Graduate school for Archaeology

[dk90]

Hello everyone,

I'm currently an undergrad majoring in political science, but have always had an interest in archaeology and was planning on taking some coursework in this area before I graduate. I was curious as to know what requirements were necessary for applying to a program in archaeology specifically, and if it's possible to gain entry into one of these programs in a social science other than anthropology (poli sci in my case). I've kind of come to the conclusion that I want to attend grad school, but not necessarily in a poli sci related field. Would it be possible to get into a grad school for archaeology with my particular situation? I'm guessing it would be pretty unlikely that I could, but I was just interested in hearing from some people who know more about this than I do haha. Thanks!

[laurissimo]

Hey! So, most likely you'd need to apply to an anthropology graduate program that has a sub-field in archaeology. Specifically, though, grad schools (in my experience) look for extensive coursework (in both anthropology and archaeology), a field school, and/or real digging/lab experience. If your UG school has a certificate in archaeology, I'd recommend trying to go for that! I don't think it would be impossible for you to get into grad school with a polisci degree, but you would need extensive work with archaeology as well. Another option would be double-majoring; that would be super interesting and applicable because so much of archaeology is impacted by politics.

Good luck!

[Shelley Burian]

I would REALLY think long and hard about why you want to do archaeology and what you want to get out of a graduate degree in it before committing to a program. As someone who works with archaeologists and on the same type of material but in a different discipline, I can tell you that the job situtation is every bit as bad as others say and probably worse. Do you have a specific career in mind or have you simply enjoyed the classes you took? If the latter is the case than you need to do much more research and get some experience in the kinds of jobs people with archaeology degrees hold.

Edited June 8, 2012 by Shelley Burian