Since the inception of the M.A. program in Language Study and Linguistics in 1993, the program has established itself as one of the premier field-initiated research programs in language variation studies in the United States. The program of research carried out by the staff and the record of academic achievement by students have catapulted the NC State program into national and international prominence. Within four years of its inception, the program was cited as one of the top five sociolinguistic programs in the United States ("The Real Guide to Graduate School," Lingua Franca 1997). NC State is the only M.A. level program in a list which includes well-established, long-standing Ph.D. programs in sociolinguistics such as the University of Pennsylvania and Georgetown University.

In addition to courses available at NC State, a university consortium with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Duke University provides students an opportunity to take courses in theoretical syntax and phonology, historical linguistics, and psycholinguistics, as well as other linguistic subdisciplines. Courses taken at these universities are usually applicable towards the major concentration in Language Study and Linguistics.

A special arrangement with the linguistics department at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill allows select students to pursue a Ph.D. degree in linguistics at UNC-Chapel Hill while conducting research and taking courses in language variation at NC State. Students are admitted to UNC-Chapel Hill through the regular graduate school admission process and take core theory courses at UNC-Chapel Hill. At the same time, students receive course credit for selected courses taken at NC State and carry out field-initiated research and write Ph.D. dissertations in language variation under the direction of a faculty advisor at NC State. Possible specialization for areas of dissertation research include acoustic analysis (Erik Thomas), social dialectology and variation theory (Walt Wolfram), and discourse and narrative analysis (Dave Herman).

In the fall of 2000, a new joint Ph.D. program with Duke University was initiated in English Linguistics. Students are admitted through the regular admission process in the Duke English program and get their degree from Duke, but work with faculty at both NC State and Duke throughout their graduate study.