What is SLATE?
SLATE is a multidisciplinary doctoral concentration for students with an interest in second language acquisition and bilingualism/foreign/second language teaching. Students cannot earn a Ph.D. in SLATE; instead, students in this program earn a Graduate Concentration in Second Language Acquisition and Teacher Education in conjunction with a Ph.D. in one of the cooperating units. All applications for doctoral study must be made to the home department, not to SLATE. For information on application and specific requirements, please go to the Student Information Overview.
Students in the SLATE program can work with affiliated faculty from a number of different academic units across the campus. Co-operating faculty hold appointments in various units in the College of Education, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and College of Applied Health Sciences, including the following:
- Anthropology
- Communication
- Curriculum and Instruction
- East Asian Languages and Cultures
- Educational Psychology
- French and Italian
- Germanic Languages and Literatures
- Linguistics
- Psychology
- Spanish and Portuguese
- Speech and Hearing Science
SLATE sponsors invited lectures, professional development and research methodology workshops, and an annual one-day symposium showcasing graduate students' research. SLATE also offers two travel awards each semester to students presenting their work at conferences. Application materials and deadlines for the SLATE Conference Travel Awards can be found here.
The SLATE Advantage
The SLATE designation adds a mark of distinction to your Ph.D. and qualifies you for a wider range of positions than your Ph.D. alone. SLATE is recognized around the world thanks to its faculty and alumni.
SLATE graduates who actively seek employment enjoy a 100% placement rate in the year following graduation. Most graduates secure tenure- or non-tenure-track positions at colleges and universities across the U.S. and abroad, whereas others go on to put their skills to use in educational consortia or industry.
Where can I get answers to other questions about the SLATE program?
If you have a question that is not answered on the website, you can always e-mail the SLATE office manager Kathryn Walker at kew@illinois.edu or the Program Director, Dr. Kiel Christianson at kiel@illinois.edu.