Get Involved
Getting involved in research is one of the most rewarding ways to deepen your understanding of linguistics beyond the classroom. Through hands-on research, you’ll develop critical thinking, data analysis, and writing skills that are valuable in any career path. You’ll work closely with faculty and graduate students, contribute to ongoing projects, and even have opportunities to present at conferences or publish your work. If you're thinking about graduate school, research experience is essential, but even if you're not, it's a chance to explore your interests, build confidence, and be part of the discovery process that drives the field forward.
How To Get Started
There’s no single path into research, but there are many ways to begin. Some students start by attending lab meetings or department events, while others dive in through coursework or casual conversations with faculty. If you're curious and proactive, you’ll find opportunities to get involved. Here are a few ways to start making connections and building experience.
Attend Lab Meetings
Lab meetings are a great way to observe how research happens behind the scenes. Many faculty members run their own research groups focused on specific topics like phonetics, semantics, or syntax. These meetings are often open to undergraduates who are interested in listening in, learning more, or eventually contributing. The department also hosts a regular omnibus lab meeting that brings together multiple labs for collaborative discussion and presentations. Attending these meetings is a low-pressure way to get familiar with current projects and make connections with faculty and graduate students.
Attend Colloquia
The department regularly invites linguists from other universities to present their research in our colloquium series. These talks offer a window into work happening across the field. Visiting speakers often hold one-on-one or small group meetings with students while on campus, making this a great networking opportunity, especially if you're considering graduate school or want to see what academic life looks like beyond Rochester.
Become A Research Assistant
Some students join faculty-led research projects as research assistants, helping with tasks like transcription, data analysis, or literature reviews. There aren't a set number of positions available or guaranteed at any time, but you usually hear about them through conversations with faculty or by demonstrating interest and initiative. The best way to be considered is to stay engaged: attend lab meetings, ask questions, and get to know faculty members whose work interests you. When an opportunity comes up, they’re more likely to think of you.
Work On A Senior Thesis Project/Independent Research
If you’re interested in doing a deep dive into a topic of your choice, you can propose an independent research project or pursue a senior honors thesis. These projects are usually completed over two semesters under the supervision of a faculty mentor and often involve original data collection and analysis. This is a chance to design and carry out your own study, develop your academic writing skills, and graduate with research honors.
Network with Faculty and Graduate Students
One of the best things you can do is build relationships within the department. Talk to your professors during office hours, ask questions about their research, or ask for advice about getting involved. Graduate students can also be great resources; they often work closely with faculty and may be looking for help on their own projects. The more people know you and your interests, the more likely opportunities will come your way.
Do Well Academically
Strong academic performance signals to faculty that you’re prepared to take on the challenges of research. Doing well in your linguistics courses, especially those in your area of interest, can lead to invitations to join projects, write letters of recommendation, or pursue advanced coursework. Academic success also builds your confidence and gives you a solid foundation for independent research later on.
Recent Projects
Below are examples of recent projects in the department that have included students. They illustrate the kind of work students can get involved in, and how your interests and skills might align with future opportunities.
Bantu Syntax and Subordination
Directed by Asia Pietraszko
This project investigates the structure of subordinate clauses in Zulu, a Bantu language spoken in South Africa. Research assistants have helped with tasks like aggregating and building corpora, developing web scrapers, and training large language models to generate and evaluate linguistic data. Other student roles have included transcribing fieldwork data, annotating grammatical structures, and contributing to theoretical analyses of syntax.
Student involvement has included:
- Creating and processing large linguistic datasets
- Conducting literature reviews and assisting with formal analysis
- Participating in fieldwork and working with native speaker consultants
Field Phonetics and Language Documentation
Directed by Joyce McDonough
Focused on the phonetics and phonology of Indigenous languages, this lab involves documenting endangered sound systems, often through legacy recordings and field data. Student assistants have transcribed, annotated, and analyzed speech using tools like Praat and ELAN, contributing to the preservation of linguistic diversity and the creation of online resources such as interactive speech atlases.
Student involvement has included:
- Phonetic and phonological transcription using the IPA
- Acoustic and spectrographic analysis of speech recordings
- Preparing annotated materials for long-term archiving
Rochester Accent Project
Directed by Maya R. Abtahian
This ongoing project studies how language is used and perceived in the Rochester area, within the broader context of the Inland North dialect region. Students help document dialect features, conduct interviews, and analyze how local identity and language intersect over time.
Student involvement has included:
- Conducting and transcribing interviews
- Analyzing patterns of variation and language change
- Assisting with community outreach and public-facing materials
Garifuna Phonetics and Phonology
Directed by Maya R. Abtahian
This project investigates the sound structures of Garifuna, an Arawak language spoken along the coast of Central American and in diaspora communities in the United States. Students help document and analyze features of the language.
Student involvement has included:
- Conducting and transcribing interviews
- Measuring and analyzing vowels and consonants of the language
- Analyzing patterns of phonetic variation and language change
If you’re curious about one of these or similar projects, the best first step is to talk with the faculty members leading them. You can also attend lab meetings, ask questions during office hours, or express your interest after a colloquium. Research roles often grow out of these kinds of conversations.
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Get in Touch
For more information about the Department of Linguistics, our programs, our research, or our courses, send us an email.