Ph.D. Alumni

Dr. Taylor Chlapowski, Summer 2021
Dissertation Title: Linguistic Perceptions and Ideologies of Race and Whiteness in the USA
Present Affiliation: Research Analyst, Milliman
Chair: Dr. Stephanie Lindemann

“Applied linguistics is a broad and interdisciplinary field which I believe is represented in the faculty and course offerings in the department at Georgia State. I was able to benefit greatly not only from the professors with whom I shared a similar perspective and research leanings, but also from those who had very different views of the field and what constitutes the best research practices. I think the program at Georgia State made me a more well-rounded researcher and I am very grateful for the effort that my advisor and many professors made in helping me get there.”

Dr. Tamanna Mostafa- Summer, 2021
Dissertation Title: The relationships between second language speakers’ oral productions, oral proficiency, and their individual differences: A longitudinal study
Present Affiliation: Language Engineer, Amazon.
Chair: Dr. YouJin Kim

“The Applied Linguistics department at GSU offered me with the valuable opportunities to take diverse courses (related to core linguistics, learning sciences, and research methods), collaborate with faculty members for publications, gain teaching and research experiences through graduate assistantships, and attend specialized workshops, which have been extremely beneficial. All these helped me determine my academic and professional goals and reach those goals with confidence.”

Eunice Yunjung Nam:

Graduation time: Fall 2021

Dissertation title: Exploring Language Teachers’ Assessment Practices and Language Learners’ Perceptions towards Assessment in the Online Environment

Current affiliation: Busan International High School (South Korea)

Chair (advisor): Sara Cushing

Some thoughts and feelings you would like to share regarding PhD journey, the department or GSU:

"I was lucky to have studied in the department of Applied Linguistics and ESL at GSU. The PhD program broadened my lens as an educator and helped me grow as a researcher. I will try my best to utilize the skills and knowledge I gained through my PhD journey and make a positive impact on the lives of language learners and teachers."

Dr. Katia Monteiro-Vanderbilt – Summer, 2020

Dissertation Title: Developing and testing alternative benchmarks of lexical sophistication: L2 lexical frequency, semantic context, and word recognition indices
Present Affiliation: Technical Information Specialist, Federal Research Division at the Library of Congress

Dissertation Chair: Dr. Scott Crossley

Dr. Selahattin Yilmaz, Summer 2020

Dissertation Title: A constructional analysis of written academic English as a lingua franca: The case of unedited and edited research writing
Present Affiliation: Yıldız Technical University
Dissertation Chair: Ute Roemer

Dr. Charlotte Ruth Nolen, Spring 2020

Dissertation Title: Examining Task Transferability in Task-Based Language Teaching: A Multi-Case Study
Present Affiliation: Conexión Training
Chair: YouJin Kim

“I’m exceptionally proud to be a Ph.D. graduate from the Applied Linguistics and ESL Department at Georgia State University. I’m grateful to a wonderful staff (Dr. YouJin Kim, Dr. Diane Belcher, Dr. Eric Friginal, Dr. Ute-Romer and others) for investing in my professional development. The Ph.D.  program helped me to develop skills that led to helping our organization expand our goals and clientele. It also allowed me to collaborate with several other international organizations in order to foster more research in second language acquisition for adult learners living in new international contexts.”

Dr. Mackenzie Bristow, Spring, 2020

Dissertation Title: Language program development through internationalization
Present Affiliation: Director of the English Language Support Program and Global Engagement at Laney Graduate School, Emory University
Chair: Eric Friginal

“The Ph.D. program allowed me to gain a deeper understanding of the graduate school experience and applied linguistics enabling me to become a better language program director.”

Dr. Rurik Tywoniw – Summer, 2020

Dissertation Title: Investigating Reading Behavior and Inference-making in Advanced L2 Reading Comprehension Assessment Tasks
Present Affiliation: University of Illinois
Chair: Dr. Scott Crossley

“The department of Applied Linguistics and ESL at GSU provided me with ample opportunities for learning in coursework, professional development through varied research and teaching assistantships, and avenues of research to explore. I entered the Ph.D. program with a narrow view of what Applied Linguistics meant, and the diverse faculty in the department allowed me to broaden my horizons of the many facets of the field. The faculty strike a balance between imparting their specific skillsets to Ph.D. students and giving them leeway to develop novel and unique paths as scholars. Few other programs in applied linguistics provide as much encouragement for publication, professional development, collaboration and networking. As the English Placement Test Coordinator at a large R1 university in the U.S., I regularly draw on the breadth of practical skills and knowledge which I only could have acquired through the Ph.D. program.”

