Chair: Maryanne Rhett, Department of History and Anthropology
The Master of Arts in Anthropology provides students with the necessary credentials to fulfill a variety of professional and academic goals. For students interested in archeology, their training and degree will prepare them for full-time supervisory-level employment in archaeology, cultural resource management, historic preservation, and geographic information systems (G.I.S.). Students interested in social policy, teaching, public relations, and local community engagement will receive training in qualitative research and other conceptual tools of cultural anthropology that prepare them for work in culturally unfamiliar and diverse situations. Students planning to continue for a Ph.D. will receive a well-grounded education in theory and methods taught by well-published faculty. Students in the program complete thirty credit hours of course work. Of the thirty credits for the program, six may be transferred from another institution.
The graduate certificate in archaeology is designed for graduate students pursuing careers in cultural resource management, public archaeology, historic preservation, or museum studies. Students will be provided practical training in these fields taught by skilled practitioners with active professional networks. The 18-credit certificate exists within the Anthropology Program and draws on the strengths of the department in anthropology, archaeology, geography, geographic information systems, and history.
The 12-credit graduate certificate in G.I.S. is designed for graduate students in one of the many master's programs that use spatial data, such as Anthropology, Business, Computer Science, History, Social Work, and potentially other programs. In addition to master's students, the G.I.S. graduate certificate program will accommodate working professionals who need G.I.S. training to advance their careers.
Veronica Davidov, Associate Professor and Anthropology Graduate Program Director (Graduate Faculty). Ph.D., New York University. Areas of research interest include cultures of Latin America and ecotourism in the Amazon. Teaching focus includes anthropological theory, ethnographic methods, area studies (Latin American), political ecology, and globalization.
vdavidov@monmouth.edu
Hillary DelPrete, Associate Professor and Undergraduate Program Director (Graduate Faculty). B.S., Tulane University; M.A., Ph.D., Rutgers University. Professor DelPrete is a biological anthropologist with a specialization in modern evolution. Teaching and research interests include human evolution, human variation, human behavioral ecology, and anthropometrics.
hdelpret@monmouth.edu
Adam Heinrich, Associate Professor (Graduate Faculty). B.S., M.A., Ph.D., Rutgers University. Historical and prehistoric archaeology; historical and prehistoric zooarchaeology; cultural and environmental variation in husbandry and meat consumption; taphonomy, African and European diaspora and cultural contact; 17th-19th century commemoration; Osteology/Forensics, Archaeobotany (macrobotanicals); experimental archaeology; development of mercantile systems; consumerism in archaeology; material culture and social process.
aheinric@monmouth.edu
Richard F. Veit, (Graduate Faculty).
Provost and Senior V.P. for Academic Affairs. B.A., Drew University; M.A., College of William and Mary; Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania. Teaching areas include archaeology, historic preservation, North American Indians, and New Jersey history. Research interests include historical archaeology, industrial archaeology, and early American Material Culture. Author of Digging New Jersey’s Past: Historical Archaeology in the Garden State.
rveit@monmouth.edu
AN-CPE Anthropology Comprehensive ExamCredits: None
Prerequisite(s): 30 graduate credits in Anthropology
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
The Anthropology comprehensive exam is a zero- credit course for students, which will allow students who have completed thirty credits of graduate coursework in anthropology to take a comprehensive exam and complete their degree. This is a pass/fail course.
AN-THD Thesis DefenseCredits: None
Prerequisite(s): AN-691 and AN-692
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): NOSRCH
A zero-credit course that is taken after completing AN-691 and AN-692. It consists of a public presentation of the student's completed thesis research. This is a pass/fail course.
AN-501 Anthropological TheoryCredits: 3
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
A seminar-style course that presents students with a survey of the theories that have shaped the thinking of anthropologists for over a century. We cover theories relevant to all four subfields of anthropology (cultural, archaeological, linguistic, and biological), and compare them through a very general set of questions. The five questions asked are 1) How does society hold itself together? (structure); 2)How does society change?(history); 3) How aware are people of their society and its changes?(subjectivity); 4) How are people able to change their society? (agency); and 5) How do people divide society into groups?(alterity).
