Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the anthropology major, a student will have demonstrated a command of the methods and processes of contemporary anthropology, the ability to complete a sustained research project, and the ability to present their work in writing and in discussion. Majors will be able to:
- Demonstrate command of the work and methods of contemporary anthropology:
- Recognize, analyze and compare key theoretical frameworks that have shaped the intellectual genealogy of Anthropology as a discipline (eg., the Boasians, Durkheimian structural-functionalism, structuralism, interpretive or symbolic anthropology, the postcolonial turn, etc.).
- Apply such frameworks in analyzing specific ethnographic or historical phenomena
- Analyze a descriptive ethnographic excerpt from classical and contemporary anthropological texts
- Formulate a proposal for pursuing further anthropological analysis of the material, including accessing, collecting and analyzing additional data
- Execute and defend a significant independent research project in anthropology:
- Formulate a significant research topic
- Develop and pursue a methodology appropriate to a research topic
- Situate the argument within anthropological and social theoretical literature
- Articulate an original anthropological argument and mobilize ethnographic or historical data (whether gathered through first-hand fieldwork, through archival or other primary documents, or culled from secondary sources) to support it.
- Independently investigate the topic with the support of an advisor
- Respond appropriately to feedback
- Communicate work done
- Write a clear and coherent document that is substantially longer than a traditional term paper or project and formatted in a style appropriate to the approach
- Communicate both to experts in the field and non-experts
- Orally present, discuss and defend work done
The primary assessment tool for learning in the major at 91²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ and the level of student achievement in the major area is the senior thesis; the junior qualifying examination, which assesses a student's readiness for thesis, provides a preliminary assessment tool. For more information on the thesis and the Junior Qualifying Exam, see Junior Qual and Resources for Seniors.