What is it like being an Anthropology major?
What are common misconceptions about ANT majors?
What kind of internships and international experiences have majors had?
How will Anthropology majors save the world?
Why would anyone want to date an Anthropology major?
Anthropology has four general subareas: Cultural Anthropology, Physical Anthropology, Archaeology, and Linguistics.
Cultural Anthropology is the historical-sociological study of other cultures. According to Clifford Geertz, it is the interpretive study of culture, in which people's lived behavior can be taken as a type of "text" to describe and analyze. Geertz wrote: "Believing, with Max Weber, that man is an animal suspended in webs of significance he himself has spun, I take culture to be those webs, and the analysis of it to be therefore not an experimental science in search of law but an interpretive one in search of meaning." As an interpretive mode of study, Cultural Anthropology may be considered either "science," "humanities," or "social science," depending on whom you ask.
Physical Anthropology involves the study of human bodies and evolutionary history. Archaeology involves the study of places where humans have lived or traveled, and Linguistics involves the study of languages.
You can learn how to encounter and analyze another culture and interact respectfully within it.
You will be better prepared to understand your own way of life, as well of the ways of lives of other people, with respect to everything from food and clothing choices to religion and epistemology.
What is it like being an Anthropology major?
Princeton Anthropology majors write one JP and a senior thesis. A JP proposal is due in the fall, and the JP itself is due in the spring. Students are allowed to rank their desired advisors for both projects, and the department is small enough—and the range of interests wide enough— that most everyone gets one of their top choices. The senior thesis has one of the earliest due dates of all of the departments; however, extensions are definitely available.
Every anthropology student has great freedom in choosing topics for independent work. Original fieldwork for the senior thesis should be planned and completed by early fall of the senior year, or hopefully the summer before senior year, so that's a detail to keep in mind. However, one does not have to do fieldwork for a JP or a thesis in the Anthropology. There is always the option of doing library based research—especially for those who choose to focus on Physical Anthropology.
What are common misconceptions about Anthropology majors?
Perhaps that they are "fluffy humanities people" and belong to a field that is so broad that it becomes ill-defined and loses rigor by allowing a wide range of "evidence" and styles of argument.
These may be liabilities in the eyes of some, but they are strengths in the eyes of others: people who appreciate anthropology's approach probably agree that human cultural diversity is too broad to be bound by a single set of scientific metrics or methods, and that dealing skillfully with complexity—"gray areas" rather than black-and-white truths—is a valuable ideal.
What kind of internships and international experiences have majors had?
The department is very accommodating to students who wish to take a semester abroad. Junior Fall or Spring is recommended, and independent work advising can take place via email. Students are warned to bring the books and materials they need to finish an independent work project with them if they travel abroad, since foreign universities may simply not have the resources one would wish for. The Study Abroad Office has great advice for students wishing to plan an international experience.
For students interested in physical anthropology, human evolution and archaeology, there is a summer course offered in Bordeaux with Professor Alan Mann. This six week course gives students the opportunity to work at an archaeological excavation containing Neanderthal remains in the South of France and reach a better understanding of the issues surrounding modern human origins.
How will Anthropology majors save the world?
Anthropology students observe, interpret, and report what they find happening "on the ground" in whatever social situation they choose to study. Their interdisciplinary approach aims to create a loyal description of reality. Books and articles produced by anthropologists, set loose upon the world, may be read and appreciated by anyone, and can help people in positions of power better understand the effects their choices are making, and imagine the possibility of different choices.
Why would anyone want to date an Anthropology major?
Cultural anthropologists look for the "edges" of taken-for-granted common knowledge. You can expect an anthropology student to have original and quirky opinions on everyday social phenomena, and to give a "second look" at details other people may not care to notice. Think of them as English majors for the book on whose pages we are all living together. Furthermore, anthropology students may be able to tell you fascinating stories of their own fieldwork and their travels into strange territories both foreign and domestic. Last but not least, they are great listeners, and may enjoy listening to you talk about yourself.
