<p>Would anthropology be better at a top school like Stanford or Dartmouth, at an LAC like Davidson or Wake Forest, or at a public school like UNC Chapel Hill or UW Madison.</p>
<p>All these schools have different environments. If they all interest you, I suggest applying to them. Wait for acceptances and financial aid packages…then decide. Your choices will likely become much clearer once you’re dealt your full hand.</p>
<p>Those were just examples. Does any type of school (high-ranked, LAC, or public) generally offer better anthro programs than the other(s)?</p>
<p>I was an antro major at a teeny college, then did grad school at a large- both were super. I enoyed the closeness of a smaller dept- the attention and chance to get close to profs. But, the program has to be right for you. Because it’s such a broad field, the best thing is to look at online course catalogs and check the backgrounds and research interests of the profs. You want to look at the subfields each school seems to specialize in- versus whether a broad range is represented. And, you want the benefit of a great study abroad program. Any idea what your interests are, within anthro?</p>
<p>My interests are definitely in physical/biological anthropology.</p>
<p>My dau is also interested in physical (evolutionary.) And, for her, archaeology fits in somewhere.</p>
<p>[Welcome</a> to AAPA — American Association of Physical Anthropologists](<a href=“http://physanth.org/]Welcome”>http://physanth.org/) Interesting that their 2012 annual meeting is in Portland, in April.
[Society</a> for Medical Anthropology (home)](<a href=“http://www.medanthro.net/definition.html]Society”>http://www.medanthro.net/definition.html)</p>
<p>One thing that may turn out to be important for you is that some of the better grad school programs may limit how much is availabe to undergrads. So, regardless of the reputed reputation of a university, you want to ensure that school is the right match for your UG exerience. This will take exploring the dept descriptions and course catalogs. Try to see how much emphasis there is on physical- and how many of the listed profs and lecturers are active in that aspect of the field. </p>
<p>Your orig question was how to choose- big name, big program or something smaller. It is really going to come down to the right profs offering the right courses, the right research opps for you. A great school will help you find internships- if these aren’t shown under the dept’s info, they can be through the career planning (by whatever name) office. So, see how active that is. I definitely think a school that ecourages study abroad and has a broad list of approved abroad programs (so you can get credit) and that offers finaid for these, is a great choice.</p>
<p>You can actually google for starter info on great programs- but remember to filter to ensure it’s the right undergrad opportunity. Good Luck.</p>