Anthropology Major
Program Director: George Hambrecht, Ph.D.
Anthropology, the study of culture, seeks to understand humans as a whole - as social beings who are capable of symbolic communication through which they produce a rich cultural record. Anthropologists try to explain differences among cultures - differences in physical characteristics as well as in customary behavior. Anthropologists study how culture has changed through time as the human genus has spread over the earth. Anthropology is the science of the biological evolution of human species, and the disciplined scholarship of the cultural development of human beings' knowledge and customary behavior.
Anthropology at the University of Maryland offers rigorous training for many career options. A strong background in anthropology is a definite asset in preparing for a variety of academic and professional fields, ranging from the law and business, to comparative literature, philosophy and the fine arts. Whether one goes on to a Master's or a Ph.D., the anthropology B.A. prepares one for a wide range of non-academic employment, such as city and public health planning, development consulting, program evaluation, and public archaeology. A Bachelor of Science in Anthropology degree offers more concentrated training including physical science in the areas of archaeology, ecological anthropology and medical anthropology. Courses offered by this department may be found under the acronym ANTH.
Program Learning Outcomes
Having completed the degree program, students should have acquired the following knowledge and skills:
- Students shall have an integrated knowledge, awareness and understanding of a culturally and biologically diverse world.
- Students shall demonstrate an understanding of culture and society.
- Students shall demonstrate the ability to understand complex research problems, and articulate appropriate methods and theory.
Students may seek an undergraduate Bachelor of Arts degree or a Bachelor of Science degree. Every course used to satisfy anthropology major requirements must be completed with a grade of "C-" or higher. Students must have a minimum 2.0 cumulative grade point average across all courses used to satisfy major degree requirements.
AnthropOlogy Degree Requirements
All courses are three credits unless otherwise indicated.
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| College Requirements | ||
| Foundational Courses | ||
| Select three of the following: | 9-10 | |
| Introduction to Medical Anthropology and Global Health | ||
| Introduction to Ecological and Evolutionary Anthropology (4 credits) | ||
| Introduction to Archaeology | ||
| Introduction to Sociocultural Anthropology and Linguistics | ||
| Method and Theory Courses | ||
| Select two of the following: | 6 | |
| Method & Theory in Medical Anthropology and Global Health | ||
| Method and Theory in Ecological Anthropology | ||
| Method and Theory in Archaeology | ||
| Method and Theory in Sociocultural Anthropology | ||
| Anthropology Electives | ||
| Select a minimum of 12 credits offered in Anthropolgy, not double-counted for other Anthropology requirements | 12 | |
| Applied Field Methods | ||
| Select a minimum of 3 credits of the following: | ||
ANTH271 | ||
| Introduction to Zooarchaeology | ||
| Material Culture Studies in Archaeology | ||
| Environmental Archaeology | ||
| Anthropology of Cultural Heritage | ||
| Researching Environment and Culture | ||
| Special Topics in Cultural Anthropology (ANTH468P - Anthropology, War & Security) | ||
| Medical Anthropology | ||
| Applied Urban Ethnography | ||
ANTH492 | ||
| Advanced Field Training in Ethnography (ANTH498C - Environmental Conservation and Indigenous People in Brazil) | ||
| Field Methods in Archaeology 1 | ||
| Quantitative Skills Requirement | ||
| Please refer to the 'Quantitative Skills Requirement' section below to view this requirement for the Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree | 3-8 | |
| Supporting Course Work | ||
| Please refer to the 'Supporting Course Work' section below to view this requirement for the Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree | 9-18 | |
| Total Credits | 39-54 | |
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Students with an archaeological focus must take this class
Quantitative Skills Requirement
Bachelor of Arts
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Introduction to Biometrics | ||
| Principles of Macroeconomics | ||
| Economic Statistics | ||
| Introduction to Educational Statistics | ||
| Introduction to Quantitative Methods for the Geographical Environmental Sciences | ||
| Statistical Methods in Psychology | ||
| Human Societies | ||
| Elementary Statistics and Probability | ||
| Introduction to Math Modeling and Probability 1 | ||
| Total Credits | 3 | |
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Or a higher level MATH class is required.
Bachelor of Science
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Select two of the following: | 7-8 | |
| Elementary Statistics and Probability | ||
| Calculus I (4 credits) | ||
| Calculus II (4 credits) | ||
| Elementary Calculus I (4 credits) | ||
| Elementary Calculus II (4 credits) | ||
| Total Credits | 7-8 | |
Supporting Course Work
Bachelor of Arts
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Supporting courses approved by a faculty member | 18 | |
| Total Credits | 18 | |
Bachelor of Science
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Select three of the following: | 9-12 | |
| Sustainability | ||
| Environment, Economics and Policy (4 credits) | ||
| Intermediate Applied Microeconomics 1 | ||
| Global Poverty and Economic Development | ||
| World Hunger, Population, and Food Supplies | ||
| Food and Agricultural Policy | ||
| Natural Resources and Public Policy 1 | ||
| Causes and Consequences of Global Change | ||
| The World of Biology | ||
| Principles of Molecular & Cellular Biology and Principles of Molecular & Cellular Biology Laboratory (4 credits) | ||
| Principles of Ecology and Evolution and Principles of Ecology and Evolution Lab (4 credits) | ||
| Amazing Green: Plants that Transformed the World (4 credits) | ||
BSCI189 | (4 credits) | |
| Human Anatomy and Physiology I (4 credits) | ||
| Human Anatomy and Physiology II (4 credits) | ||
| Principles of Genetics (4 credits) 1 | ||
| General Microbiology (4 credits) | ||
| Principles of Animal Behavior 1 | ||
| Principles of Ecology (4 credits) 1 | ||
| The Biology of Conservation and Extinction 1 | ||
| Principles of Evolution 1 | ||
| Population Ecology 1 | ||
| Molecular Evolution 1 | ||
| Object-Oriented Programming I (4 credits) | ||
| Object-Oriented Programming II (4 credits) | ||
| Introduction to Environmental Health | ||
| Crops, Soils and Civilization | ||
| Physical Geology and Physical Geology Laboratory (4 credits) | ||
| Geomorphology 1 | ||
| Sedimentation and Stratigraphy 1 | ||
| Geophysics 1 | ||
| As the World Turns: Society and Sustainability in a Time of Great Change | ||
| Economic Geography | ||
GEOG372 | ||
| Geographic Information Systems | ||
| Conceptualizing and Modeling Human-Environmental Interactions 1 | ||
| Culture and Natural Resource Management | ||
| Remote Sensing: Digital Processing and Analysis 1 | ||
| Geographic Information Systems and Spatial Analysis 1 | ||
| A Public Health Perspective: Introduction to Environmental Health 1 | ||
| Environmental Determinants of Emerging Infectious Diseases | ||
| Introduction to Public and Community Health | ||
| Introduction to Research in Community Health | ||
| Biostatistics for Public Health Practice 1 | ||
| Introduction to the History of Science | ||
| Total Credits | 9-12 | |
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Prerequisites apply.
Click here for roadmaps for four-year plans in the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences.
Additional information on developing a four-year academic plan can be found on the following pages:
- http://4yearplans.umd.edu
- the Student Academic Success-Degree Completion Policy section of this catalog