Anthropology
Anthropology
- Minor
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What is Anthropology?
Anthropology as a field takes a broad, holistic approach to explain what makes us human. Anthropologists are curious about the human experience and human social interactions. Anthropology as a discipline is comprised of four fields:
Biological Anthropology covers topics like human evolution and ancestors, primatology, genetics and genetic disorders, forensics, and biological remains. A biological anthropologist is curious about humankind’s relation to other primates, how humans adapt to different ecological environments, and the connection between biology and culture.
Cultural Anthropology covers topics like material culture, social organization and patterns, economies, political and legal systems, and ideologies and religion. Cultural anthropologists are interested in how people from different regions and cultures understand the world around them. They study the vast diversity in worldviews, practices, belief systems, and models of social organization and kinship.
Linguistic Anthropology covers topics like how language develops, anatomy of speech, sociolinguistics, phonetics and phonology, multilingualism, and how language changes and shapes human experience. The focus of linguistic anthropology is how humans communicate with one another as well as how language changes and contributes to cultural identities.
Archaeology focuses on the recovering of human and cultural remains through excavations and the study/analysis of past cultures through material culture they leave behind. Archaeologists uncover pieces of pottery, tools, architectural features, and even burial sites where human bones and remains can be found. The materials they find are used to learn more about past cultures, both historic and pre-historic.
More specific areas of anthropology include sociocultural anthropology, medical anthropology, forensic anthropology, business anthropology, visual anthropology, environmental anthropology, and museum anthropology.
To learn more about anthropology and what anthropologists do, visit the AAA (American Anthropological Association) website.
What Can I Do with An Anthropology Minor?
Students can go into an array of fields including research, healthcare, business, cultural management, education, archival administration, and applied anthropology. However, there are four main career paths of anthropologists:
- Academics
- Corporate/Business
- Government Sector
- Nonprofit/Community-Based Sector
Academics: In the academic sector, anthropologists can work as educators and perform various tasks on college campuses and in research labs. Anthropologists involved in academics can also devote their time to conducting research and writing articles/books.
Corporate/Business: In the corporate and business world, anthropologists work as part of research teams, take leadership and diversity roles, and work as human resources representatives.
Government: Anthropologists in the government sector are used for the planning and layout of federal legislative mandates regarding cultural resource management and help police departments in the forensic department to help identify remains. The government sector is the next largest employer of anthropologists outside of the academic realm. Other fields include international development, natural resource management, and defense/security sectors.
Non-Profit/Community: Anthropologists can work for international health organizations and community-based non-profit agencies. They can even work for established organizations like YMCAs, school districts, and environmental organizations. Humanitarian efforts and making social impacts is natural work for an anthropologist.
Curriculum Requirements
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Minor in Anthropology
Required Courses
AN 101 Introduction to Anthropology- 3 credits
AN 222 Cultural Anthropology- 3 creditsAny four Anthropology Electives (12 credits) *only one sociology course may count towards the minor.
General vs. Applied Concentration
A general concentration in anthropology provides students with a basic foundation in the discipline of anthropology, allowing students to incorporate the principles of anthropology’s holistic perspective into their approach to their major discipline whether it be related to business, science, or another humanities discipline.
The applied concentration in the anthropology minor is designed to prepare students to integrate anthropological thinking into their work in other disciplines. Students will become familiar with the broad range of applications of anthropology and will learn to approach problems from a holistic, interdisciplinary perspective. Students who choose an applied concentration will be required to take Applied Anthropology and Qualitative Research Methods in addition to the two other required courses, along with 6 credits of Anthropology Electives from the above list (2 courses).
Internships and Research Opportunities
The anthropology minor provides students with various opportunities to use their anthropological skills and apply them to real-world problems. Past research projects of Saint Vincent’s anthropology students include:
- Studying the effectiveness of Saint Vincent College’s Health and Safety Plan amidst COVID-19: Students conducted this research in the applied anthropology course. They conducted observations, semi-structured interviews, and created a Qualtrics survey to evaluate student knowledge, perceptions, and behaviors of COVID-19 and the college’s Health and Safety Plan. Results from the study were presented at the annual SFAA conference in Salt Lake City, Utah amongst other students and professionals in the field of applied anthropology
- Evaluating the dining services and rates of food insecurity on campus: Students used their anthropological skills to interview and administer questionnaires to students to gauge how well the dining services at Saint Vincent fitted their needs. The research group was able to address a higher level of food insecurity within the commuter population.
- Curating Ethnographic Artifact Displays outside of the Anthropology classroom: This task has provided several senior capstone projects and work study jobs involving cataloguing, organizing, researching, and interpreting objects to create exhibits for the various ethnographic artifacts that the anthropology department houses.
- Partnering with the Verotsko Center for the Arts to curate and interpret objects for an exhibit: A recent work-study/internship position held by an anthropology student involved working with the curator at the art gallery to research and interpret several African carvings for an exhibit titled Encounter + Exchange: Central and West African Carvings from the Anna and Tadeusz Kozminksi Collection. The student used their experience in anthropology to approach the collection with respect and cultural relativism.
Study Abroad Opportunities
Anthropology students at Saint Vincent College have the ability to and are encouraged to visit other countries to learn about and experience other cultures. These anthropology courses offer a study abroad component:
- History and Culture of Peru
- History and Culture of Guatemala
- Culture and Health in Guatemala
Student Learning Outcomes
With a minor in anthropology, students will be prepared to enter graduate school or go into work in any of the four fields. They will develop anthropological skills that can also be applied to any other discipline. Official Learning Outcomes include:
- Articulate the anthropological perspective as built on comparative and holistic approaches to understanding cultural and biological systems.
- Describe how evolutionary and historical processes have shaped humankind and led to present day biological and cultural diversity.
- Apply anthropological theories and frameworks to analyze how cultural systems shape the human experience.
- Demonstrate knowledge and skills in anthropological research design, data collection and analytical techniques.
- Apply ethical principles to analyzing issues in anthropological research.
- Demonstrate the ability to clearly communicate verbally and in writing by constructing a logical argument from anthropological and related literature.
- Articulate the nature and value of anthropological perspectives and skills in professional and academic applications.