Anthropology, BA

Location(s): Main Campus

Anthropology studies human populations and cultures in comparative, historical, and evolutionary frameworks. The curriculum promotes understanding the variety of past and present human groups, the cultures and societies people create, the processes that animate cultural production and social life, and the processes that underlie human biological development and evolution. Students learn and apply anthropologists’ research methods and theoretical constructs to investigate peoples and their social worlds. Excavating and analyzing the remains of past cultures, studying the interaction of biology and culture, and examining global social and cultural changes are but a few of the approaches anthropologists use to investigate the human way of life.

Students majoring in the Bachelor of Arts (BA) receive excellent training for undertaking graduate studies in anthropology or related fields or for careers outside of academia.

Program Requirements

University General Education Requirements

All Binghamton University undergraduate students are required to fulfill this set of university-wide requirements to ensure that every graduate acquires the essential core of a SUNY university undergraduate education. Please refer to the General Education page for more information.

Harpur College Requirements

All students in Harpur College must fulfill additional requirements designated by Harpur College to complement and extend the general education requirements. Please refer to the Harpur College of Arts and Sciences page for more information.

Major Requirements

Course Requirements (56 credits total)

A. One course from four of the following five categories in anthropology:

Linguistic Anthropology*

Archaeology*

B. Ethics Course

One anthropology ethics course

C. Electives

Three elective courses in anthropology at any level
Four upper-level courses in anthropology
Two additional upper-level courses in anthropology or other social or natural science

Notes:

*Students pursuing the Transfer Path in Anthropology must do so by taking one of the courses from the linguistic anthropology, archaeology, sociocultural anthropology and biological anthropology categories.

Additional Information About the Program

Only courses passed with a grade of C- or better are counted toward fulfilling the requirements of an anthropology major; transfer courses also must be C- or better to count toward the major. No more than one course taken under the Pass/Fail option is accepted to fulfill the requirements for the anthropology major.

Residency Requirement: The Anthropology Department’s residency requirement stipulates that a minimum of seven courses (28 credits) in the major must be taken in residence at Binghamton University.

For more information on the Anthropology BA program, please refer to the Anthropology department website. To apply to the Anthropology BA program, please visit the University Admissions website.