Anthropology Department
Outcomes Assessment and Course Sequence
The goal of the undergraduate Anthropology major is to produce students conversant with the main concepts, findings, core terminology and current theory in socio-cultural anthropology and archaeology. We aim to provide a solid foundation for majors to proceed to graduate study and research in anthropology and other disciplines, or to professional schools, as well as directly into private or public employment, where ability to digest and apply anthropological findings and concepts can be an asset.
Structure of the Anthropology Major. To these ends, our undergraduate major is structured around acquiring key perspectives in anthropology, how these are operationalised in the design and conduct of research and then applied to topics on which anthropologists have developed research findings from environment, food, and health to studies of art and architecture, ancient societies, contemporary globalization, migrants and refugees, identity and community life, the information society and other topics that reflect the expertise of the faculty. This preparation is turned in the senior year to developing individual projects of a student’s choosing by working one-on-one with faculty members, or in a senior seminar, or on a project off-campus under faculty supervision.
Sequence. The sequence for an anthropology major starts with introductory courses in cultural anthropology (101) and archaeology (108), offered each semester. These are foundation courses, supplemented by introductory courses in human evolution (105 in Fall semesters) and linguistic anthropology (110 in Spring semesters) that support our two major emphases, in socio-cultural and archaeological anthropology, and may be taken at any time before the senior year. Majors proceed to sophomore-level courses in Anthropological Core Perspectives (200) and Research Design & Conduct (201), followed by 5 topical courses, including at least one focused on a region of the world. Among the latter are courses on contemporary Latin America, ancient South America, US communities, Latinos/as in the USA, Islamic societies, Spain & Portugal, and the Middle East; other topical courses deal with ancient societies, prehistoric art & architecture, food, environment, political anthropology, religion, health and culture, applied anthropology, the information society, and ethnohistory. On this basis, seniors proceed either to topical senior seminars or to working one-on-one with faculty to develop their own “capstone” projects.
Senior Assessment: All seniors take a two-part comprehensive examination at the beginning of their next-to-last semester; these exams are graded A-F by the faculty. One part covers core terminology in anthropology, for which they are given a list when declaring a major or when taking ANTH 200. At the same time, they receive a core bibliography of analytical and descriptive studies that are the other definition of anthropological literacy. For the senior comprehensive, students are asked to prepare an essay on the basis of these readings in response to a question they select from a list provided by the faculty.
Seniors have options for two kinds capstone experiences in which they develop a project of their own under faculty guidance:
- Senior Seminar (ANTH 451) on a current issue or perspective leading to a substantial, original research paper on its relevance to a topic the student explores in depth
- Student/Faculty Research (ANTH 493) with a faculty member to (a) research and write a substantial paper on a topic the student chooses and a faculty member agrees to supervise or (b) an off-campus project in a service or research organization that uses anthropology and on which the student writes a report under faculty supervision.
A passing paper in one of these forms the third part of the senior assessment of mastery of basic anthropological ideas, theories, research findings and contemporary issues. Qualified seniors (3.5 GPA in the major) may elect to develop a senior thesis that may be submitted to the faculty for honors in anthropology.
Rationale for Senior Assessment: Senior assessment follows from the goals and implementation of the major to develop and display a basic anthropological literacy, defined as a core vocabulary of terms and concepts and a core bibliography of representative works they can read, understand, generalize from, compare, or apply as guides for developing original information or analyses. Did a senior acquire the vocabulary of anthropology? Can s/he deal with anthropological analyses? Can s/he develop an anthropological analysis?
[NB: This program becomes effective for students declaring Anthropology majors in and after the Spring 2005 semester. For students who have already declared Anthropology majors, this structure will be optional, where possible; otherwise current requirements will govern.]
