Master's Programme in Natural Language Processing

Presentation

Start-up Date

Autumn.

The Degree

The Master´s programme leads to the degree Master of Philosophy in Natural Language Processing. It is a two-year programme (120 ECTS credits).

Objectives / Contents

The Master's Programme in Natural Language Processing consists of in-depth study of selected natural language processing topics such as computer modeling of language and language technology applications. It also includes an introduction to research methods, and to problems in the philosophy of science as applied to natural language processing.

Programme structure

The Master's Programme in Natural Language Processing consists of a course part of 60 ECTS credits and a Maste's thesis of 60 ECTS. It can have the following structure:

First semester: DASP303 Natural Language Modeling, DASP304 Language Technological Applications.

Second semester: LINGMET Philosophy of Science and Method for Linguists, DASP302 Statistical Methods, DASP307 Writing Linguistic Texts.

Third and fourth semesters: DASP350 Master's thesis

Master thesis

The Master's thesis is intended to qualify the student for research in computational linguistics and language technology. The student chooses a topic to be investigated, and the result is presented in the form of a thesis. The thesis does not need to present new material or reach new and original conclusions and insights in order to be accepted, but it should treat its material in accordance with the methodological standards of the field. The size of theses will vary, but a thesis will normally be between 50 and 120 pages long.

The topic of the thesis must be approved by the department and fall within a sub-field in which the department has or can provide the required competence for supervision. The student has the right to be assigned a supervisor for the thesis, chosen by the department. The student and the supervisor will sign a supervision contract.

Method

The research methods comprise, e.g., the building and empirical testing of language models, both rule based (e.g., computational grammars) and statistical. Relevant test methods are the construction and use of text corpora, maschine learning methods, and psycholinguistic methods for testing against human subjects.

Admission

Start-up Date

Autumn.

Admission Requirements

A first degree (Bachelor´s degree) of three or four years' duration from an approved institution of higher education, as well as proficiency in the English language.

Your Bachelor´s degree must have a specialisation in computational linguistics, or language technology, or linguistics combined with at least one semester of computer programming. The specialisation should correspond to at least three semesters of full-time study. You should also present a statement of purpose for a Master´s thesis.

In order for us to be able to evaluate your application, we need specific documentation on the relevance of your former university education. The documents listed below must be included in order for your application to be processed.

1. The application must - in a separate document/letter - point out the exact courses within the field oflinguistics that, together are be equivalent to three semesters of full time studies (90 ECTS credits) in the field.

2. Course descriptions of the relevant courses must be submitted and the amount of credits connected to each course should be documented.

3. You must also submit documentation that shows the amount of credits or the number of courses that equal a full time study load of one semester. This could for instance be a statement from your home university.

4. You should also present a statement of purpose for a future Master's thesis.

5. In addition all applicants must provide additional evidence of English language proficiency, for example Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or International English Language Testing Service (IELTS).

Applications that fail to include all the above mentioned documentation will not be processed.

Who may apply

Self-financing degree students

See also general documentational requirements for self-financing degree students: http://link.uib.no/?51S1q