Graduate Application and Undergraduate Registration Information
Anthropology is the study of humankind in all its diversity: archaeological, biological and cultural. At some time, all of us have thought about our origins as a species, our evolution and the beginnings of our complex technology, society and culture.
For example: Who were the first humans, when did they live and when did they first appear? Who are the First Americans and from where did they come? How do customs of marriage and family vary from society to society? Why do we live in cities? Indeed, when did cities, agriculture, government etc. appear in human history? How do anthropologists reconstruct murder victims and help in the arrest of suspects? Think forensics: The X-Files and CSI What does The Human Genome project tell us about our history? Why do anthropologists find the notion of “race” a useless description of present-day humankind?
There are three majors in the Department of Anthropology: the BA in General Anthropology, the BS in Biological Anthropology, the BS in Archaeological Science. In addition to majors, courses can be taken in Anthropology as a minor subject. Graduate students are usually expected to undertake a PhD but may opt for a Masters degree.
Understandably, many of you and your parents wonder how a degree in anthropology can help you in a career. Our majors are a diverse lot and hence have found anthropology useful for post-graduate jobs in a variety of ways.
We’ve had students who double-majored in Anthropology and Finance in order to work in an overseas business or bank. Many go on professional schools in medicine and law. Another group has sought careers in the UN and National Institutions like UNESCO, the Department of Health and Human Services. Some have become Contract Archeologists, who retrieve priceless and critical artifacts uncovered during the construction of highways, bridges and buildings. Several of our students have found work in the health sciences and forensics, such as the FBI forensic lab. And because of their interest in nonhuman primates, a few have ended up working in zoos. Perhaps, a majority of our graduates go to graduate school so that they may become scientists at research universities like Penn State and who devote their life to the study of humankind.
Obviously, the degree in Anthropology is a perfect fit for a variety of vocations. Your desires, needs and imagination are the only limitation. For more information visit the American Anthropological Association, the American Association of Physical Anthropologists, and the Society of American Archeology.
Undergraduate Information
Courses are available for undergraduate study in the Department of Anthropology please follow the link below to the undergraduate page
Undergraduate
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