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Program and courses Research Master in Linguistics and Communication Sciences

Become a research expert in the field of cognition, language and communication within domains such as cognition and communication, linguistic anthropology, business communication and persuasion, digital media and communication, and online culture. Benefit from the knowledge and facilities of both Tilburg University and Radboud University Nijmegen, who jointly offer this Research Master's.

Program structure

This two-year program consists of 120 credits (ECTS).

  • The first year is composed of:
    • 6 mandatory courses (27 ECTS)
    • 4 core electives (24 ECTS)
    • 3 Research Skills electives (9 ECTS)
  • The second year is composed of:
    • 3 mandatory courses (21 ECTS)
    • 1 core elective (6 ECTS)
    • 1 Research Skills elective (3 ECTS)
    • Research Master's thesis (30 ECTS)

You can start either at the end of August or at the end of January.

Program content

Mandatory courses

In the first year you will take 6 mandatory courses (27 ECTS in total):

  • Foundations of Language and Communication (6 ECTS)
  • Statistics and Experimental Methods 1 & 2 (6 ECTS)
  • Research Orientation (3 ECTS)
  • Lab rotation 1 (internship, 6 ECTS)
  • Term Paper ReMa (6 ECTS)

In the second year you will take 3 mandatory courses (21 ECTS in total):

  • Lab rotation 2 (internship, 9 ECTS)
  • Grant Proposal Writing (6 ECTS)
  • Valorization (6 ECTS)

Lab Rotation

Lab Rotation (1 and 2) gives you the opportunity to experience what it is like to be a researcher by immersing yourself as a 'research intern' in a research group or research project within Tilburg University or Radboud University Nijmegen. You will carry out an individual research project within the context of a larger project, or within the context of a research program. You will be supervised by one or more experienced researchers.

Master's thesis

The Research Master's thesis (30 ECTS) is a research project in which you  demonstrate 1) disciplinary knowledge, 2) methodological expertise and 3) research skills.

  • You will be supervised by two senior researchers.
  • In the assessment of your thesis, the quality of your literature review, originality, clarity and feasibility of your research questions, appropriateness and quality of the methodology applied, quality of the analysis and discussion, and the clarity with which you present the research and results will be considered.
  • In many cases, the thesis results in a conference paper, a paper for an academic journal, or a proposal for PhD research.

Examples of previous thesis topics include:

  • Mind the map! The interaction of language and graphics in communicating route information
  • The Effect of Perspective Taking on Trust and Understanding in Mediations. Experimental research of the use of circular questions as perspective taking technique in online and face-to-face mediation
  • Contact-induced Language Change in Turkish as Spoken in the Netherlands: A Study of Loan Translations
  • Emerging knowledge of word order and the acquisition of word meanings: An artificial language learning study
  • Children’s interpretation of overspecified information in a persuasive context: An experimental study into the effects of overspecified modifiers in referring expressions on purchase intention
  • Supporting educational practices through social media. On the functionality and usefulness of Facebook groups in higher education
  • The impact of communicative behavior on doctors’ and patients’ satisfaction: A comparison between computer-mediated and face-to-face consultations
  • Modeling child-adult interaction: a computational study of word learning in context

Elective courses

  • In your first year you will choose four core electives (6 ECTS per course) and three Research Skills electives (3 ECTS per course).
  • In the second year you choose one core elective (6 ECTS) and one Research Skills elective (3 ECTS per course).

You may combine courses offered in Tilburg with courses offered in Nijmegen. You are also allowed to combine courses from different domains.

At Tilburg University we offer courses in the following domains:

Cognition and Communication

About Cognition and Communication 

People use communication in many ways and for various purposes: we interact socially with each other, gather and disseminate information, try to convince others, use communication to entertain others, and we express our emotions by, for example, laughing or crying.

Within this domain, you will study a wide range of communicative processes from a cognitive approach. Topics include linguistic framing of information, computational models of language acquisition, nonverbal communication, and visual communication.

Choose 5 core electives out of (for example):

  • Cognition and Process
  • Data and (Mis)information
  • Non-verbal Communication
  • Cognition of Visual Narratives
  • Negotiation Studies
  • Multimodal Communication
  • Virtual, Augmented, and Mixed Reality
  • Language Technology & Cognition
  • Interactive Storytelling
  • Intercultural Communication Online and Offline
  • Taalkennis
  • Persuasion and (Dis)agreement
  • Creativity and Innovation
  • Risk Communication
  • Emerging Technologies for Learning

Choose 4 Research Skills electives out of (for example):

  • Research Skills: Programming
  • Research Skills: Visual Thinking and Composition
  • Research Skills: Annotation
  • Research Skills: Analysis of Variance
  • Research Skills: Eye Tracking
  • Research Skills: Academic Writing
  • Research Skills: Rapid Prototyping
  • Research Skills: Survey Design
  • Research Skills: Usability and User Experience Evaluation
Linguistic Anthropology

About Linguistic Anthropology 

Within this domain, you will study the ways in which globalization affects the way we build our communicative repertoires.