Dr. Jessica Lian, Fall, 2019

Dissertation Title: Reimagining Multilingualism from the Heritage Speaker Perspective: A View of Language Brokering Through the Lens of Translanguaging and Resemiotization
Present Affiliation:  Senior User Experience Researcher, The Home Depot
Chair: Stephanie Lindemann

“The Applied Linguistics Ph.D. program at Georgia State University equipped me with a strong foundation to carry out end-to-end research. From formulating my ideas into research questions to designing and executing studies to presenting my research at conferences–all of these steps in the research cycle were incorporated into my doctoral studies from day one. Over the course of my four years in this program, I developed not only a powerful methodological toolkit as a qualitative researcher but also the versatility to adapt to agile settings as an applied research practitioner.”

Dr. Minkyung Kim, Spring 2018

Dissertation Title: Assessing second language writing development in higher education: A longitudinal study
Present Affiliation: Korea National University of Education
Chair: Dr. Scott Crossley

“The Ph.D. Program in the Department of Applied Linguistics and ESL at Georgia State University led me to grow personally, academically, and professionally. The coursework includes a wide range of topics in the field in depth, which helps expand one’s theoretical and methodological understanding. The coursework is also practical because professors strongly encourage students to present course papers in academic conferences and expand them into journal manuscripts. In addition, the faculty is very supportive, motivates students to pursue their own interests, and provides valuable feedback on student work. The department also provides many opportunities for research collaboration with the faculty and colleague graduate students, which can be productively conducted even after graduation. Furthermore, the department offers a variety of teaching opportunities. In closing, the department provided me with valuable teaching and research opportunities, which I truly appreciate, and has been a great academic community whose members I look forward to keeping collaborating with and seeing in conferences around the world.”

Dr. James Garner, Spring 2018

Dissertation Title: The development of collocations as constructions in L2 writing
Present Affiliation: Lecturer, University of Florida
Chair: Dr. Ute Römer

“The Department of Applied Linguistics at Georgia State University helped me grow immensely as a scholar, teacher, and person. The diversity of courses offered allows students to explore different facets of teaching and research, developing and greater understanding of the theoretical diversity of applied linguistics as well as a variety of methodological skills. The professors in the department are all not only great scholars but great mentors. They routinely collaborate with students in research projects and guide them in participating in the larger academic community. This includes co-presenting at national and international conferences and co-authoring in some of the top journals in the field. Another strength of the department is the opportunities for developing essential teaching skills. Ph.D. students are routinely offered the opportunity to teach a range of undergraduate linguistics courses. As a result, not only are graduates prepared for the research side of life as a scholar but are also better prepared to one day teach the next generation of students.”

Dr. Stephen Skalicky – F 2018
Dissertation Title: Beyond Literal Meaning: Linguistics and Cognitive Features of Figurative Language Processing and Production
Chair: Dr. Scott Crosley
Present Affiliation: Lecturer in Applied Linguistics in the School of Linguistics and Applied Language Studies at Victoria University of Wellington

“One of the most impressive things about the Department of Applied Linguistics and ESL is the methodological and theoretical diversity of the graduate faculty. This allows for one to complete a broad range of courses that cohere to provide a solid, foundational understanding of issues and topics relevant to linguistics and second language learning. In my own personal experience, I was afforded an appropriate amount of time to develop my research interest and methodological approach into a doctoral dissertation project that I truly enjoyed and continue working with. Practically, the department prepares graduates well by encouraging conference attendance, supporting co-authored publications, and even hosting international conferences in the field such as SLRF and AACL. In all, I believe that my time at AL/ESL prepared me well for my current academic position in a tenure-track job and provided me with experiences, colleagues, and friends that I will hold for a lifetime.”

Dr. Cindy Berger – F 2018
Dissertation Title: The Longitudinal Development of Lexical Network Knowledge in L2 Learners: Multiple Methods and Parallel Data
Chair: Dr. Scott Crossley
Present Affiliation: Applied Linguist, Duolingo

“The Applied Linguistics program at Georgia State University provides Ph.D. students space and opportunity to explore a range of interests within the field, including pedagogy, second language acquisition, L2 writing, assessment, corpus linguistics, sociolinguistics, and teacher education. An additional strength of the program is that faculty encourage students’ participation in the academic community at large before—not after—they graduate. The collaborative generosity of faculty, combined with the sheer range of the program’s curriculum, gave me the diversity of knowledge and experience necessary to be competitive outside academia.”

