All LCS students, regardless of their year, are expected to participate in the weekly ILST seminar, designed to provide an intellectual gathering for students and researchers interested in language and communication. Seminar meetings may consist of any of the following:

• Presentations by faculty or postdocs (from Penn or outside) to engage with current interdisciplinary research on language and communication.
• Discussions of selected readings, e.g., in coordination with upcoming events  in the participating departments’ colloquium series or the interdisciplinary Mind and Brain (iMB) Seminar Series, to provide students with background allowing to engage more fully with these events.
• Presentations by LCS students on their own research. This has two benefits: (1) Student presenters will have the opportunity to explain the broader significance of their research to non-experts in related disciplines; (2) All students will be exposed to developing research projects from related disciplines, potentially shaping these projects as they develop.

This seminar establishes communication across different areas of expertise (establishing common-ground) and does so throughout all stages of educational development (establishing a common thread).