Student ID:__________________________ Student Name:_______________________ Adviser Name:_______________________ Catalog: 2024 - 2025 College Catalog Degree Requirement: Anthropology, BA Minimum Credits Required:__________________

Anthropology, BA

View Anthropology Department website

Anthropology, the broadest of the social science disciplines, is the study of human culture and social experience through space and time-from early hominid ancestors to post-industrial societies. The major consists of a four-field approach: cultural anthropology and the study of historic and contemporary societies (ethnography, ethnology and ethnohistory), archaeology and the study of material culture (prehistoric, historic and underwater archaeology), biological anthropology (biology, human evolution and culture), and linguistic anthropology (language and culture). Course offerings address topical areas that include applied anthropology, Chesapeake archaeology, ecological and economic anthropology, kinship and social organization, food, Tourism, and historic preservation. Many courses address issues of gender, ethnicity and globalization.

Affiliations with Historic St. Mary’s City and nearby Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum/Maryland Archaeological Conservation Laboratory provide adjunct faculty and generate rich opportunities for majors to engage in internships, independent studies, St. Mary’s Projects and hands-on professional research, laboratory work and fieldwork. Several study tour and exchange programs offer exciting possibilities for study and research abroad.

A degree in anthropology prepares students for graduate work in the social sciences and professions and provides an excellent liberal arts foundation for a wide range of career options-working in educational institutions, museums, business, private industry or government.

Learning Outcomes

  • Anthropology majors will demonstrate expertise in at least one subfield of the discipline.
  • Anthropology majors will communicate in writing an integrated understanding of anthropological concepts, information, ethics and theory.
  • Anthropology majors will communicate in speech an integrated understanding of anthropological concepts, information, ethics and theory.
  • Anthropology majors will locate, evaluate, and apply information ethically.
  • Anthropology majors will develop skills and knowledge useful in multiple professional and social contexts beyond the college classroom.

General College Requirements

General College Requirements (see Curriculum section), including the following requirements to satisfy the major

Degree Requirements

Required Core Courses

Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
ANTH 101 - Introduction to Anthropology Credit Hours: 4

 

ANTH 201 - Anthropology Toolkit Credit Hours: 4

OR

ANTH 202 - Archaeology Practicum Credit Hours: 4

Two Subfield Anthropology Courses

Two courses chosen from the following to incorporate two subfield anthropology courses

Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
ANTH 230 - Cultural Anthropology Credit Hours: 4
ANTH 243 - Biological Anthropology Credit Hours: 4
ANTH 250 - Language and Culture Credit Hours: 4
ANTH 281 - Archaeology and Prehistory Credit Hours: 4
ILCT 300 - Introduction to Linguistics Credit Hours: 4

Required Upper Division Courses

Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
ANTH 349 - Anthropological Theory Credit Hours: 4
ANTH 385 - Anthropological Research Methods Credit Hours: 4

Elective Courses

Three elective courses in anthropology at the 300- or 400-level

Capstone Experience

All students must select one of the following options as the capstone experience of their education

Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
ANTH 490 - Senior Tutorial (plus one additional 300- or 400-level course) Credit Hours: 4

 

ANTH 493 - St. Mary’s Project AND Credit Hours: 1-8
ANTH 494 - St. Mary’s Project Credit Hours: 1-8

 

ANTH 497 - Directed Research in Anthropology (4 credit hours, plus one additional 300- or 400-level course) Credit Hours: 1-4

Minimum Grade and GPA Requirements

Students must complete a minimum of 44 credit hours, and all courses presented for the major must have a grade of at least C-.

Sequence of Study

Each student will plan an individual program with an adviser to arrive at a combination of courses that will meet the requirements for the major and be most meaningful for the student’s goals and interests. The anthropology faculty strongly recommends that the student obtain an adviser from among the faculty in the student’s area of concentration by the beginning of the junior year. The following model is suggested as a possible basic program to satisfy the above requirements:

First Year:

Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
ANTH 101 - Introduction to Anthropology Credit Hours: 4
  • one subfield course
  • Second Year:

    Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
    ANTH 201 - Anthropology Toolkit Credit Hours: 4

    OR

    ANTH 202 - Archaeology Practicum Credit Hours: 4

     

  • one subfield course
  • two anthropology electives
  • Third Year:

    Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
    ANTH 385 - Anthropological Research Methods Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 349 - Anthropological Theory Credit Hours: 4
  • one anthropology elective
  • Fourth Year:

    • St. Mary’s Project
      OR
    • ANTH

    The St. Mary’s Project in Anthropology

    Students must complete all upper level major requirements (ANTH 349 and ANTH 385) before submitting a St. Mary’s Project (SMP) proposal to the department chair for review by the department faculty.  SMP proposals must follow a format established by the Department, and are due to the Department Chair on June 1 to begin an SMP in the fall semester, or December 15 to begin an SMP in the spring semester.  Projects approved by the department and successfully completed and presented by the student will receive eight hours of credit to be counted towards the major and fulfill the capstone requirement.  Students contemplating an SMP in another discipline should follow the department’s SMP guidelines and submit their SMP proposal to the department chair for review in order to receive credit for the senior capstone experience.