Dr. Yu Kyoung Shin – Spring 2018
Dissertation Title: Lexical Bundles in Argumentative Essays by Native and Nonnative English-Speaking Novice Academic Writers
Chair: Dr. Viviana Cortes
Present Affiliation: Assistant Professor, Hallym University, South Korea
“The AL Ph.D. program at GSU provided me with scholarly support, immense encouragement, and care during my doctoral studies. The faculty’s generosity and engagement made it a wonderful experience, and after four years in the program, I felt well-prepared to begin my career in the field of AL as a researcher and educator. The program supported my diverse interests in second language academic writing, learner corpus-based research, and North Korean–background English learners.

I am grateful as well to the Center for Research on the Challenges of Acquiring Language & Literacy (RCALL) at Georgia State University for funding fellowships throughout my studies. Being a RCALL fellow for four years enabled me to fully focus on my research and gave me wonderful opportunities to attend talks and meet people across departments and universities.

Overall, the AL Ph.D. program allowed me to become a well-rounded member of the AL community, and I highly recommend it!”

Dr. Yeonjoo Jung, Spring 2018

Dissertation Title: The Role of Socially-Mediated Alignment in the Development of L2 Grammar and Vocabulary: Comparing FTF and SCMC Contexts
Present Affiliation: Assistant Professor, Department of English Education, Pusan National University
Chair: Dr. YouJin Kim

“I chose the AL Ph.D. program at GSU because of its excellent opportunities for research, teaching, and professional development. I coordinated the ESL Testing Program, furthering my first-hand experience in language assessment. I was able to work closely with graduate faculty as well as ESL instructors, and I was thankful to them for their availability and generosity. I always felt encouraged to pursue my research interests although they are somewhat varied: my main area is language testing and assessment, but I also am interested in second language listening, second language writing, and corpus linguistics. With each project I completed, usually stemming from a final paper from a class, I was encouraged to present and publish my findings. Based on my experiences, I feel the program prepared me to be a well-rounded applied linguistics scholar.”

“The Applied Linguistics Ph.D. program helped mold me into a well-rounded scholar and gave me the skills and experiences necessary to be competitive on the job market. The faculty are generous with their time and energy and are extremely encouraging with regard to all aspects of academic life. I also very much appreciated the diversity of perspectives and research interests represented by the department.”

Dr. Nic Subtirelu – Summer 2016
Dissertation Title: Linguistic diversity and the politics of international inclusion in higher education: A critical sociolinguistic study of international teaching assistants
Chair: Dr. Stephanie Lindemann
Present Affiliation: Assistant Professor, Georgetown University

Dr. Mizuki Mazzotta
Dissertation Title: The impact of dialogic corrective feedback on L2 Japanese writers’ linguistic and affective outcomes
Present Affiliation: Emory University
Chair: Dr. Diane Belcher
Email: [email protected]

“The Ph.D. program at the Department of AL/ESL was a place that allowed me to achieve much more than I thought I ever could. While attending the program, I kept my full-time job and raised two young children, yet I managed to publish a book chapter and a journal article and presented at international conferences. Among many strengths of the program, what made the most difference was the effective support from the faculty members, especially my advisor who showed interest in my research ideas, inspired me, encouraged me, and believed in me. I hope my experience can encourage other working parents to pursue their dream of earning a Ph.D. at this wonderful department.”

Dr. Nicole Pettitt
Dissertation Title: Social positioning in refugee women’s education: A linguistic ethnography of one English class
Present Affiliation: Assistant Professor, Youngstown State University
Chair: Dr. Diane Belcher
Email: [email protected]

“The Applied Linguistics Ph.D. expanded my knowledge and skills in the field while providing ample opportunity to explore my cross-disciplinary interests.  I particularly appreciated the faculty’s high expectations for students to participate in all aspects of academic life, such as presenting at conferences, publishing, and applying for awards and funding.  Faculty are generous in supporting such work, which prepared me well for both the competitive academic job market and for life as a future faculty member.  Additionally, as a scholar who conducts community-based research, I found Atlanta to be the perfect place to explore my research interests.”

Dr. Megan Montee
Dissertation Title:  Input-Rich Tasks and Student Writing on an English Language Proficiency Test
Present Affiliation: Center for Applied Linguistics
Chair: Dr. Sara Cushing

The Ph.D. program in applied linguistics helped me grow as a scholar and teacher. Teaching experiences in diverse programs enabled me to become a caring and enthusiastic teacher, and dissertation research provided me with a tool to look at the world with a critical lens.

