Mar 28, 2024  
2009-2010 Graduate Catalog 
    
2009-2010 Graduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Anthropology Major, MA


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Admission
Students wishing to enter the Master of Arts program with a major in anthropology should have an undergraduate GPA of 3.5 in the major, 3.3 overall, and hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited university with a major in anthropology. Applicants with a major in a related field (biology, sociology, geology, classics or geography) will be considered only if they have a formal minor in anthropology or its equivalent (at least five upper-division anthropology courses).

In cooperation with the Classics and History Departments, the Department of Anthropology offers a concentration in Mediterranean archaeology. Students who apply in this area should have completed appropriate undergraduate courses in archaeology or anthropology. An anthropology minor is preferred.

All prospective MA students must make formal application to the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Office of Graduate and International Admissions. Copies of the application form, transcripts, and GRE scores that are sent to Graduate and International Admissions should also be sent directly to the Department of Anthropology at the same time. In addition, the department requires a letter of intent from the applicant indicating career goals and reasons for selecting the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, three letters of recommendation, and one sample of the prospective student’s written work (a class paper or research report). These materials should be sent directly to the Graduate Secretary, Department of Anthropology, South Stadium Hall 250, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 37996-0720.

Graduate applications are considered once a year by the Graduate Committee. All application materials must be received in the department by January 15 for admission the following fall. Because of the structure of first-year studies, MA students should plan to begin their studies in the fall semester.

Requirements
The program leading to the MA is a general curriculum that allows for concentration after completion of a core course sequence. Formal requirements include the following.

  • Selection of an MA advisor. This should be done as soon as possible in the student’s program but must be done no later than the end of the first semester in residence. The department graduate secretary must be informed in writing of each student’s advisor. 
  • A minimum of 30 hours in graduate courses. Twenty-four hours must be in course work graded A-F. Course work must include three core classes taken in the first year.
    1. ANTH 510  Method and Theory in Cultural Anthropology.
    2. ANTH 560  Theory in Archaeology.
    3. ANTH 590  Method and Theory in Biological Anthropology. 
  • Additional course work should be selected in consultation with the student’s advisor and must include one additional course from two anthropology concentrations besides the student’s primary concentration. At least 20 hours of course work must be at the 500 level or higher. Students concentrating in Mediterranean archaeology, in consultation with their advisor, should select their additional 18 hours from courses offered in the Anthropology, History, or Classics departments. 
  • During the first year, comprehensive graduate evaluation examinations are required of all MA students and are based on the content of the core courses. These examinations are given during regularly-scheduled final periods in each core class and are graded by all faculty within the appropriate sub-discipline for each course. At the end of the first year, all MA students are evaluated by the entire faculty and will either be retained or dropped from the program based on their first year’s performance and scores from the department’s Graduate Evaluation Examination. 
  • All MA students must attend the graduate section of the visiting lecturer program. To insure compliance with this requirement, each student is required to register for 1 hour of ANTH 550  in the fall semester of each year and fulfill all requirements for the course as defined by the instructor. Materials covered by visiting lecturers may appear on the Graduate Evaluation Examination. 
  • A graduate-level introductory statistics course, usually STAT 537 
  • In the second year of the program, students pursue their concentration area and undertake thesis research. Course work will be determined through consultation with the student’s advisor and committee (composed of the advisor, at least one other member of the anthropology faculty, and other mutually-agreed upon members). 
  • Successful completion of the thesis and final oral examination. Normally, students will complete and defend their theses during the spring semester of their second year. 
  • Electronic submission of the thesis is required by the Graduate School. In addition, bound copies of the thesis are to be provided to the department and to all members of the student’s MA committee.

In addition to the requirements listed above, MA students have the option of completing a minor in statistics. The statistics minor requires 9 hours of course work, normally STAT 537  and STAT 538  plus one additional course from an approved list.

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