One of the first departments of Mersin University, the department of English Linguistics first started education under the name of English Language and Literature. When it was first established under the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the department, like the others of the same name in different universities, carried out a program based on literature and cultural studies. However, due to the rapid development and change in the academic staff, starting from the 1999-2000 academic year, implemented a Linguistics program in 100% English. After the closure of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences following the decree published in the Legal Gazette on July 26th, 2022, the department has continued education within the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences since 2022 and the name of the department has been changed to the Department of English Linguistics in accordance with the name of the programme since 2024.

    Upon successful completion of the undergraduate program, graduates will be conferred with a bachelor’s degree in English Linguistics. Admission to the undergraduate program requires candidates to hold a high school diploma or its equivalent, as well as attain a sufficient score in the language section of the University Student Selection Examination for the respective academic year. An exemption exam for the undergraduate preparatory class is administered annually. Students who successfully pass this exam are exempt from the preparatory classes. To be eligible for exemption from the preparatory program, it is necessary to attain the minimum score stipulated in the equivalency table of one of the language exams recognized by the Council of Higher Education.

    The objective of the program is to foster the development of students capable of analysing linguistic structures within various natural languages, with a primary focus on Turkish and English, both synchronously and diachronically across all subfields of linguistics. Furthermore, the program aims to equip students with the ability to apply their linguistic knowledge in interdisciplinary fields of study and to formulate original and critical approaches within language teaching environments. The main aim is to train individuals who are highly motivated in an academic way, who continually engage with developments in the field, who possess the capacity to critically evaluate acquired knowledge and effectively employ information tools to generate new knowledge, who exhibit proficiency in both spoken and written English and produce original research in linguistics using scientific methods in this language and as a result, who can contribute to linguistics in both Turkish and universal contexts.

    Graduates of this program can work in various fields that require linguistic knowledge. They can be employed in a wide range of areas, including speech disorders treatment, forensic medicine applications, development and implementation of native language-foreign language education materials and programs, organizing language teaching programs, training language teachers, writing dictionaries and textbooks, providing consultancy services, and contributing to the development and implementation of natural language processing software. Additionally, they may work as Research Assistants in the relevant departments of universities during postgraduate education and as Lecturers after obtaining a master's degree, subject to meeting institutional requirements. Those who successfully obtain a teaching certificate from formation courses, in addition to curriculum courses, are eligible for appointment as English teachers by the Ministry of National Education upon achieving the required score in KPSS. Candidates who have successfully completed their undergraduate studies will be eligible to pursue postgraduate and doctoral programs provided that they achieve a passing score on the ALES and YDS/YÖKDİL exams and pass the science exam.

    The department consists of a total of 7 faculty members, including 2 Professors, 1 Associate Professor, 1 Assistant Professor, 1 Research Assistant, and 2 Lecturers. In addition to the rapidly developing linguistics department within the main library, the department has its own resource library. The comprehensive eight-semester program offers a wide range of linguistics courses covering fundamental areas of the discipline. Furthermore, the department has successfully completed a project to create a Turkish National Language Corpus (TNC) comprising approximately 50 million words, with the support of TÜBİTAK and DPT, and the active participation of faculty members and students.

    Our department also offers opportunities for students to pursue linguistics studies at partner universities as part of the Farabi Student Exchange Program and within the scope of the Erasmus Student Mobility in Europe. Additionally, the department hosts a highly active Linguistics student community that has been engaged in academic and social activities since 2002.