<p>I like anthropology. I know it isn't a practical field. It is not skill-based (with some exceptions), nor does it have a target job market. What can I do with a anthropology major? What graduate schools can I go into with an anthropology major (I'm doing undergrad)?</p>
<p>The answers to your questions depend on which subfield you may want to pursue. </p>
<p>I imagine you already know about the four main subfields, but, just to add some context to the thread, here is a basic description [What</a> is Anthropology?](<a href=“http://www.aaanet.org/about/WhatisAnthropology.cfm]What”>404 Page Not Found - The American Anthropological Association)</p>
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<p>social and cultural anthropology</p>
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<p>Law School</p>
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<p>You should be figuring out what career you want, then figure out what major is best for you. </p>
<p>A major is 4 years of your life, a career is 40.</p>
<p>If you aren’t sure what career field you want to work in, you should look into something that has broad employment prospects that provide you skills to work in many areas.</p>
<p>I’m figuring out what Anthropology does to see the types of careers it has. I know what careers I’d like and waht I wouldnt but im not commited to any</p>
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<p>shadowzoid:</p>
<p>I am going to do my best to try and help you. Here’s the thing with a degree in anthropology one can do anything and nothing. Basically, many many people will point out that anthropology leads to “nothing, unemployment, working in a coffee shop, etc” because it is not a white-collar trade like engineering. These people cannot think beyond majors that have the same name as a job.</p>
<p>However, creative people realize that anthropology can lead to a broad variety of jobs. As previously noted, it is a well respected field for graduate and professional school (masters, PhD, law, medicine, public health). I personally know students with BAs in anthropology in all of those post-undergraduate programs. Here’s another fact people overlook. Businesses hire people from all majors. Anthropology students are extremely popular in marketing, advertising and HR due to ability to interact and study people and social relationships. I have friends who went that route after studying anthropology. You could become a teacher. You could work in museums. You could work in ANY non-for-profit or chartity organization. In all honesty, anthropology students can do anything short of designing a bridge. </p>
<p>If you want to study anthropology then study it. It will give you an rigourous education in writing, interpersonal analysis, analytical thinking and editting. During those 4 years do several internships to find what type of employment you like. To me, it’s more important to enjoy what you study, then to have a quick answer to “what do you want to do when you grow up.”</p>
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<p>^From what I go from that is that college degrees don’t really matter unless you are doing something in the sciences or engineering. The only reason we should get degrees, short of the joy of learning, is to impress employers. The skills we learn when we get those degrees, except for creativity and critical thinking, which are really just bs skills that can be learned on your own or that you can naturally have, don’t apply to the work force.</p>
<p>^ Pretty much.</p>
<p>^^ sounds about right</p>
<p>^sadface</p>
<p>10char</p>
<p>I read an article (on an anthropology exam, no less!) that the military was hiring some anthropologists to help them connect to the local population, and decreased the number of armed combats by as much as 60%. It seems like a worthy cause, and it’s just one of the few things you can do 
And then there’s international business (couple it with a business minor, for example), politics, and whatever you can come up with that doesn’t require number crunching. It’s wide open, and as a probable Philosophy/Classics double major, the freedom scares me a little. Perhaps it scares you too, but I have more than enough reasons to think my future is assured.</p>
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<p>I know a lot of former anthropology majors. Many of them have ended up working for businesses with a global presence. I doubt whether this had much to do with specific things they had learned in their anthro major, but more because the general attitude of openness and adventurousness that anthro cultivates can be a big advantage. For instance, one of my friends ended up doing a lot of consulting on computer installations in Morocco, Indonesia, Thailand, etc. for EDS. She thought nothing of going to some fairly unusual place for 6 months to a year and fitting herself smoothly into the local business culture. She said it was harder for EDS to find people willing and able to do this again and again, than it was to find people with the right computer expertise. She learned what she needed to on the technical side after she got her job.</p>
<p>An Anthro major won’t take all your time–generally you are only taking half your courses in that field. So if you don’t want to go to grad or law school, maybe take some business or other “practical” courses alongside.</p>
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<p>@ baked_potato</p>
<p>pretty much.</p>
<p>Do you think Anthropology is a ******** major? As in everything in it is pretty much common sense (sorta like taking a logic class or a religious studies class if you are part of that religion)?</p>
<p>nice thread.</p>
<p>well, it certainly is a good major, maybe not the most marketable tho. Most stuff are common sense, I just finished my LLB degree and to me law is just a LOT of common sense. Sure you need to memorize some stuff and read a lot, but arguements (the point you’re trying to make) is common sense. Or at least it was to me. I guess IT or Comp Science majors actually understand the computer language or stuff… to me it’s gibberish, but it makes perfect sense to them. </p>
<p>What I’m trying to say is that you can predict if a major is good in our market/economy and if it will help land you a job… But you can’t really say the discipline (content) is rubbish because you find it easy… it all depends on the person (and their abilities and qualities). And no, personally like anthropology and don’t find it to be a ******* major. :)</p>
<p>It’s a very interesting major, probably one of the most interesting.</p>
<p>It’s not very marketable in any field. To actaully work in anthropology related fields you will need to further your education, most likely with a PHD. A undergrad in anthropology doesn’t really open any doors in anthropology itself, other than prep for an advanced degree.</p>
<p>Honestly at most schools anthropology contains many difficult courses. Yes a lot of it is common sense. For example, Mause’s (who I love) big claim to fame is writing 100 pages on how gifts carry obligations. BUT, the classes are challanging because they alter one’s way of thinking. One cannot be reactionary in anthropology, but instead consider all the facets. Anthropology also involves retaining a lot of facts. But lets be real, what degree doesn’t contain a lot of common sense?</p>
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<p>^um </p>
<p>physics - lets examine a basic physics kinematics problem. If you shoot a bullet with a completely horizontal-leveled gun, and drop a bullet at the same time, the shot and dropped bullet will reach the ground at the exact same time</p>
<p>neuroscience - it is impossible for some people to learn basic algebra. They aren’t stupid. They aren’t mentally challenged. Their genetic makeup just makes them unable to learn math, even if they are a genius is other fields like biology. </p>
<p>Math - if I don’t show you how to do a problem, even if it is extremely easy like derivatives, you won’t know how to do it based on common sense</p>
<p>Chemistry - name one common sense thing besides that 0C is teh freezing point of water</p>
<p>Japanese - whats “my car is red” in kanji?</p>
<p>History - How old was Hitler when he died (without googling it)?</p>
<p>ect…</p>
<p>Not to be petty, but most of the “examples” you listed do not fall under common sence. Common sense is more like:</p>
<p>Physics - gravity acts the same on all forces
Neuroscience - brains control human functions (by the way do not get me started on your horrible evolutionary pychology gobbly-gook that some people are “genetically” bad at algebra. Math is not controlled in genes, it is culturally emphasized on under emphasized starting at childhood leading to an adult who excels or struggles. One could take the spawn of Einstein and place him/her in a mathless environment, where doing well in math is unimportant and he/she will struggle in algebra.)</p>
<p>Math - 1+1 = 2, 2+2 = 4, we can get all kinds of complex, but the basics always hold true</p>
<p>Chemestry - What is a liquid? What is a gas? </p>
<p>And since you think that anthropology is only BS common knowledge, I could get specific too.</p>
<p>Explain Levi-Straussian dichotomy?
Give an example of an rite of age.
Name three affects.
Give a strong definition of what is culture.</p>
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