Koobi Fora Field School
Background
Since 2012, the George Washington University has partnered with the National Museums of Kenya to offer students on-the-ground experience in paleoanthropology at the Koobi Fora Field School (KFFS). Located on the eastern shore of Lake Turkana, Kenya, KFFS is the world’s premier field research and training program in paleoanthropology.
Over the course of the program, students earn credit through lectures, specialized laboratory exercises and one-on-one training with senior scientists on site. They explore remote and dramatic landscapes and search for evidence of hominins going back millions of years. Additionally, students benefit from the interaction with their international peers, which can broaden their worldview and enhance their future working relationships.
Applications for the 2025 field season are open.
Explore the Program
Why Koobi Fora?
- Excavate, survey and describe findings in some of the most productive Pleistocene and Holocene sediments
- Design, implement and finalize a research project with a faculty mentor who is a leader in the field
- Learn to be part of the scientific process and join the next generation of scientists
- Join the ranks of prestigious alumni who go on to top graduate programs in natural history
Recent Field Projects
- Studying the biology of long-distance travel in modern communities of pastoralists
- Finding evidence of human scavenging and hunting from 2.0 million years ago
- Exploring evidence of climate change and animal communities over the last 4 million years
- Uncovering the changes associated with the emergence of domesticated animals in East Africa
"I planned and directed my own field season at Koobi Fora. ... Those three weeks were some of the most productive and mentally stimulating of my academic career."
Jonathan Reeves
PhD '19, Human Paleobiology
Contact Koobi Fora
David R. Braun
Program Co-Director
Phone: 202-994-6953
Email: koobiforafieldschool
gmail [dot] com (koobiforafieldschool[at]gmail[dot]com)
Science and Engineering Hall
800 22nd St. NW, Suite 6000
Washington, DC 20052
Fax: 202-994-6097