Dec 30, 2024  
2024-2025 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
2024-2025 Undergraduate Catalog

Anthropological Sciences, B.S. (R, A)



The Anthropological Sciences major provides broad training in biological, archaeological, and forensic anthropology leading to the Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree. Students majoring in Anthropological Sciences must take all of the required Anthropological Sciences courses and also must choose a concentration in General Anthropology, Archaeology, Bioarchaeology, or Forensic Anthropology.

REAL Curriculum


The Anthropological Sciences major fulfills that R and A areas of the REAL curriculum. We develop the R area through coursework where students develop, test hypotheses and draw conclusions about anthropologically relevant questions. Within this process they examine the appropriateness of their scientific conclusions and the use of quantitative data in the analysis of anthropological questions. We develop the A area through an examination and exploration of the role of different world cultures today and through time. A significant focus of the major is understanding the context, consequences and interactions among cultures and behaviors. Students need majors and/or minors to fulfill the E and L areas to complete the REAL Curriculum requirements.

REAL Foundational Requirements


REAL Cornerstone Requirements


Writing Intensive (WI) Courses (6 credits)


Writing Intensive courses are denoted below with a (WI). Two writing intensive courses are required to graduate, with at least one at the 300- or 400-level. The Anthropological Sciences major includes 6-12 credits of writing intensive courses.

General Education Requirements


General Education courses will be denoted below with a (GE). Students are required to take at least 30 credit hours of general education designated courses within their degree requirements. The Anthropological Sciences major includes 11-29 general education credits.

Major Requirements (52-54 credits)


B.S. Requirements (8 credits)


All students in the Archaeology concentration are expected to complete GEOL 105  as well as a minimum of one other lab science course from BIOL, CHEM, GEOL, GEOS, or PHYS to fulfill their Bachelor of Science degree requirement.

Students in the Forensic Anthropology, Bioarchaeology, or General Anthropology concentration choosing to earn a B.S. must complete 8 hours, including at least one lab science course worth four or more credits, from BIOL, CHEM, GEOL, GEOS, or PHYS to fulfill their Bachelor of Science degree requirement.

Courses that fulfill the Bachelor of Science degree requirement may also fulfill general education requirements.

Concentrations


Majors must choose one of the concentrations outlined below.

General Anthropology Concentration (21 credits)


The General Anthropology Concentration is designed for students who wish for a broader foundation in anthropology. Students are encouraged to take a variety of anthropology coursework in order to build an interdisciplinary understanding of the field. In addition to the Required Anthropological Sciences courses listed above, students in the General Anthropological Concentration must complete the following:

Archaeology Concentration (21 credits)


Students interested in a career in archaeology have the option of choosing the Archaeology concentration. This concentration will prepare students for a career as an archaeologist by giving them training in both archaeological field and lab techniques but also on an archaeological culture area in addition to their general training in anthropology. In addition to the Required Anthropological Sciences Courses listed above, students in the Archaeology Concentration must complete the following:

Forensic Anthropology Concentration (23 credits)


Students interested in specializing in Forensic Anthropology have the option of choosing a Forensic Anthropology Concentration. This preprofessional concentration prepares students for graduate-level study of recent unidentified human remains in a medicolegal context. In addition to the Required Anthropological Sciences Courses listed above, students in the Forensic Anthropology Concentration must complete the following:

Bioarchaeology Concentration (21 credits)


Students interested in learning about culture and past societies from human skeletal remains can take the Bioarchaeology concentration.  In this course of study students will learn about human skeletal analysis, an archaeological culture area and what we can learn about an individual and their culture from a burial.

Additional Degree Requirements


To graduate with a major in Anthropological Sciences, students must have a C- or better in all courses taken for major requirements including those from other departments. In addition students graduating with an Anthropological Sciences major must have at least a 2.0 GPA in the major.

Open Credit Hours (66-68 credits)


These credits can be used to fulfill additional courses, majors, minors, and/or REAL Curriculum requirements, including Foundational Writing and Foundational Math.

Total Credits Needed for Degree 120


Additional Information


No more than 9 credit hours can double count across any program (major or minor) offered by the Anthropological Sciences department.