In the College of Arts and Sciences .
Course Offerings
Anthropology is one of the most diverse disciplines in the university. Spanning human evolution, the development of language and culture, and the diversity of cultures past and present, the field has broad scope, uses a variety of methods, addresses basic issues about human origins and human life, and maintains commitment to understanding social life and using this knowledge to improve society. Anthropology is an ideal “liberal arts” major. It also serves as a major that, when jointly designed by the student with his or her advisor, prepares students for a wide range of professional careers, e.g., law, medicine, foreign service, human rights, social services, international development, and business, among others.
Courses for nonmajors: Anthropology welcomes nonmajors into many of its courses. Unless prerequisites are explicitly stated, 2000- and 3000-level courses do not have formal prerequisites and students without prior experience in anthropology are welcome in these classes.
Website: anthropology.cornell.edu
Faculty
N. Russell, chair; K. Jordan, director of graduate studies; director of undergraduate studies; A. Clark Arcadi, J. Boyarin, J. Fajans, M. Fiskesjö, C. Garces, F. Gleach, D. Greenwood, J. Henderson, S. Hodžić, D. Holmberg, S. Langwick, H. Miyazaki, V. Munasinghe, P. Nadasdy, L. Ramberg, A. Riles, N. Russell, S. Sangren, V. Santiago-Irizarry, M. Small, A. Smith, Y. Tsuji, T. Turner, S. Villenas, T. Volman, M. Welker, A. Willford. Emeritus: R. Ascher, B. J. Isbell, B. Lambert, J. Siegel, R. Smith.
The Major
The major is structured to provide both general grounding in three subfields of anthropology (sociocultural anthropology, anthropological archaeology, and biological anthropology) and detailed focus on a particular area of concentration. Areas of concentration include a wide variety of subjects within and between these three subfields. Topics ranging from identity politics and globalization to prehistory and human evolution can be pursued in classes focused on every major geographical region in the world. Upper-level courses span a range of topical and theoretical issues related to religion, gender, economics, colonialism, democratization, prehistoric cultures, race, behavioral evolution, and conservation, to name a few.
No prerequisites are required to enter the anthropology major. Students should see the director of undergraduate studies to apply to the major and obtain an advisor. Majors prepare a short statement about their interests and goals for the major, and then meet with their advisor. Majors and advisors collaboratively build a program of study that reflects the student’s individual interests and the intellectual breadth of the field. Our goal is to provide a close and supportive advising relationship and a strong and coherent structure for the student’s major.
A minimum of 37 credits are necessary to complete the major. To complete the major, students must take:
- One course of 3 or more credits in each of the three subfields (sociocultural, archaeological, biological) at the 1000- or 2000-level.
- ANTHR 3000 - Introduction to Anthropological Theory
- Two other courses of at least 4 credits at the 3000-level that are designated “comparative survey” courses in the catalog.
- Two 4000-level courses, one of which must be a seminar course in your senior year (ANTHR 4000 , ANTHR 4258 , ANTHR 4260 , and ANTHR 4263 are not seminar courses and do not fill the requirements).
- An additional 8 credits in elective courses, which may be in cognate disciplines with the approval of your advisor.
Exceptions to these requirements may be granted if a written petition is approved by the director of undergraduate studies.
No S–U credits or First-Year Writing Seminars may count toward the major. A letter grade of C– or better is required in all courses counted toward the major.
Study abroad and off-campus study programs: The Department of Anthropology encourages students to consider a semester of study abroad or off-campus study developed as an integral part of the student’s major concentration. The director of undergraduate studies serves as the anthropology study abroad advisor.
The Cornell–Nepal Study Program: The Cornell–Nepal Study Program is a joint program of Cornell University and Tribhuvan University, the national university of Nepal. Qualified juniors, seniors, and first- or second-year graduate students work with faculty from both universities to prepare for and undertake field research projects in Nepal. Students receive 15 credits per semester; students may enroll for either fall or spring semester or for the entire year; application is through Cornell Abroad. For further information, consult David Holmberg or Kathryn March in the Department of Anthropology.
Other anthropologically-relevant study abroad options, using existing Cornell Abroad and off-campus options, can be worked out in consultation with the major advisor, the anthropology study abroad advisor, and Cornell Abroad.
