<p>I'm an anthropology major in my last year at Mount Holyoke College (Massachusetts, one of the 'Seven Sisters'). The thought of getting some job after graduation really depresses me; what I really want to do is keep studying. I've just started to research graduate programs in Anthropology- either cultural or possibly medical. My interests are in health & healing, both of modern and "traditional" systems, shamanism, the role of religion in healing, altered states of consciousness, etc. The "anthropology of consciousness" probably sums up what I'm most interested in. Anyway...</p>
<p>My question is about funding. My teachers have told me that it's VERY difficult to get any funding for a masters degree in anthropology, but easy to get the PhD work funded (even though, as I understand it, the masters program is usually combined with the PhD in anthro). Is this true about funding, and is it specific to anthropology? I have a friend doing a PhD in women's studies at the University of WI Madison, and she is fully funded with a stipend. Obviously women's studies is different than anthro, but they're at least closely related. Any advice on this is appreciated. Again, my questions are:</p>
<p>-what's the deal with funding for Anthropology graduate (and PhD) studies?
-These programs (maters & PhD) are usually combined, right?
-Which schools offer full funding with stipend for anthro grad studies? (Again, I am researching this myself, but want to make sure I don't miss any programs)</p>
<p>Rather than looking to where the money is, look to your area of interest and the profs that you would like to study under.
You should have more motivation to pursue your ph.d than you don’t want to punch a time clock.
Mark Plotkin for example did his undergrad at Harvard, masters in forestry at Yale, then his ph.d at a Tufts.</p>
<p>^^yes you are going about it ass-backwards. Look for a good fit with your dept. If you pick the right dept/prof to work with you will have a better chance for acceptance and funding. Almost all good depts will offer a PhD funding (though it is also likely you could get offers with no funding) but it is hard to get in. There just isn’t money to fund Master’s students. The prof/dept isn’t going to pay the limited funds he has to pay for Master’s students who aren’t useful right away and won’t be there long enough to do any long term research. UW Madison might be an exception,they award MS funding in sciences but they also have admissions standards that are phd level.</p>
<p>Most PhD programs that take you from undergrad will give you a MA on the way to a Phd or give you a MA boobie prize if you leave with enough credits. Some don’t, you just get the phD and no one cares that you don’t have a MA because you have a higher degree.</p>
<p>You should think long and hard about spending 7 or 8 years living as a poor student not putting any money in the bank and having low chance of any job in your field. There is some website, can’t remember the name, tried to help PhDs who can’t get jobs transition into the workforce, try to find skills that translate etc. You might be 30 and looking for the entry level job you are avoiding now. Try the grad school forum here too.</p>
<p>@tb1082 Doesn’t MHC have some sort of career-development type department that can help you figure this out? I thought they were ramping up that sort of thing these days.</p>
