If you were an employer, how would you look at: Economic Anthropology? Would you you understand it as a combo degree of economics and anthropology? I am really interested in it, but I don’t want to limit my degree to people who will understand it. I don’t want people to throw my resume out, because they don’t understand it.
Your opinions / thoughts are greatly appreciated!!
I admit, at first glance it doesn’t look like a combo, but after a second thought it made sense. I believe if the studies of Economics and/or Anthropology was applicable to the job your resume would be sent to, it won’t be thrown out. If I were the employer I wouldn’t throw it out, it sounds interesting.
I would look at is as if Anthropology downgraded economics! I’d normally be impressed by a student who included topics that suggested intellectual interests but I apparently don’t feel that way about anthropology or sociology. I know anthropology is a genuine field of study whereas sociology isn’t-at least it does not appear to have its own body of research. But fields like anthropology seem as though they have become dinosaurs-not just about studying them.
I’d throw psychology in there these days too. It is a genuine field of study with its own body of research but it has become the major for the mediocre student who does not know what they want and often who have no intellectual interests. I am not suggesting that all psychology majors are that way but that those who are that way are more likely to choose psychology for the major than to choose other majors. Some students majoring in psychology are intellectually oriented and strong students. But those who want to avoid science and math often choose psychology and as a group, those students wanting to avoid math and science are usually the weaker students. This was not always true but seems to be increasingly true as STEM is increasingly important in our lives. Most strong student recognize the importance of STEM and attempt to develop competencies in STEM related areas even if they don’t major in them, So those who want to avoid that are often (not always) weak students. Psychology appears to have become the save haven for those who have no intellectual interests and who don’t want to challenge themselves with topics they find difficult. While I don’t think that true for anthropology students, unless an anthropology student is learning advanced technology in a top shelf well funded program, there is the potential for the entire department to be dated.
I realize this reflects my own bias. Many people would disagree with me. But, the OP asked posters to speculate, and so I did.
Thank you so much for replying back, its much appreciated!
What I like about this particular program, is I get choose the name for the classes I put together.
Basically, the program is a create your own major.
The one I put together is:
4 anthropology courses:
4 finance / economics classes:
Now, I have been flirting with these names:
Finance and Culture
Cultural Economics
Cultural Finance
Social Finance
Financial Anthropology
Economic Anthropology – which I’m probably not going to do.
What do you think of the names I mentioned?
For number of job opportunities, you’re better off with words in your major that reflect the competencies people want. “Anthropology degree” gets 958 hits, “Economics degree” gets 45,046 hits and “Finance degree” gets 131,271 hits today on Indeed.com. There are many more people who want the know-how of financial experts than there are people who want the know-how of anthropologists. You can take anthropology courses, but you’ll be better off if you keep such words out of the name of your major.
Economic anthropology doesn’t sound like a mere combination or joint major to me. It sounds like a specific subfield of anthropology - maybe understanding how economics shapes culture or how cultural institutions and behaviors shape economic behavior.
But I don’t think employers throw resumes out simply because they don’t immediately recognize your major - I think people put way too much emphasis on this. I work in a job that requires a background in psychology, but we have people with all kinds of psychologically-related majors/backgrounds working on the team (my degree is in sociomedical sciences, and we have neuroscientists and criminologists and developmental scientists on the team). Employers do employ some higher-order thinking when sorting resumes - or at least the good ones do. Your internships and experiences and other activities on your resume will also reflect your area of expertise, and your cover letter will give more insight into your knowledge. I don’t think a major in economic anthropology would be received too much differently than one in anthropology (nor is it inscrutable - I think it’s pretty obvious, personally).
I think that’s probably because most of the jobs that an anthropology major would do aren’t explicitly about anthropology, or don’t have the word anthropology in the title.
You know, despite being a psychology major myself, I don’t disagree with this after some thought. I actually was attracted to psychology because of the science and math inherent in it, and focused on those aspects. But I do think a lot of psychology majors I went to school with (and taught in graduate school) thought psychology would be an easier major that didn’t have any science or math and just let them opine on human thought all day. It’s kind of frustrating because the scientific and mathematical skills you can develop through a psychology major can actually be really valuable in jobs.
