Is Anthropology Right for You?
Have you dreamed of traveling to far-off lands? Are you fascinated by past civilizations? Do you wonder where humans came from?
If so, anthropology is for you! Anthropology is the study of what makes us human. Anthropologists integrate perspectives from the social sciences, natural sciences, and humanities to understand the diverse ways in which people have lived, died, and solved the common problems of human existence from the ancient past to the present day.
What Will I Learn?
As an anthropology major, you can learn to answer questions like:
- How can you know where someone grew up by looking at teeth?
- How did Mississippians live ten thousand years ago?
- How do our words shape how we understand the world?
- How did we evolve to develop obesity?
- How does studying non-human primates help us understand ourselves?
- Why are initiation rituals for men often more strenuous than for women?
- How can we identify and resolve cultural misunderstandings?
You can earn course credit for internships, whether you organize it yourself or find one through us. Students have had internships at Camp Shelby, law enforcement agencies, and our labs. We encourage students to explore other possibilities tailored to specific career interests and will provide valuable experience for employment after graduation.
Expert Faculty Who Are There to Help
We are a small program that prides itself on working closely with students. In labs, the classroom, summer field schools, independent research, and internships we always make time to help you prepare for your future. Faculty will work with you to develop analytical, communicative, and practical skills that you can use throughout your life.
Our labs provide numerous opportunities for research in archaeology, biological anthropology, and forensic anthropology. Use archaeological collections from around the state to reconstruct lifeways and political organization of Mississippians 800 years ago. Learn how skeletal remains can tell life stories concerning diet, disease, and trauma of those who lived in the past, especially concerning the effects of Spanish colonialism on the Maya. Summer field schools in archaeology and cultural anthropology will give you additional hands-on experience and training.
Availability
| Degree Plan | Availability |
|---|---|
| Anthropology BA | Hattiesburg |
| Anthropology Minor |
- Cultural Resource Management
- Foreign Service Officer
- User Experience (UX) Researcher
- Crime Scene Analyst (forensic anthropologist)
- Museum or Zoo Curator
- Archaeologist
- Jennifer Clark, 2001
Event Planner, Emerge Events - Haley Streuding, 2007
Archaeologist and Project Manager, Coastal Environments, Inc.
- Julie Castillo, 2008
Investigator at U.S. Department of Labor - Steven Kidd, 1997
Cultural Resource Specialist/Archaeologist at National Park Service
- Heide McKenzie, 2004
Archaeologist and Environmental Specialist, Geographic Information Systems, Camp Shelby - Barbara McClendon, 2012
Exhibits Curator at Mississippi Department of Archives and History