 or equivalent in a relevant discipline such as Language, Linguistics or Education
International pre-masters programme	Pre-masters from our International Pathway College
Other international qualifications	Equivalent qualifications from your country

English language

If English isn't your first language you may need to provide evidence of your English language ability. We accept the following qualifications:

	Minimum requirement
IELTS (Academic and Indicator)	6.5, minimum 6.0 in each component
Cambridge CEFR	B2 First: 176, with 169 in each component
Oxford ELLT	7, minimum of 6 in each component
Duolingo	120, minimum 105 in all other components
LanguageCert SELT	B2 with 33/50 in each component
LanguageCert Academic	70 with a minimum of 65 in each component
Kaplan Test of English Language	459-494, with 426-458 in all other components
Skills for English	B2: Merit overall, with Pass with Merit in each component
PTE Academic	61, minimum 55 in each component
TOEFL	87, minimum 21 in each component
Trinity ISE III	Merit in all requirements

For more information see our postgraduate English language requirements.

If you haven't met our English language requirements

You may be eligible for one of our pre-sessional English language courses. These courses will provide you with the level of English needed to meet the conditions of your offer.

The length of course you need to take depends on your current English language test scores and how much you need to improve to reach our English language requirements.

After you've accepted your offer to study at York, we'll confirm which pre-sessional course you should apply to via You@York.

Applying

You can apply and send all your documentation online. You don’t need to complete your application all at once: you can start it, save it and finish it later.

How to apply

You should have the equivalent of at least one year's full-time teaching experience by the time the course starts. Your experience of teaching can be in any language and at any stage of learning. Your teaching experience should normally have taken place after you obtained your first degree. Teacher training internships, casual private tutoring and holiday camps are not normally sufficient experience. You must indicate clearly on the main application form that you have this experience, giving all of the following information:

the start date and finish date of your teaching experience. If you'll be teaching until the MA starts, please write 'ongoing until MA starts'.
the type of establishment you have taught in (eg primary, secondary, university, private language school, etc).
whether you were full or part time. If part time, tell us how much you taught per week.

You will also need to provide formal evidence of your teaching experience, for example a professional reference.

If by the time the MA at York begins, you will not have the equivalent of at least one year's full time experience, please consider applying for the MA in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages instead. If you are unsure about your eligibility, or want to enquire informally about whether this course would be suitable for you, please contact us.

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