Anthropology is concerned with everything that is human, in all parts of the world, both present and past. It is unique among the social sciences in its scope. Most disciplines focus only on modern civilization or concentrate on single aspects of life, such as government or the economy. Anthropology is interested in all human societies and views life as a complexly integrated whole that is more than the sum of its parts. It is the human experience as a whole that anthropology seeks to understand. The breadth of anthropology is reflected in its four subfields. Physical anthropology studies biological evolution and how heredity conditions the ways we conduct life. Cultural anthropology, by studying the enormous diversity of lifeways in contemporary cultures throughout the world, attempts to explain both differences and similarities in the way different peoples carry out the process of living. Archaeology explores the human past far beyond the range of written records, using specialized techniques to probe human prehistory. Linguistic anthropology investigates the nature of language and the critical role it has played in developing our unique intellectual capabilities and behavior. The central concept in anthropology is "culture," and it is this vital idea which binds the subfields into an integrated discipline.

The Department of Anthropology provides undergraduate training (major or minor) in anthropology with emphases in Archeology, Cultural and Physical Anthropology. Fieldwork opportunities through the Institute of Public Anthropology and our Archeology field school provide multiple opportunities for students to gain hands on research in ongoing investigations. What You Can Earn: Employment Opportunities will be timely posted on the Society for Applied Anthropology website Interesting Classes You Might Take: Introductory Fieldwork in Archeology World Cultures Anthropology of Health, Illness, and Healing Peoples and Cultures of East Asia What You Can Learn: How culture has made possible the range of different societies Basic methods and strategies for archeological excavation How to think critically and use reasoning when considering topics of race/ingelligence, region/values, and social policy.