Honors
Honors in anthropology are awarded for excellence in the major, which includes overall GPA and completion of an honors thesis. Undergraduate students interested in working for an honors degree should apply to the chair of the Honors Committee in the second semester of their junior year (requests for late admission may be considered, but not later than the second week of the first semester of the senior year). It is the student’s responsibility to identify an appropriate topic for a thesis and to find a faculty member willing to sponsor and supervise the research; the advisor and at least the general subject of the thesis must be identified at the time of application for admission to the Honors Program. Note that clearance from the University Committee on Human Subjects usually is required before research involving living people may begin; students contemplating such research should begin to work with their thesis advisors to design their investigations and obtain the clearance well in advance of the date when the involvement with research subjects is to begin.
Admission to the Honors Program requires an overall GPA of 3.3 or greater and a 3.5 GPA in the major. In addition, the student should have no outstanding incompletes in courses that will be used toward the major (provisional admission with incompletes is possible at the discretion of the chair of the Honors Committee on evidence that a good faith effort to finish them is under way). Under special circumstances, a student with an overall GPA of 3.0 may petition for admittance to the program.
Writing an honors thesis typically is a two-semester project involving 8 credits of course work; most students do this work during their senior year. During their first semester of honors work, students typically register for (1) ANTHR 4983 - Honors Thesis Research (3 credits); and (2) ANTHR 4991 - Honors Workshop I (1 credit). During their second semester of honors work, students typically register for (1) ANTHR 4984 - Honors Thesis Write-Up (2 credits); and (2) ANTHR 4992 - Honors Workshop II (2 credits). The two-course/term arrangement reflects the division of supervision over the thesis between the thesis advisor and the chair of the Honors Committee. The thesis advisor is ultimately responsible for guiding the scholarly development of the thesis; the chair of the Honors Committee is mainly responsible for assuring timely progress toward completion of the thesis, and providing a context for students in the Honors Program to share ideas (both editorial and substantive) as their theses progress.
The Minor
The Department offers a Minor in Anthropology to undergraduate students in any college at Cornell. The Minor is designed for students who want to engage with sociocultural anthropology, archaeological anthropology, or biological anthropology but cannot commit to a full academic major. No specific advisor is required; all departmental faculty are available to discuss students’ plans for completing the Minor. Students can apply for the Minor at any time before the March 31st prior to their graduation; to be certified for the Minor, a student must submit a completed Minor Form and transcript to the Anthropology Director of Undergraduate Studies by this date.
Specific criteria for the minor are:
- Completion of five Anthropology courses, which are worth 3 credits or more.
- One of the five courses must be taken at the 1000- or 2000- level. (FWS do not count)
- Of the four additional courses, one must be at the 3000 level, and one must be a seminar at the 4000 level.
- No S/U classes will be accepted; all classes must be taken for a letter grade.
- Students must achieve a C- or better in all five courses taken to fulfill the minor.
- One of the courses for the minor may be taken as transfer credit and one may be taken through study abroad. A minimum of three of the five required courses must be taken at Cornell.
Special Programs and Facilities
Collections: The department has an extensive collection of archaeological and ethnological materials housed in the Anthropology Collections. A limited number of students can make arrangements to serve as interns in the Anthropology Collections. Olin Library houses some of the most extensive collections of materials on the ethnology of Southeast Asia, South Asia, East Asia, and Latin America to be found anywhere in the United States. The biological anthropology laboratory (B65 McGraw Hall) houses an extensive collection of materials for teaching purposes, including (1) human skeletal remains, (2) articulated skeletons and cranial casts of primates, and (3) casts of important fossils in the human lineage.
Independent Study: Specialized individual study programs are offered in ANTHR 4910 Topics in Anthropology, a course open to a limited number of juniors and seniors who have obtained permission and supervision of a faculty member. Undergraduates should note that many 6000-level courses are open to them by permission of the instructor.
Colloquia: The Department of Anthropology holds colloquia almost every week of the semester on Friday at 3:30 p.m. in 215 McGraw Hall. Faculty members from Cornell and other universities participate in discussions of current research and problems in anthropology. Students are encouraged to attend.
For more complete information about the anthropology major, see the director of undergraduate studies or visit the Department of Anthropology web page (anthropology.cornell.edu).