What Kinds of Jobs Do Linguists Get?
Since linguistics is a relatively new field, there is no fixed area in which only linguists are employed. Most linguists are to be found teaching at universities or connected with organizations which involve research and teaching, development of teaching materials, or field study of the world’s languages. A background in linguistics is useful in fields such as education, library science, artificial intelligence, psychology, and cognitive science. A degree or specialization in teaching English to speakers of other languages is valuable in obtaining employment both at home and abroad as a teacher of English as a second or foreign language (TESL/TEFL) or as a teacher of any other language. The need for bilingual education and English instruction in the public schools has led to a demand for trained linguists in many urban areas throughout the United States.
