BA in Anthropology
BA
DURATION
4 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
Key Summary
Why pursue an anthropology degree at North Central College?
You won’t simply explore the diversity of world culture in the classroom—you’ll witness it firsthand. You’ll travel almost anywhere in the world through our robust study abroad program. And closer to home, you can research or intern at The Field Museum in Chicago, which is just a short train ride from campus. No matter how you build your anthropological expertise, you’ll do it with the personal attention and close collaboration of our outstanding faculty.
You can also:
- Apply for a Richter Grant to fund your research anywhere in the world.
- Travel to Guatemala during the College's May Term with Enactus to study highland Maya culture while working with indigenous artists and farmers.
- Apply for the Mironda K. Heston Scholarship for Public Service, which funds international human service projects.
- Intern at The Field Museum in Chicago.
- Gain the cultural competence necessary to thrive in increasingly globalized workplaces.
- Acquire a wide range of ethnographic and archaeological fieldwork methods in our new, fieldwork-intensive curriculum, which develops skills sought by employers in profit and non-profit enterprises.
Major Requirements
Foundational Courses
- ANTH 145 - Language and Culture in Community: Linguistics and Cultural Anthropology
- ANTH 165 - Stones and Bones: Introduction to Archaeology and Biological Anthropology
- ANTH 235 - Field Methods: Digging in the Earth
- SOCI 200 - Social Inquiry I: Quantitative
- SOCI 350 - Social Life and Social Theory
Place-Oriented Courses
Two of the following:
- ANTH 355 - Native Nations of North America: Homelands, Reservations, and Urban Indian Communities
- ANTH 365 - Mayas, Aztecs, and Their Neighbors: Heart of the Earth
- ANTH 375 - Urban Anthropology
- ANTH 385 - Anthropology of Place
Topical Courses
Two of the following:
- ANTH 305 - Cultural Ecology
- ANTH 315 - Applied Economic Anthropology
- ANTH 325 - Indigenous Peoples, State, and Order
- ANTH 332 - Forensic Anthropology
- ANTH 345 - Religion, Spirituality, and Community
- ANTH 352 - Law and Order in Cross-Cultural Perspective
- ANTH 372 - Culture, Illness, and Wellness: The Anthropology of Medicine
- ANTH 382 - "The Naked Ape:" Human Evolution
- ANTH 390 - Topics in Anthropology
- MUSI 380 - Music As Social Life: The Field of Ethnomusicology
Fieldwork
Two credit hours from the following:
- ANTH 445 - Interdisciplinary Field School
- ANTH 499 - Independent Study
Capstone
- ANTH 485 - Theory and Practice in Anthropology
Additional Requirements for the BA Degree
Students must demonstrate elementary competence in a foreign language.
A North Central education integrates career preparation with rich academic study. Our faculty encourages you to refine and apply your knowledge in an interconnected world. Here you'll learn to think independently and work globally to solve problems and lead.
Internships
- The Field Museum, Chicago
- Graduate Schools
- Recent graduates in anthropology have been accepted at:
- Cambridge University
- University of Chicago
- University of Louisville
- University of Illinois, Graduate School of Library and Information Science
Recent graduates in anthropology include:
- Library assistant, University of Chicago
- National Archives employee, Great Lakes Branch, Chicago
- After-school children’s club coordinator for refugee children, World Relief, Aurora, IL
- Fairtrade importer, WorldFinds, Westmont, IL
