Choose 5 core electives out of (for example):

  • Usage Based Approaches to Knowledge
  • Non-verbal Communication
  • Intercultural Communication Online and Offline
  • Online Health Practices
  • Digital Health Communication
  • The Normal and the Abnormal in Health
  • Discourse Analysis and Digital Media
  • Knowing Language (taught in Dutch)

Choose 4 Research Skills electives out of (for example):

  • Research Skills: Research Interview 
  • Research Skills: Anthropology and fieldwork
  • Research Skills: Academic Writing
  • Research Skills: Online Data Collection
  • Research Skills: Ethnography and Interview
  • Research Skills: Survey Design
  • Research Skills: Narratology and Discursive Analytical Strategies
Business Communication and Persuasion

About Business Communication and Persuasion

Within this domain, you will study the factors that determine whether companies and organizations' communications with their customers and other stakeholders are successful or unsuccessful. You will look at processes such as negotiation, conflict management, public relations and marketing communication.

Choose 5 core electives out of (for example):

  • Multimodal Communication
  • Negotiation Studies
  • Social Media Marketing
  • Online Public Relations
  • Roles in Networked Organizations
  • Psychology of Business Communication
  • Digital Food Marketing
  • Social Media: Risks and Opportunities
  • Resistance and Persuasion
  • Social Media at Work
  • Webcare

Choose 4 Research Skills electives out of (for example):

  • Research Skills: Programming
  • Research Skills: Online Data Collection
  • Research Skills: Academic Writing
  • Research Skills: Analysis of Variance
  • Research Skills: Eye Tracking
  • Research Skills: Social Media Analytics
  • Research Skills: Survey Design
Digital Media and Communication

About Digital Media and Communication

Within this domain, you will study the implications of using digital media for both interpersonal communication and communication within the context of businesses.

  • How does the way we communicate with each other online differ from the way we communicate with each other offline?
  • How does the use of digital media affect social and communicative processes, such as self-representation, collaboration, and the formation, maintenance, and termination of relationships?
  • What challenges and opportunities do digital media bring, both in social and business contexts?

Choose 5 elective core courses out of (for example):

  • The Human Mind in the Digital World
  • Digital industries and infrastructures
  • Language Technology and Society
  • Social Media Marketing
  • Roles in Networked Organizations
  • Digital Health Communication
  • Language Technology & Cognition
  • Interactive Storytelling
  • Responsible UX Design
  • Discourse Analysis and Digital Media
  • Design Research
  • Social Media at Work

Choose 4 Research Skills electives out of (for example):

  • Research Skills: Annotation
  • Research Skills: Academic Writing
  • Research Skills: Analysis of Variance
  • Research Skills: Online Data Collection
  • Research Skills: Social Media Analytics
  • Research Skills: Rapid Prototyping
  • Research Skills: Survey Design
  • Research Skills: Usability and User Experience Evaluation
Online Culture

About Online Culture

Within this domain, you will study the implications of digitalization for our everyday lives. You will combine different perspectives: cognitive, social and anthropological.

Choose 5 elective core courses out of (for example):

  • Digital Knowledge
  • Language Technology & Society
  • Digital Media and Everyday Life
  • Discourse Analysis and Digital Media
  • Studying Online Health Practices
  • The Normal and the Abnormal in Health
  • Social Media: Risks and Opportunities
  • Intercultural Communication Online and Offline
  • Online Public Relations
  • Social Media at Work
  • Intimacy, Privacy and Authenticity
  • Experiences of the Sublime

Choose 4 Research Skills electives out of (for example):

  • Research Skills: Annotation
  • Research Skills: Online Data Collection
  • Research Skills: Academic Writing
  • Research Skills: Research Interview 
  • Research Skills: Anthropology and fieldwork
  • Research Skills: Interaction in the Hybrid Media System
  • Research Skills: Ethnomining
  • Research Skills: Using digital literacies
  • Research Skills: Ethnography and Interview
  • Research Skills: Survey Design

You will find a detailed description of the courses and required literature in our course catalog.

Go to the course descriptions

Please note: programs are subject to change. We advise you to look up the current program in OSIRIS Student at the start of the year.

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Short overview of the Research Master in Linguistics and Communication

  • Under individual supervision, build your own unique research profile:
    • Give substance to that profile yourself by choosing from the wide range of elective courses. Five different profiles offer you a guide to specialize within a particular domain.
    • From the start of the program, an academic tutor will help prepare you for the career you aspire to, for example by advising you in putting together a program that fits your aspirations and finding a research internship.
  • Because the program is provided in collaboration with Radboud University Nijmegen, you will follow courses in both Tilburg and Nijmegen.
  • As a student you will receive a personal facilities budget that can be used for (international) conference visits and reimbursement of extra travel costs, among other things.

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