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Fall 2008 Courses (PDF)

Graduate

Graduate study in anthropology at the University of Pittsburgh covers a wide range of geographical and topical specialties in all four subfields of anthropology (social and cultural anthropology, archeology, physical anthropology, and anthropological linguistics). Three special programs focus academic activities around particular faculty strengths—archaeology of complex societies; medical anthropology; ethnicity, nationalism and the state—and are joined by a newly enhanced graduate program in physical anthropology. All four paths of study are embedded in a context of anthropological training of broad theoretical and geographical scope. Slightly over half the graduate students in the department concentrate their efforts in one of these four flagship programs; the rest pursue a variety of interests across the full range of anthropology.

Graduate Courses | Support for Graduate Study

The MA in Anthropology

Completion of a master's degree takes approximately two years. Requirements include 30 credits of coursework; a foreign language; a course in quantitative methods (for students in archaeology and physical anthropology) or a course in field methods (for students in cultural anthropology); a core course (cultural anthropology, archaeology, physical anthropology, or linguistics) or a written MA exam; and a research paper. (Complete MA requirements)

The PhD in Anthropology

The PhD program normally requires about five years, and is completely separate from the MA program. That is, students may enter the PhD program directly following their undergraduate degree, and do not necessarily earn a master's degree (although earning the master's degree can be incorporated into the PhD program without increasing the total length of time needed). Students who have already earned a master's degree elsewhere can often receive credit for previous coursework which may shorten the time needed to earn a PhD by as much as a year. Requirements for the PhD include 72 credits of coursework; a foreign language; three of four core courses (cultural anthropology, archeology, physical anthropology, or anthropological linguistics); two quantitative methods courses (for students in archeology and physical anthropology) or a course in field methods and a course in contemporary theory (for students in cultural anthropology); written comprehensive examinations; fieldwork or equivalent research; and the dissertation. (Complete PhD requirements)

The Anthropology Graduate Student Guide is written by graduate students for graduate students as a source of information on subjects such as funding, advisement, suggested degree completion timeline, comprehensive exams and various university-wide resources.