Sorry for the late response. I was just finalizing the idea with my professor. My profesor–who is acting like my mentor with this program–and I came up with this: Anthropology of Finance.
Does that sound like it is a combo of both and, hopefully, impressive?
Thanks again!
I’d call it the Freakonomics degree :). (in all seriousness, it sounds a bit like behavioral economics?)
HAHA!!! Thanks for the laugh!! We were considering that, but after we did some research, we found that Behavioral Economics would be more psychological centered.
But - here is the question. Are you selecting a name for your independent major based on what is the most accurate description of your actual course of study, or are you trying to select a name that will make sense to employers and make them want to hire you?
Because when I read “behavioral economics,” I know what that means - a study of the human factors that go into economic decision-making. When I read “anthropology of finance,” it doesn’t sound like a combination of economics and anthropology; it sounds like you are using anthropological methods to investigate the finance industry. (Which is fine, but not what you are going for, it sounds like.)
So my first question, of course, is why do an individualized major over a regular economics and anthropology double-major. Individualized majors are not supposed to be for students who simply want to study two subjects together but don’t want to fulfill the extra requirements of a double major. Individualized majors are supposed to be very specific plans for students who either can’t find what they are looking for in the regular major list (e.g., there is no statistics or urban studies major but there are enough classes across different departments to support a statistics or urban studies major, so you create one) OR who are doing a very specific study of the way that two fields intersect. It’s not just about studying them in tandem; it’s about taking foundational classes in both fields and then classes that treat them together.
So for an individualized major that’s a combination of anthropology and finance/economics that’s named something like “finance and culture” or “cultural economics,” I’d expect to see something like 3 foundational classes in anthro (something like intro to cultural anthropology, intro to biological anthropology, and ethnography); 3 foundational courses in economics (micro, macro, and a research methods course like econometrics), 1-2 intermediate-level courses in each field, and then 3-4 intermediate to upper-level classes that bring the two fields together that are already offered by your college. Like on the economics side, there might be classes like “Urban and Regional Economics,” “the Politics of Finance,” “Public Economics,” “The Challenge of World Poverty,” “Industrial Organization and Competitive Strategy,”…economics classes that have an anthropological focus on them. And then on the anthropology side, I would expect to see classes like “Crisis and Resilience: Past and Future of Human Societies,” “Deep Economies,” “Local Cultures, Global Forces,” “Anthropological Perspectives on Economic Activity,” etc. (The economics classes are mostly real classes from MIT’s department; the anthropology classes are mostly real classes from UNC’s department, and all explicitly mention a treatment of economic impacts on culture and vice versa in the course description).
Simply taking some anthro classes unrelated to economics and some finance/economics classes that are unrelated to anthropology doesn’t give you the tools to analyze them together. does that American urban experience class treat economics at all,
SO my opinion is - if you want to signal to employers that you have deep knowledge in both finance/economics and in anthropology - your best bet is to simply double major in the two fields, not take four classes in each. If you want to signal that you have studied the way that they intersect, then “anthropology of finance” is a good choice, but right now your course outline does not reflect “anthropology of finance” or even “finance and culture”, because none of your classes are a cultural treatment of finance or an economic treatment of culture. It is simply “finance, economics, and anthropology.”
Thank you for such a detailed and long response, it is much appreciated.
Those classes, the ones I first mentioned, were the classes that my professor and I put together and got accepted into the program with. We applied with this as the major’s name: “Finance and Cultural Anthropology”. When I met with the program head, he’s like: “We like the program and idea, we just want you to switch the name because Finance and Cultural Anthropology sounds like two majors…”
One good thing about this program is the fact that I can switch classes here and there when necessary. And the name, too. Since this program is spread over 6 colleges where I can create my major and take classes with, they have most of the classes you mentioned.
Truth is, I love studying anthropology and I really want to work in the finance / consulting industries. A double major in anthropology and finance would take too long–to the point where its not worth it. So, as you said before, I love seeing how they intersect and interact with one another, and how that could be applied to the business world. While Economic Anthropology would be the best choice, I still need to look out for my best interests: what name would sound the best? Having said that, something with finance in it would satisfy my own nervousness. But, I want to stand out: there are tons of finance majors out there, and I want to show I can bring more than finance to the table – remember, however, that a double major would not be worth it.