AN-502 Seminar in Biological AnthropologyCredits: 3
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
Designed to provide graduate students with a foundation in the core principles of biological anthropology. We will examine both theoretical issues and empirical evidence in order to better understand evolution of the human species. Topics that will be explored in this course include evolutionary theory, primatology, paleoanthropology and human variation. In addition, this course will examine contemporary issues in human bio-cultural evolution.
AN-503 Archaeological TheoryCredits: 3
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
Focuses on theoretical issues, past and present, concerning the nature and explanation of culture, cultural reproduction and transformation through time, and the central role of materiality in those processes. As anthropological archaeology, the course is premised on the relationship of archaeology to anthropology and other socio-historical sciences. We will examine the development of archaeology as an academic discipline, the role of theory in interpretation of archaeological materials, and the key concepts of culture and time. The course will examine specific theoretical approaches including culture history, neo-evolutionary-functionalist-ecological approaches, neo-Marxist and materialist perspectives, processualism and postprocessualism, interaction theories (e.g., world systems theory), and contemporary approaches. These include practice/agency, contextual approaches, and other multivocal, feminist, and postcolonial theories of identity-formation in the past. The course will appeal to a wide range of social scientists, and particularly archaeologists, sociocultural anthropologists, and other disciplines working on issues of representation(e.g., museum professionals).
AN-506 Historical ArchaeologyCredits: 3
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): HSUS, HSPUB
An intensive introduction to historical and industrial archaeology (c. 1492+). Topics covered include exploration, imperialism, colonization, industrialization, and urbanism. Archaeological field methods and the interpretation of material culture are also introduced. Also listed as HS-506.
AN-507 Historic Artifact AnalysisCredits: 3
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
A graduate-level seminar and lab on select material culture commonly recovered from historical archaeological sites. Artifact classes that are covered in the course include ceramics, glass, and a tobacco pipes. Students in the class will learn artifact identification, historical developments of artifact types, and archaeological methodology for dating and quantifying assemblages. The course also includes discussions on a various cultural aspects such as consumption, socio-economic status, gender, mercantilism, and other cultural behaviors in order to help put the artifacts into historical contexts and answer archaeological research questions.
AN-520 Field Methods in ArchaeologyCredits: 3
Course Type(s): HSPUB
An introduction to archaeological field methods: survey and excavation. Students will also learn excavation procedures, descriptive note writing, and drawing, and be introduced to archaeological photography, mapping, reporting, conservation, and curation. Supervised fieldwork will be conducted on archaeological sites. Also listed as HS-520.
AN-522 Ethnographic MethodsCredits: 3
Term Offered: Spring Term
Course Type(s): None
An overview of ethnographic research design and methods employed in anthropology. Students will practice research design and methods, data analysis, and write-up techniques. Students will engage questions of ethics through research practice and theoretical discussion.
AN-524 Introduction to Geographical Information Systems (GIS)Credits: 3
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
Provides both the theoretical and methodological background for proficient use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS). A multidisciplinary integration of theories and applications pertinent to both natural and social science research. Lectures and discussions will introduce the conceptual and methodological platform that is necessary to design, implement, and interpret GIS research. Weekly lab exercises will develop problem-solving skills and emphasize common research techniques in GIS. Students will also learn field techniques of spatial data collection. In sum, demonstrates how both GIS tools and a geographic perspective may be applied to a broad range of social and ecological research problems. Also listed as GO-524.
AN-530 Zooarchaeology: The Archaeology of AnimalsCredits: 3
Term Offered: Spring Term
Course Type(s): None
Covers methods of faunal analysis and the application of the study of animal remains to broad topics of cultural study including subsistence, status, and ideology.
