FAQs Application Process
Our M.A. programme offers six (6) specialisations:
- English Language and Linguistics
- General Linguistics and Linguistic Diversity
- German Linguistics
- Romance Linguistics
- Slavic Linguistics
- Language and Cognition
Yes! You must apply for a specific specialisation.
Winter Semester → Non-EU students: 01.03. – 31.07. / EU students: 01.03. – 15.09.
Summer Semester → Non-EU students: 15.09. – 31.01. / EU students: 15.09. – 15.03.
Applying for the M.A. programme Linguistics – Language, Communication and Cognition is completely free of charge.
Yes! You can apply for all six specialisations at the same time.
Please note that the admission requirements differ between the specialisations, so it’s possible to be accepted for some and rejected for others. If you receive admission offers for more than one, you will need to choose one specialisation for enrolment.
Applications are submitted exclusively online.
You can find a step-by-step tutorial here.
- Register via the university’s application portal.
- Log in and create an application.
- Follow the instructions on the website to upload your documents.
- Submit your application.
Please enter a grade of 0. Your grade will be converted during the admissions process.
You will need the following documents:
- Your Bachelor’s degree transcript of records.
- Your Bachelor’s degree certificate.
- Translations of the above documents if the originals are not in English, German, or French.
- Proof of the required language skills.
Yes! In this case, you must submit any intermediate certificates you have.
If you don’t have them, please upload your most recent transcript of records along with a confirmation from your university that you will graduate soon.
If you will finish by September, you can apply!
In this case, please upload your latest transcript of records along with at least one confirmation from your university that you have registered your final thesis or will graduate shortly.
It depends on the specialisation you choose. These are the language requirements for each specialisation:
- English Language and Linguistics:
C1 Englisch - General Linguistics and Linguistic Diversity:
B2 Englisch - German Linguistics:
C2 German + B2 English - Romance Linguistics:
B2 German + B2 English + B2 proficiency in a Romance language - Slavic Linguistics:
B2 German + B2 English + B1 in one of the following languages: Bosnian, Croatian, Montenegrin, Serbian, Bulgarian, Polish, Russian or Czech - Language and Cognition:
B2 German + B2 English
The required information about which certificates are accepted for proof of language proficiency is available here.
Your ‘medium of instruction’ certificate may not be accepted, depending on the specialisation and required language level. (An overview of accepted language certificates can be found here.)
English B1/B2
Successful completion of an English-taught undergraduate or master’s degree programme from a country that is not genuinely anglophone (e.g., Syria) (→ in this case, official confirmation from the examination office, dean’s office, or degree programme coordinator or the note ‘medium of instruction: English’ on the ToR or in the Diploma Supplement).
English C1
Successful completion of an English-taught undergraduate degree programme and an English-taught master’s programme from a country that is not genuinely anglophone (e.g., Syria) (→ in this case, official confirmation from the examination office, dean’s office, or degree programme coordinator or the note ‘medium of instruction: English’ on the ToR or in the Diploma Supplement).
You must provide evidence of at least 35 ECTS credits in linguistic subjects to be considered for admission. The following areas are recognised:
- Solid knowledge of the structure of one or more languages, demonstrated by courses in, for example, phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, etc.
- Solid knowledge in at least one of the following linguistic areas:
- Language use, such as pragmatics, text linguistics, conversation analysis
- Language variation and/or language change, such as dialectology, sociolinguistics, historical linguistics
- Language and cognition, such as cognitive linguistics, psycholinguistics, neurolinguistics
Submit your transcript of records in its original form (with a translation if the original is not in English, German or French). The admissions committee will decide whether you meet the entry requirements.
Nothing! You do not need to submit a CV or letter of motivation to apply for our programme.
A good rule of thumb: if the application portal doesn’t ask for it, you don’t need to submit it.
Please only submit the documents requested — sending extra documents by email only delays the process.
If the portal asks for this, you have selected the wrong programme.
Please discard that application and start a new one. Scroll down to “Linguistics – Language, Communication and Cognition”. Hover over the options to see the full title, then select the specialisation you want to apply for.
If the portal asks for it, you have selected the wrong specialisation.
Please discard that application and start a new one. Scroll down to “Linguistics – Language, Communication and Cognition”. Hover over the options to see the full title, then select the specialisation you want to apply for.
You are welcome to send those documents via email to studienkoordination@linguistik.uni-freiburg.de.
You do NOT need to submit anything by post. The application is entirely online.
Once you’ve submitted your application, all you need to do is wait.
The status of your application will update as it is processed — please make sure you’ve enabled email notifications.
Please do not send emails enquiring about your application status.
We cannot provide updates while the admissions process is ongoing.
Please be patient.
Now you can enrol!
Your admission letter, which you can download from the application portal, contains important information about the enrolment procedure, including deadlines, etc.