Thank you for such a detailed and long response, it is much appreciated.
Those classes, the ones I first mentioned, were the classes that my professor and I put together and got accepted into the program with. We applied with this as the major’s name: “Finance and Cultural Anthropology”. When I met with the program head, he’s like: “We like the program and idea, we just want you to switch the name because Finance and Cultural Anthropology sounds like two majors…”
One good thing about this program is the fact that I can switch classes here and there when necessary. And the name, too. Since this program is spread over 6 colleges where I can create my major and take classes with, they have most of the classes you mentioned.
Truth is, I love studying anthropology and I really want to work in the finance / consulting industries. A double major in anthropology and finance would take too long–to the point where its not worth it. So, as you said before, I love seeing how they intersect and interact with one another, and how that could be applied to the business world. While Economic Anthropology would be the best choice, I still need to look out for my best interests: what name would sound the best? Having said that, something with finance in it would satisfy my own nervousness. But, I want to stand out: there are tons of finance majors out there, and I want to show I can bring more than finance to the table – remember, however, that a double major would not be worth it.
But, would an employer in the finance world even hire someone with an Anthropology of Finance major? Suppose I update the classes to some of the ones you said and I choose as a name, Anthropology of Finance, would that give me the edge or allow me entry into the field? Like, be frank. Theoretically speaking, as I heard many times, “any major” can get you a good job; personally speaking, I find that to be true if one attended an Ivy League school.
The reason it is four and four, is because the major is only 8 classes…
Well, there are a lot of jobs in finance aside from the top Wall Street jobs. There are also a lot of other factors that go into a finance career other than just your major. Someone with an anthropology of finance major who ALSO has an outstanding slate of experiences - internships, extracurriculars, a part-time job, high-level quantitative skills - could get a job in the finance industry. (Yes, it is easier from an elite school, but you can do it from a non-elite school, too.)
The name of your major is kind of important but not really. You can always put a short description of it on your resume and explain it in a bit more detail in a cover letter, along with outlining your skills and experiences that otherwise make you a lock for a finance position. It’s really far more important to gain those skills and experiences. If you major in anthropology of finance or cultural finance or whatever you want to call it, but you have all of the experiences that the industry would expect of a straight-up finance major and a first-year/entry-level financier, then you should be good.
Yes, finance & cultural anthropology kind of sounds like two majors, but it’s the most accurate description of what you’re doing. I’d see if you and your advisor could push back on that a little bit (a lot of single majors have the word “and” in there). If you keep your curriculum the way it is, I’d go with something like “finance and culture,” “finance and society,” .“financial anthropology”. IMO I would say that Finance & Culture and Finance & Society sound the most like someone who has a strong understanding of finance itself but also takes a social science lens to examine it. Financial Anthropology sounds like an anthropological investigation of finance, but also sounds like someone who would have to have some understanding of finance and financial institutions in order to do that, which is fine. To me it connotes more financial knowledge than “anthropology of finance.” I can’t say why for sure, though.
Juillet, thank you so much for responding, it is much appreciated!
Of course, internships, experience… are all important.
Out of curiosity because I don’t know: how–like what to write–and where would you put it on the resume?
Out of all these, which do you like the best?:
Finance and Culture
Finance and Society
Financial Anthropology
What I like about this program is I can always change the name as I find something more suitable.
I thought Financial Anthropology would explain the finances of a culture; Anthropology of Finance, to me, uses anthropological skills and tools towards finance and its economic systems. Does that make sense?
I might put it right under my BA line in italics, one short line, something like “interdisciplinary major in finance and anthropology.”
Personally I like Finance and Society the best, but that’s just me.
Yes, and I think that might be what I expect. And that’s why I would assume more finance knowledge from someone with a major in “financial anthropology” vs “anthropology of finance.” But this is all just splitting hairs at this point; you should be fine regardless of which one of these names you select.
I must say, Juillet, that you are one of the kindest / most patient person I ever met on a forum. You have a knack for thinking objectively. I’m going to go back to my professor and tell him what you said. As you said, either way I should be good. I really thank you for all the help you gave me.
Why, thank you! I try my best 
You most definitely succeed! Thanks again!