AN-532 Native American History and PrehistoryCredits: 3
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): HSNW, HSWLD
Examines North America's native people in the area north of the Rio Grande. It combines North American prehistory with a historical overview of Native American experiences since contact. Evidence from archaeology, oral histories, and written sources are all presented. Challenges facing modern Native Americans are also examined. Also listed as HS-532.
AN-533 Cultural Resource Management PracticumCredits: 3
Course Type(s): None
Provides a hands-on introduction to and overview of cultural resource management archaeology (CRM), within the broader context of historic preservation. Students read about, discuss, and participate in actual historic preservation/cultural resource management projects in order to learn about current preservation practices.
AN-540 Psychological AnthropologyCredits: 3
Course Type(s): None
An introduction to the subfield of psychological anthropology. Research and inquiry in psychological anthropology is rooted in two traditions. The first is culture and personality which is aligned with psychoanalytical thought; the second is cognitive anthropology which emphasizes cultural models of thought. A fundamental pursuit in psychological anthropology is the relationship between culture, behavior, and thought. Psychological anthropology seeks to understand the relationship between individual and sociocultural phenomena - between polar extremes such as personality and mind and society and culture. Explores how culture and psyche affect each other. Topics include: theoretical frameworks; culture and personality, human development, emotion, self, and mental illness.
AN-555 Ancient TechnologyCredits: 3
Term Offered: Spring Term
Course Type(s): None
Provides an introduction to ancient technology/experimental archaeology. It examines the major theories and practices employed by experimental archaeologists. Students will develop skills in traditional technologies, e.g. flintknapping, pot firing, blacksmithing, and timber frame house construction.
AN-562 History of Maps and MappingCredits: 3
Term Offered: Spring Term
Course Type(s): None
Students will study the historical developments in cartographic technique, the development of mapping in different parts of the world, and the future of mapping in the computer age. Students will focus on the ways the events and ideology of a time period influence maps and mapping, and how in turn mapping influences history and ideology. Also listed as HS-562.
AN-563 The AmazonCredits: 3
Term Offered: Spring Term
Course Type(s): None
An anthropological seminar focused on the Amazon region, with emphasis on how expert and lay knowledge about the Amazon has been produced and circulated.
AN-572 The History of TourismCredits: 3
Term Offered: Fall Term
Course Type(s): HSEU, HSPUB, HSWLD
Students will study the history of tourism in different parts of the world from political, social, cultural, geographic, and economic perspectives. This will include an examination of historical differences in tourist attractions, tourist behaviors, and impacts on tourist destinations and their people. Students will also study how historical memory and interpretation shapes the contemporary tourist experience, as well as questions concerning authenticity and tourism. Also listed as HS-572.
AN-573 Ecological ImperialismCredits: 3
Term Offered: Spring Term
Course Type(s): HSWLD
Ecological History will examine the relationship between human society(ies) and the natural world over recorded time. As an interdisciplinary exercise this class will draw on the natural sciences, anthropology, and history to better understand the biological, cultural, imperial, ethical, economic, religious, political, and global ramifications of the relationship between humanity and humanity's "natural" surroundings. Also listed as HS-573.
AN-575 Civilizations of the AndesCredits: 3
Term Offered: Spring Term
Course Type(s): HSNW, HSWLD
A survey of Andean history from the beginning of human settlement through the Inca Empire and the Spanish conquest to contemporary peasant society. The evolution and nature of pre-Columbian civilizations, focusing on Chavin, Paracas-Nazca, Huari-Tiahuanaco, Chimor, and the Inca; the social and political organization of the Inca empire; the Spanish conquest and its impact on native culture; contemporary social changes; and rural migration and the transformation of contemporary Andean society. Theoretical exploration of the developmental trajectory of Andean civilization. Also listed as HS-575.