    Requirements for Archaeology Concentration

    General College Requirements and anthropology major requirements, including the following requirements to satisfy the major with a concentration in archaeology:

    Required Core Courses:

    Five core courses:
    Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
    ANTH 101 - Introduction to Anthropology Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 202 - Archaeology Practicum Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 281 - Archaeology and Prehistory Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 385 - Anthropological Research Methods Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 349 - Anthropological Theory Credit Hours: 4
    At least one archaeology field school:
    Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
    ANTH 377 - Archaeological Field Study Credit Hours: 6
    ANTH 410 - Historical Archaeology Field School Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 454 - Archaeological Survey Credit Hours: 4
  • An Archaeology Field School Approved by the Chair
  • One additional sub-field course:
    Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
    ANTH 230 - Cultural Anthropology Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 243 - Biological Anthropology Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 250 - Language and Culture Credit Hours: 4
    ILCT 300 - Introduction to Linguistics Credit Hours: 4
    Two Elective 300-level Courses in Archaeology:
    Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
    ANTH 311 - Native American Culture and History Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 337 - Atlantic World Archaeology Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 351 - Underwater Archaeology Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 352 - Topics in Anthropology Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 357 - Archaeological Analysis and Curation Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 323 - Introduction to Historic Preservation Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 334 - African Atlantic Archaeology Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 339 - Archaeology of Status and Identity Credit Hours:
    ANTH 454 - Archaeological Survey Credit Hours: 4
    One Elective 300-Level Course in Cultural Anthropology:
    Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
    ANTH 302 - Food and Culture Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 306 - Principles of Applied Anthropology Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 336 - The Cultured Body Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 341 - Economic and Ecological Anthropology Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 346 - Analysis of Material Culture Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 348 - African American Culture Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 360 - Kinship and Social Organization Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 390 - Cultures of Africa Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 326 - Anthropology of Tourism Credit Hours: 4

    All students must elect one of the following options as the capstone experience of their education:

    Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
    ANTH 490 - Senior Tutorial (plus one additional 300- or 400- level course) Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 493 - St. Mary’s Project (8 credit hours) AND Credit Hours: 1-8
    ANTH 494 - St. Mary’s Project (8 credit hours) AND Credit Hours: 1-8
    ANTH 497 - Directed Research in Anthropology (4 credit hours, plus one additional 300- or 400-) Credit Hours: 1-4

    Students must complete a minimum of 44 credit hours, and all courses presented for the major must have a grade of at least C-.

    Students who plan to complete an anthropology major with a concentration in archaeology

    Students who plan to complete an anthropology major with a concentration in archaeology should obtain an adviser from the faculty in the student’s area of concentration by the beginning of the junior year. The following model is suggested as a possible basic program to satisfy the above requirements:

    First Year:
    Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
    ANTH 101 - Introduction to Anthropology Credit Hours: 4
    Second Year:
    Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
    ANTH 281 - Archaeology and Prehistory Credit Hours: 4
    ANTH 202 - Archaeology Practicum Credit Hours: 4
  • one subfield course
  • one anthropology electives
  • Third Year:
    Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
    ANTH 349 - Anthropological Theory Credit Hours: 4
  • two anthropology electives
  • Archaeological Field School (summer)
  • Fourth Year:
    Course NameCredit Hours:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
  • St. Mary’s Project
  • OR

    ANTH 497 - Directed Research in Anthropology Credit Hours: 1-4

    OR

    ANTH 490 - Senior Tutorial AND Credit Hours: 4
  • one anthropology elective (300- or 400-level)
  • Requirements for Teacher Certification

    A Master of Arts in Teaching program is available at St. Mary’s College of Maryland after completion of the baccalaureate degree. Students who are interested in becoming teachers should contact the chair of the Department of Educational Studies or an education adviser in their major field of study for suggested coursework in Educational Studies and their specific major. These consultations should take place during the first semester of the sophomore year.

    Notes: