Anthropology

 

Top Ten Reasons You Should Consider Graduate Study at the University of Wyoming's Department of Anthropology

1. A world-class faculty. Our faculty have been leaders of regional and national organizations, actively publish in leading journals, have authored numerous books, monographs, and textbooks; they serve on journal editorial boards and as editors of journals. Our faculty have high name recognition nationally and internationally; the archaeology faculty is well-known for its contributions to hunter-gatherer studies, high plains and Rocky Mountains archaeology, and lithic technological studies.
2. An MA program notable for its breadth. Believing that the breadth of anthropology is its strength, our department adheres to the four-fields approach, and students take core courses in the subfields of anthropology: cultural, biological, and linguistic anthropology, and archaeology.
3. A PhD program aimed at employment. We aim to give doctoral students what they need in order to gain employment in either academia or the private sector. To improve their standing in the academic job market, doctoral students take a required course in teaching, and teach at least one stand-alone class before graduating. If students do not have marketable experience for private or federal sector employment, they are required to take an internship in a federal agency office or a private firm.
4. International opportunities. For those students who seek international opportunities, we will help to open the doors. Previous graduate students have participated in research projects in Russia, Mongolia, Croatia, France, Peru, Argentina, and elsewhere.
5. Local fieldwork opportunities. For archaeology, students will be able to participate in faculty, CRM, federal agency and state archaeologist's office field projects. The problem is not finding a project to work on, but deciding which one.
6. Professionalization. Doctoral students take a course in grant writing and writing for publication. We encourage, and back up with funding when possible, student participation at regional and national conferences. Faculty frequently co-author publications with students.
7. More personal attention. The University of Wyoming is a small university, with fewer than 10,000 students on campus, and the anthropology department intentionally keeps its graduate student numbers low. This means that competition for faculty attention as well as funding is low.
8. A building designed for you. Built in 2007, the anthropology building is one of the newer buildings on campus - and we designed it. Part of that design took into account research into graduate student success. Come see for yourself!
9. The only game in town. Many state universities compete for the attention of their legislature, but not Wyoming - because we are the only four-year university in the state. This means that many opportunities, e.g., federal contracts, come directly to us, and this means employment and training opportunities for students.
10. Wyoming. If you like the outdoors, you will love Wyoming. There are more antelope here than there are people; you can be on the ski slopes in 40 minutes or rock climbing in 20. Yes, it's cold, but the sun shines most of the year. And at 7200 feet, just walking to class is an aerobic workout.