AN-582 Applied AnthropologyCredits: 3
Term Offered: Fall Term
Course Type(s): None
Applied Anthropology is anthropology put to use - meaning using anthropological research and methods to solve practical problems. This is an advanced level survey course that pays attention to cultural viewpoints, methods and results. While exploring different areas of applied anthropology through the history of the discipline and contemporary research projects, we will study methods unique to this subfield. Practical information, advice and resource on career preparation and development will be offered. By the end of the course, students should be able to answer the question "How can I use anthropology in my future career?"
AN-585 Colonialism in AfricaCredits: 3
Term Offered: Spring Term
Course Type(s): HSNW
Analysis and appraisal of colonialism in Africa, reflecting on the political, economic, and sociocultural transformations, that occurred in Africa between 1880 and 1960. Also listed as HS-585.
AN-587 Visual AnthropologyCredits: 3
Term Offered: Spring Term
Course Type(s): None
Deals with the aspects of visuality in culture and anthropology. A significant part of the course will be devoted to visual anthropology. We will learn about the development of visual anthropology as a discipline, the particular problems and challenges involved in practicing this type of ethnography, the evolution of ideas about accountability, representation, reflexivity and positioning in visual ethnographic methods. We will start with exploring the role of image in anthropology by considering the relationship between photography and ethnography, and continue to study ethnographic filmmaking, from Robert Flaherty's "Nanook of the North," (considered to be the first ethnographic documentary), to the development of Cinema Verite, to the emergence of indigenous media. Students will gain a nuanced understanding of the subject through weekly writing exercises, presentations, and in-class discussion. For a final project, students will write a long-form paper that will combine original research and visual analysis.
AN-591 IslamCredits: 3
Course Type(s): HSNW, HSWLD
This course examines Islamic history, culture, and art across the world, including but not limited to the Middle East, North Africa, the Balkans, and the Americas. Thematic coverage will include religious/spiritual/ritualistic, political, cultural, and intellectual changes, as well as, imperialism, the rise of nation-states, and cultural interaction with traditionally non-Islamic lands and peoples. Also listed as HS-591.
AN-595 Anthropology Internship/PracticumCredits: 3
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
Provides graduate students with the opportunity to gain substantive career experience and build specific applied skills by working in outside programs, institutions, agencies, and firms engaged in the fields of anthropology, museum studies, public history, and geography.
AN-598 Special Topics in AnthropologyCredits: 3
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
Allows students to study a specific aspect of anthropology. The subject matter varies from semester to semester, and depends on the professor who teaches the course. If a prerequisite is required it will be announced in the course schedule.
AN-599 Independent Study in AnthropologyCredits: 1-3
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
Reading and research leading to significant written work under the direction of a member of the anthropology faculty. Prior permission of the directing professor and department chair is required to take this course.
AN-691 Anthropology Thesis (Research)Credits: 3
Prerequisite(s): 15 credits in Anthropology
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
Reading and research leading to significant written work, under the direction of a member of the anthropology faculty. This is a pass/fail course.
AN-692 Anthropology Thesis (Writing)Credits: 3
Prerequisite(s): 18 credits in Anthropology
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
Reading and research leading to significant written work, under the direction of a member of the anthropology faculty. This is a pass/fail course.
AN-693 Anthropology Library ThesisCredits: 3
Prerequisite(s): 23 graduate credits in Anthropology
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
Reading and research leading to significant written work based on secondary sources, under the direction of Anthropology faculty members, for the completion of the Master's program in the History and Anthropology department. Each thesis will be supervised by a "first reader" and a "second reader." First readers must be full-time faculty with terminal degrees in the field. Registration for thesis credits is completed after a successful defense of a prospectus (thesis proposal). This is a pass/fail course.
AN-799 Independent Study in AnthropologyCredits: 3
Term Offered: All Terms
Course Type(s): None
Independent Study Anthropology Doctorate Level.
Print this page.
The PDF will include all information unique to this page.
Download the Complete 2024-2025 Undergraduate PDF Catalogs.
Download the Complete 2024-2025 Graduate PDF Catalogs.