Dr. Pamela Pearson
Dissertation Title: Language policy in Rwanda: Shifting linguistic and educational landscape
Chairs: Dr. Diane Belcher and Gayle Nelson
Present Affiliation: Director for the Institute of Language Education at Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester, NH.

I came to Atlanta not well connected to the academic communities of conference presentations and publications. I loved that my time at GSU helped me become an active participant in the field. The opportunities for research and teaching were incredible. While a student, I was even able to co-write a textbook (Corpus-based sociolinguistics) with my advisor. The curriculum was very broad for a doctoral program. Qualitative and quantitative research were given equal attention, and many discussions came back to the applicability of how research findings could potentially help teach learners or future teachers. This breadth has allowed me to work and teach in a wide range of fields: English, English as a Second Language, Applied Linguistics, Linguistics, Teacher Education, and Faculty Development.

Dr. Audrey Roberson – Fall 2014
Dissertation Title: Patterns of Interaction in Peer Response: the Relationship between Pair Dynamics and Revision Outcomes
Chair: Dr. Gayle Nelson
Present Affiliation: Assistant Professor, Department of Education, Hobart and William Smith Colleges

“One strength of GSU’s Ph.D. program is that it focuses not only on training us to be researchers, but also to be teachers and contributing members to the field of applied linguistics. When I finished, I felt confident that I had developed skills in all of these areas, which prepared me well for the job market. The faculty played a crucial role in this process, mentoring and working alongside students in a way that allowed us to define and pursue our own interests.”

Dr. Nancy Yanez-Pinto – Su 2014
Dissertation Title: Personal Practical Knowledge of Graduate Spanish Teaching Assistants: An Issue of Experience
Chair: Dr. John Murphy
Present Affiliation: Georgia State University – Department of Modern and Classical Language

“The Ph.D. program in Applied Linguistics facilitated my growth as a scholar in so many ways. The faculty was very supportive throughout the process and helped me to find my academic voice by encouraging me to publish, present, and hone my teaching abilities in applied linguistics.  I also really appreciated the support I received when I made the decision to conduct a community-engaged research project to complete my dissertation requirements. Overall, the program has helped me to become a well-rounded member of the AL community.”

Dr. Luciana Junqueira – Su 2014
Dissertation Title: Academic Literacy Experiences of Undergraduate Students: Comparing Generation 1.5, International, and Native-Speaking Populations
Chair: Dr. Diane Belcher
Present Affiliation: University of Alabama-Huntsville

Dr. Wei Wei Yang – S 2014
Dissertation Title:  Mapping the Relationships among the Cognitive Complexity of Independent Writing Tasks, L2 Writing Quality, and Complexity, Accuracy and Fluency of L2 Writing
Chair: Dr. Sara Weigle
Present Affiliation: Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics

Dr. Brittany Polat – S 2014
Dissertation Title: Words of Experience: Semantic Content Analysis and Individual Differences among Second Language Learners
Chair: Dr. Sara Weigle
Present Affiliation: Georgia State University/University of Alabama-Birmingham

Dr. Jason Litzenberg – F 2013
Dissertation Title: An Investigation of Pre-Service English Language Teacher Attitudes towards Varieties of English in Interaction
Chair: Dr. Stephanie Lindemann
Present Affiliation: Penn State University

Dr. Amanda Lanier Temples – S 2013
Dissertation Title: Constructing Arabic as Heritage: Investment in Language, Literacy, and Identity among Young U.S. Learners.
Chair: Dr. Gayle Nelson
Present Affiliation: Michigan State University

Dr. John Bunting – S 2013
Dissertation Title: An Investigation of the Integration of Corpus-Based Methodologies into Teacher Practices and Teacher Beliefs about Language Learning
Chair: Dr. Viviana Cortes
Present Affiliation: Georgia State University

Dr. Caroline Payant – S 2012
Dissertation Title: Learner-Learner Interaction: An Exploration of the Mediating Functions of Multilingual Learners’ Languages in an L3 Foreign Language Classroom
Co-Chairs: Dr. You Jin Kim & Dr. Diane Belcher
Present Affiliation: University of Quebec

Dr. Kate Moran -F 2012
Dissertation Title: Exploring Undergraduate Disciplinary Writing: Expectations and Evidence in Psychology and Chemistry
Chair: Dr. Viviana Cortes

