The Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics at UMBC has had an interdisciplinary focus since the mid-1970's, and the department is currently composed of specialists in linguistics, the social sciences, second language pedagogy, bilingual education, and literary, cultural studies, and intercultural communication. Thus the department's decision to develop an MA in intercultural communication (INCC) as an alternative to the traditional foreign language and literature programs was consistent with its history and philosophy. Initiated in 1985, this MA program has been a response to the economic, political, social, and cultural complexities of the eighties, nineties, and the new century.
