Well... here is my story. Maybe other people can relate.
I graduated from anthropology with mediocre grades at a mediocre school, a 3.5 from the University of North Texas, in December of 2012. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of thinking that because my grades were "decent", I was on track to continue on to graduate school. I took classes that I found interesting rather than developing a consistent regional, topical, or theoretical focus. Though I made A's on nearly all of term papers, including 2 ethnographic studies, the topics covered were fairly unrelated, none of them were published or received awards, and I'm no longer satisfied with their quality.
As for extra-curricular activities, they are measly. I was one of the initial members of an interdisciplinary student group and I did help them organize and implement a student lead community garden project, but that was only during my senior year. I also got an accredited internship at Opening Doors for Immigration Services my last semester. Throughout school I was struggling financially to make ends meet while still maintaining my grades, even living out of my car for a semester. I don't include that to encourage your sympathy as much as to explicate why I didn't do much else, and felt that taking out more loans to go to a field school was out of the question.
As of now, I have just completed a year long apprenticeship, living and working full time on an organic farm. I took this opportunity almost entirely because I assumed my community gardening experience would qualify me for the position. Also, and I admit this with embarrassment, I was naive and thought that perhaps the local food movement had some sort of larger reformative potential. Even still, I learned a lot. It was a great experience, and I never want to do it again.
The point of this ramble is that my history of work and research isn't spectacular and doesn't really reflect my research interests. Anthropological works that I find most meaningful is those with political and economic foci. My favorite research project in undergrad was a political economic approach to Argentina's history. I have been looking into programs that list economic anthropology and Latin America as research interests. There are plenty. But does it suffice to admit in my application that I came across this interest late in my Academic career, taking opportunities that I found feasible rather than ones I was truly interested in? Can I make up for it with a solid plan for research in the future?
Last point. I just acquired two jobs in order to save up for a Anthropology/Spanish field school in Peru this summer. It's with ECELA. Does anyone recognize it? Is it reputable? Good idea? Are there any better opportunities that you know of?
Also, is there anything else I can be doing right now, without any university affiliation, while working 2 jobs, that could improve my chances in applying to grad school next fall? (Im still looking at schools, drafting my application essays, reading everything I can, reworking my term paper on Argentina, studying spanish, and maintaining contact through email with past professors.)
Any advice would be greatly appreciated, and I hope that this thread helps others in a similar position.