**Develop specialist skills in the analysis and practice of language in professional contexts, taught by leading experts in a world-class research centre.** Set in the internationally respected Centre for Language and Communication Research, the MA in Applied Linguistics offers both solid training in research foundations and practice, and the freedom to tailor your programme around your interests and ambitions. Designed for careers requiring specialised language awareness and teaching English as a foreign language, our wide-ranging optional modules enable you to enhance your skills in the areas of linguistic enquiry most important for you and your career. Incorporating research methodology and language description, this Master’s programme will give you an in-depth understanding of a range of language-related issues, from language acquisition and teaching to social interaction and corpus analysis. You will acquire well-rounded understanding of the theoretical and methodological approaches employed in the exploration of linguistic structures and language description. While becoming an independent and active learner, you will develop in-depth understanding of key issues in language, communication and linguistics. Our experts are leading on innovative projects in many different fields, including language acquisition, language teaching, sociolinguistics, historical linguistics, discourse analysis, professional communication, corpus linguistics, systemic functional linguistics and forensic linguistics. Fostering an international academic arena for cutting-edge research, we host talks from visiting academics from around the world, as well as advanced research residencies and occasional summer schools. During your studies you will benefit directly from this thriving research environment and the support of a wide range of professionals who will guide your personal and professional development. English Language at Cardiff is ranked in the world top 100 (QS World University Rankings by Subject 2020) and top ten for research in the UK (Research Excellence Framework 2014).