Anthropology, BA
Degree: Bachelor of Arts (BA)
Major: Anthropology
Program Overview
As a student in the anthropology program at Case Western Reserve University, you will be challenged to form a unique perspective on human behavior, institutions, and biology. Skills of investigation, discovery, and critical thinking will prepare you for a wide range of careers, including health, international affairs, public service, education, law, management, and industry. An undergraduate degree in anthropology can lead to further study in medicine and law, or to advanced study in various academic programs. Just a few examples of the exciting opportunities open to anthropologists include working with local police forensic departments, studying health issues for hospitals or medical centers, and consulting for companies that develop software and electronics.
Students pursuing a major or minor in anthropology may choose one of three areas of concentration: general anthropology, archaeology, or medical anthropology. Each of these emphases enables you to develop the qualitative and quantitative analytic skills necessary for both a career and further academic study.
Learning Outcomes
- Students will be able to develop a global and cross-cultural perspective on human cultural diversity and will have an understanding of theories about culture, human cultural diversity, and the sociocultural context as shaping human experience and behavior.
- Students will be able to develop an understanding of the evidence for and evolutionary explanation of human evolution over the past 7 million years and contemporary human biological diversity.
- Students will be able to learn about at least one specific geographic/cultural area in-depth.
- Students will be able to think critically and effectively communicate, particularly about key anthropological data and concepts.
Undergraduate Policies
For undergraduate policies and procedures, please review the Undergraduate Academics section of the General Bulletin.
Combined Bachelor's/Master's Programs
Undergraduate students may participate in accelerated programs toward graduate or professional degrees. For more information and details of the policies and procedures related to accelerated studies, please visit the Undergraduate Academics section of the General Bulletin.
Program Requirements
Students seeking to complete this major and degree program must meet the general requirements for bachelor's degrees and the Unified General Education Requirements. Students completing this program as a secondary major while completing another undergraduate degree program do not need to satisfy the school-specific requirements associated with this major.
The undergraduate major requires a minimum of 30 credit hours in anthropology. The undergraduate program provides a cross-cultural perspective on human behavior, culture, and biology. Students may choose from three major concentrations: General Anthropology, Medical Anthropology, and Archaeology.
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses: | ||
| ANTH 102 | Being Human: An Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology | 3 |
| ANTH 103 | Introduction to Human Evolution | 3 |
| ANTH 319 | Introduction to Statistical Analysis in the Social Sciences | 3 |
Departmental Honors
To graduate with Honors in Anthropology, students must complete a Capstone in Anthropology with a grade of A and have an overall GPA of 3.95 and a GPA of 3.95 in Anthropology courses taken at CWRU.
Concentration Requirements
General Anthropology Concentration
The General Anthropology Concentration provides training in three subdisciplines of anthropology. The first, sociocultural anthropology, emphasizes relationships among socioeconomic institutions, cultural ecology, health and medicine, religion and symbolism, individual psychological variables, and language. The second, biological anthropology, emphasizes human ecology and adaptability, human growth and development, nutritional adaptation, epidemiology, and human and nonhuman primate evolution. The third, archaeology, deals with the long sequences of independent sociocultural, technological, and ecological evolution that have taken place under diverse conditions.
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses: | 12 | |
| Being Human: An Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology | ||
| Introduction to Human Evolution | ||
| Introduction to Statistical Analysis in the Social Sciences | ||
| Ethnographic and Qualitative Research Methods | ||
| Approved Anthropology Electives: any 100-, 200-, 300-level ANTH course | 18 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 30 | |
Medical Anthropology Concentration
The Medical Anthropology Concentration provides training in the three subdisciplines discussed above, but with a focus on their relationship to physical and mental health, illness, disease, and medicine.
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses: | 15 | |
| Being Human: An Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology | ||
| Introduction to Human Evolution | ||
| Health, Culture, and Disease: An Introduction to Medical Anthropology | ||
| Introduction to Statistical Analysis in the Social Sciences | ||
| Ethnographic and Qualitative Research Methods | ||
| Choose three of the following health and illness related courses: | 9 | |
| Global Health Design in Uganda | ||
| Darwinian Medicine | ||
| Interdisciplinary Solutions to Global Health Issues | ||
| Current Global Health Events | ||
| Medical Anthropology and Public Health | ||
| Anthropological Perspectives of Migration and Health | ||
| Illegal Drugs and Society | ||
| Culture and Mental Health | ||
| Health and Healing in East Asia | ||
| Introduction to Global Health | ||
| Global Politics of Reproduction | ||
| The Anthropology of Nutrition | ||
| Culture, Behavior, and Person: Psychological Anthropology | ||
| Topics in the Anthropology of Health and Medicine | ||
| Approved Anthropology Electives: any 100-, 200-, 300-level ANTH course | 6 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 30 | |
Archaeology Concentration
The Archaeology Concentration focuses on the customs and daily life of people who lived in the past. Anthropologists excavate and analyze the material remains of the sites of human occupation. At the same time, archaeological research seeks to understand the evolution of culture and society by determining how and why changes in human society have occurred.
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses: | 12 | |
| Being Human: An Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology | ||
| Introduction to Human Evolution | ||
| Archaeology: An Introduction | ||
| Introduction to Statistical Analysis in the Social Sciences | ||
| Choose three of the following archeaology courses: | 9 | |
| The Most Ancient Near East | ||
| Roots of Ancient India: Archaeology of South Asia | ||
| Archaeology of the Ancient World | ||
| Independent Study a | ||
| Approved Anthropology Electives: any 100-, 200-, 300-level ANTH course | 9 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 30 | |
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