Anthropology Doctoral Degree Requirements

Program | Faculty | Master's | Doctoral | Courses

Students working toward the Doctor of Philosophy degree in anthropology will, under the guidance of their committee members, prepare statements of field in three areas of specialization that reflect their career goals and intellectual interests. Students frequently combine the dissertation prospectus and one of the three statements of field. After the completion and approval of the statements of field and prospectus, the student takes an oral Ph.D. Preliminary Comprehensive Examination, normally at the end of the fourth or fifth semester of doctoral work. Upon successful completion of this examination, the student concentrates on the research that will provide the basis for a required dissertation. Normally, all candidates are expected to engage in field work.

There is no general foreign language or tool of research requirement for degree qualification in anthropology. However, where the candidate’s guidance committee deems the acquisition of certain relevant skills as necessary for the effective pursuit of his or her research and professional objectives, the student may be expected to develop satisfactory levels of competence in the use of various research tools and/or languages.

Note: The following is a list of all courses that comprise the department’s permanent offerings. Given the importance of current research and disciplinary debate to our graduate curriculum, many of the important course offerings any year are topical seminars and special topics courses (e.g., Historical Archaeology; Political Economy of Health; Research Design; Hunter/Gatherers; Environmental Archaeology; Contemporary Evolutionary Theory), which are not included by title in this list. For more detailed information on courses offered, please consult the course list available in the department office (215 Machmer Hall) or consult the department’s website at www.umass.edu/anthro, where course lists, schedules, and descriptions are posted and frequently updated.