Dr. Lauren Lukkarila – S 2012
Dissertation Title: Theory to Practice, Practice to Theory: Developing a Critical and Feminist Pedagogy for an English as a Second Language Academic Writing Classroom
Chair: Dr. Diane Belcher
Present Affiliation: Georgia Institute of Technology

Dr. Liang Guo – F 2011
Dissertation Title: Product and Process in TOEFL iBT Independent and Integrated Writing Tasks: A Validation Study
Chair: Dr. Sara Weigle
Present Affiliation: Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, Shanghai, China

Dr. Nur Yigitoglu – S 2011
Dissertation Title: Exploring Second Language Writing Teacher Cognition
Chair: Dr. Diane Belcher
Present Affiliation:  Bogazici University, Turkey

Dr. Amanda Baker – S 2011
Dissertation Title: Pronunciation Pedagogy: Second Language Teacher Cognition and Practice
Chair: Dr. John Murphy
Present Affiliation: University of Wollongong (Australia)

Dr. Lijuan (Stella) Ye – S 2011
Dissertation Title: Teaching and Learning Chinese as a Foreign Language in the United States
Co-Chairs: Dr. John Murphy & Dr. Sara Weigle
Present Affiliation: Messiah College

“Having worked for three years as an Assistant Professor in Chinese, I am truly grateful for the preparation and support provided by the faculty in the Department of Applied Linguistics and ESL at GSU. Knowledgeable and patient, they walked me through a solid process of coursework, research methods, dissertation topic development, dissertation writing process, conference presentation, publication, etc. I really appreciate all their hard work, and of course, I strongly recommend this program!”

Dr. Joseph J. Lee – S 2011
Dissertation Title: A Genre Analysis of Second Language Classroom Discourse: Exploring the Rhetorical, Linguistic, and Contextual Dimensions of Language Lessons
Chair: Dr. John Murphy
Present Affiliation: Ohio University

“The Ph.D. program in applied linguistics, with its world-class faculty, equipped me with the cognitive, methodological, and pedagogical tools necessary to become both a teacher and scholar.”

Dr. Yanbin Lu – S 2010
Dissertation Title: Cognitive Factors Contributing to Chinese EFL Learner’s L2 Writing Performance in Timed Essay Writing
Chair: Dr. Sara Weigle
Present Affiliation: Tsinghua University, Beijing, China

Dr. Magdi Kandil – Su 2009
Dissertation Title: The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict in American, Arab, and British Media: Corpus-Based Critical Discourse Analysis
Co-Chairs: Dr. Pat Byrd & Dr. Lucy Pickering
Present Affiliation: Arkansas State University

“I highly recommend the Applied Linguistics Ph.D. program at Georgia State University. This program provides everything students need to build successful academic careers. You get to work closely with well-known scholars who are knowledgeable, flexible, and extremely kind. Their extensive knowledge and ample experience in the field guarantee that you get the guidance you need to be on the right track, but they are also flexible enough to let you explore your own interests and pursue your own passions. Most important of all, everyone in the AL department—grad faculty, IEP and ESL program instructors, and staff members—are just wonderful human beings who make the Ph.D. years such a pleasant experience.”

Dr. Cheongmin Yook – F 2009
Dissertation Title: Korean Teachers’ Beliefs about English Language Education and their Impacts upon the Ministry of Education-Initiated Reforms
Chair: Dr. John Murphy
Present Affiliation: Assistant Professor at Hallym University, Korea.

Dr. Guiling Hu – S 2009
Dissertation Title: Cognitive Mechanisms Underlying Second Language Listening Comprehension
Chair: Dr. Stephanie Lindemann
Present Affiliation: University of Maryland

“At the Department of Applied Linguistics and ESL, I had many opportunities to teach different types of undergraduate courses and observe how experienced professors teach American undergraduate students. These experiences gave me a great advantage in the job market. Support from faculty at the Department of Applied Linguistics and ESL was amazing. They always had time for me and were always ready to help and support me in researching, teaching, preparing for conference presentations, and searching for a job.”

Dr. Iryna Kozlova – Su 2008
Dissertation Title: Negotiation of Identities by International Teaching Assistants through the Use of Humor in University Classrooms
Co-Chairs: Dr. Gayle Nelson & Dr. Stephanie Lindemann
Present Affiliation: Carleton University (Canada)

Dr. Luciana Diniz – S 2007
Dissertation Title: Highly Frequent Words in the Light of the Idiom Principle: The Case of “the”
Chair: Dr. Pat Byrd
Present Affiliation: Portland Community College