<p>If you’re serious about biological anthropology, there are much better options than Chicago. It has long focused on cultural anthropology to the detriment of bioanth, which is virtually nonexistent at the university. Including Barnard in your list was an extremely good decision; its cross-registration with Columbia, which has a great bioanth program, would be very useful. </p>
<p>To the best of my knowledge, no LAC has particular strength in bioanth, and most do not even offer it. Bryn Mawr is not unusual in this respect, but as TK points out, one has the option of cross-registration with Penn, which has superb anthropology offerings and resources. </p>
<p>Examine the faculty rosters very carefully. Many supposedly good anthropology programs focus solely on sociocultural anthro – any college of interest should have at least one full time, tenured/tenure-track faculty member in biological anthropology (two or more is definitely preferred). As a general rule of thumb, steer well clear of any LAC that combines its sociology and anthropology programs into one department.</p>
<p>Given your interests, I strongly recommend Emory, which I think would suit you quite well. Duke may be worth a try and has arguably the best bioanth program of any private college, but it is becoming exceptionally difficult to get into. The same goes for Columbia. NYU, Wisconsin, and Michigan are also quite good, but they’re much larger, and financially they are unlikely to be better deals than the UCs. </p>
<p>Case Western and GWU might be worth a look. Maybe Tulane as well. </p>
<p>Per post #4, be aware that most graduate (PhD) programs in anthropology are fully funded.</p>