MA in Anthropology

 

Students digging at an excavation in ireland

 

The 36-credit Master of Arts in Anthropology program provides a grounding in the foundational concepts of the discipline: biological anthropology, sociocultural anthropology, linguistic anthropology and archaeology. MA graduates learn to synthesize diverse data about human beings, an increasingly valued skill in a variety of professions and academic settings.

Students may earn their degree in general anthropology or in one of three concentrations: international development, museum training, or health, science, and society. Of the 14–18 students admitted to the program each year, about one-third choose to pursue a concentration.

 

 

"My master’s in anthropology from GW has been essential to my professional success."

Christina Samuels

MA ’13
Education Policy Manager, The New York Immigration Coalition

Culminating Project

Master’s students complete a culminating project that can take the form of a thesis or a journal paper. Students in the Development and Museum Training concentrations are not required to complete a thesis, but students in those fields may substitute six credit hours of thesis work for coursework. Learn more about culminating projects in the Anthropology Graduate Student Guide (PDF). 

 

Course Requirements

The following requirements must be fulfilled:

The general requirements stated under Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, Graduate Programs.

The minimum requirement consists of:
36 credits of approved graduate coursework including the following:
At least three of the following four proseminars:
ANTH 6101Proseminar in Biological Anthropology
ANTH 6102Proseminar in Sociocultural Anthropology
ANTH 6103Proseminar in Archaeology
ANTH 6104Proseminar in Linguistic Anthropology
Students with significant background in a field, as determined by evaluation of a petition to the proseminar instructor, may waive one proseminar. Those who are permitted to waive a proseminar must take two courses from the following:
ANTH 6101Proseminar in Biological Anthropology
or ANTH 6103 Proseminar in Archaeology
ANTH 6102Proseminar in Sociocultural Anthropology
or ANTH 6104 Proseminar in Linguistic Anthropology
An approved methods course.
In addition to 30 to 33 credits of approved graduate-level coursework, 3 to 6 credits of research for a thesis or other culminating project.
Students with fewer than four undergraduate semesters of a major foreign language must demonstrate a reading knowledge of an approved language before beginning the third semester of graduate work.
Museum training concentration
The program of study is the same as that described above for the general degree, but must include 12 to 15 credits of work in museum-related courses, 6 credits of which may be in an internship. Students whose primary interest is in museum techniques, rather than anthropology, are advised to apply to the master’s program in museum studies (see Master of Arts in the field of museum studies in this Bulletin). Note that a program in museum education is also available through the Graduate School of Education and Human Development.
International development concentration
The program is designed to improve the student’s understanding of development problems, such as economic change, population, health, education, migration, and ecology, within an anthropological framework. Note that the Elliott School of International Affairs offers a program in international development studies with a disciplinary specialization in anthropology.
The program of study is the same as that described above for the general degree, but must include the following:
ANTH 6301The Anthropology of Development
ANTH 6331Research Methods in Development Anthropology
Two courses from the following:
ANTH 6302Issues in Development
ANTH 6330Internship in Development Anthropology
ANTH 6391Anthropology and Contemporary Problems
ANTH 6501Gender and Sexuality
ANTH 6507Nationalism and Ethnicity
One approved graduate-level course in quantitative analysis.
Health, science, and society concentration
The program of study is the same as that described for the general degree, but must include:
One course from the following:
ANTH 6504Social Study of Science and Technology
ANTH 6505Medical Anthropology
Two courses from the following:
ANTH 6302Issues in Development
ANTH 6391Anthropology and Contemporary Problems
ANTH 6501Gender and Sexuality
ANTH 6506Topics in Medical Anthropology
One of the following research methods options:
Option A
ANTH 6331Research Methods in Development Anthropology
PUBH 6003Principles and Practices of Epidemiology
Option B
Two courses from the following:
PUBH 6410Global Health Study Design
PUBH 6411Global Health Qualitative Research Methods
PUBH 6412Global Health Quantitative Research Methods