Department of Anthropology

For more information about degree offerings by the faculty of anthropology, visit the Department of Anthropology webpage.

The Department of Anthropology at The University of Tulsa prepares students for professional careers in a variety of fields. The graduate curriculum emphasizes relations among humans, cultural institutions, and the bio-physical environment. Subjects are approached from a wide range of theoretical approaches, using various methodologies that are derived from evolutionary and ecological theory and empirical methodology. Specific areas of emphasis include anthropogenic effects on the environment, modeling human-environmental interactions, and body/mind connections in contemporary health and religious practices. The department builds a foundation for the application of anthropological theory and method to a variety of real world problems and ensures that all students learn strong basic research skills. The hallmark of the department is the individual relationships between students and faculty and the engagement of all students in cutting edge research. The department offers state-of-the-art labs, which allows for the combinations of experimental archaeological analyses with extensive fieldwork worldwide.

The University of Tulsa Anthropology graduate program offers several areas of notable strength:

• Culture, Behavior and Health. Many of the faculty currently conduct research into relationships among culture, behavior and health. The program provides unique opportunities for students to pursue interests in pre-med or other health allied studies gaining an integrated perspective on biological, social, and environmental factors that are closely related to individual and global health, leading to graduate work in medicine and the health sciences.
• Evolutionary Ecological Archaeology. Students are invited to work alongside faculty to apply evolutionary and ecological theory to an understanding of the varied ways that humans adapt to their environments, particularly during periods of environmental and social change throughout human evolution. Faculty members are especially interested in interpreting material culture and its development over time and how this reflects on the evolution of human cognition.
• Historical Anthropology. The University of Tulsa operates the Gilcrease Museum, the world’s foremost museum focusing on the art and ethnology of the American West. Faculty in the Department of Anthropology and at the Gilcrease welcome students with research interests in indigenous cultural identity, ethnohistory, historical anthropology, historical archaeology, gender and women’s rights.

Learning Objectives and Program Outcomes

Master of Arts. Students will specialize in one of two master’s degree tracks with or without a thesis: archaeology or cultural anthropology. After completing the M.A. program in anthropology, students will:

• Have a broad knowledge of theory and research across the sub-disciplines of anthropology.
  • Students will ask anthropological research questions that provide a focus for making a significant scholarly contribution
  • Students will read and review the anthropological literature in a way that reveals a comprehensive understanding and a critical perspective.
• Communicate research findings effectively in written and spoken presentations.
  • Students will participate in teaching assistantships, field school experiences, or other opportunities that utilize or improve on professional skills.
  • Students will participate in conferences, workshops, or short courses and formal presentations, such as invited talks, posters, technical reports and publications.
  • Students will present critical analyses of research in public forums.
• Demonstrate the ability to collect and analyze anthropological data.
  • Students will successfully master appropriate anthropological research methods, including statistical analysis.
  • Students will collect, analyze, and interpret anthropological data in a way that adds to the understanding of their concentration.
  • Students will demonstrate a mastery of the design and administration of anthropological research.

Doctor of Philosophy. After completing the Ph.D. program in anthropology, students will:

• Have contributed original, problem-oriented research that will make a significant contribution to the discipline.
  • Students will design and carry out a research project that will result in a significant contribution to the discipline.
  • Students will read and summarize the literature in an area of study in a way that reveals a comprehensive and critical understanding of the literature.
  • Students will demonstrate a mastery of research and statistical methods appropriate to inquiry in the field.
• Communicate research findings effectively in written and in oral presentations.
  • Students will participate in teaching assistantships, field school experiences, or other opportunities that develop professional skills.
  • Students will participate in conferences, workshops, or short courses and formal presentations, such as invited talks, posters, technical reports and publications.
  • Students will present critical analyses of research in public forums.
• Demonstrate the ability to generate and analyze anthropological data.
  • Students will generate, analyze, and interpret data in a way that adds to the understanding of their disciplinary concentration.
  • Students will successfully master appropriate research methods.
  • Students will demonstrate a mastery of the design and administration of anthropological research.

Programs

• Anthropology, Archaeology Track, M.A.
• Anthropology, Cultural Anthropology Track, M.A.

• Anthropology, Ph.D.

• Anthropology, J.D./M.A.

Courses

• ANTH 6033 Archaeology of the Americas
• ANTH 6043 Old World Prehistory
• ANTH 6053 Archaeological Analysis
• ANTH 6103 Human Origins
• ANTH 6223 Geoarchaeology
• ANTH 6233 Medical Anthropology
• ANTH 6273 Archaeology and History of the African Diaspora
• ANTH 6403 Qualitative Methods in Anthropological Research
• ANTH 6503 Topics in Prehistory
• ANTH 6603 Topics in Cultural Anthropology
• ANTH 6713 Regional Studies in Prehistory
• ANTH 7013 Field School in Anthropology
• ANTH 7053 Cultural Property: Ethics, and Law
• ANTH 7073 Cultural Resources Management
• ANTH 7103 Seminar in Archaeological Theory: Archaeology as Anthropology
• ANTH 7113 Design and Administration of Archaeological Research
• ANTH 7123 History of Anthropological Theory
• ANTH 7163 Practicing Anthropology: Principles of Applied Anthropology
• ANTH 7173 Evolution of Complex Societies
• ANTH 7203 Ceramic Analysis
• ANTH 7213 Analysis of Lithic Artifacts
• ANTH 7233 Quantitative Analysis in Anthropology
• ANTH 7243 Paleoenvioronmental Reconstruction
• ANTH 7293 Human Behavioral Ecology
• ANTH 7303 Biological Anthropological Theory
• ANTH 7863 Special Topics in Anthropology
• ANTH 7961 Residency
• ANTH 7981-6 Research and Thesis
• ANTH 7991-3 Independent Research
• ANTH 9981-9 Research & Dissertation