2007-09 - Graduate School - The University of Alabama

Graduate Catalog: Section 6.2http://graduate.ua.edu/catalog/15200.htmlTHE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA GRADUATE CATALOGTable of Contents > College of Arts & Sciences6.2 DEPARTMENT OF ANTHROPOLOGY (ANT)Professor Michael Dean Murphy, ChairpersonOffice: 19 ten Hoor HallThe Department of Anthropology of The University of Alabama offers programs leading to the master of arts degreeand the doctor of philosophy degree. These programs seek to furnish a balanced view of anthropological inquiry bymeans of intensive training in the literature, methods, techniques, and skills required for research in anthropology.The M.A. builds on the inherent strengths of medium-sized departments—the ability to provide necessary backgroundthrough small lecture courses and specialized training through the tutorial format of seminars and individuallydirected research projects. In short, the M.A. program provides students with a scholarly comprehension of thediscipline, practical experiences in anthropological research situations, and the initial competency required of aprofessional anthropologist. Additionally, an inter-institutional program leading to the master's degree is offered incooperation with the Department of Anthropology of The University of Alabama at Birmingham. See specific details atthe UA departmental website: http://www.as.ua.edu/ant.The Ph.D. curriculum builds on the strengths of the master's degree program by concentrating on two emphases: 1)the archaeology of complex societies, pertaining to the emergence and spread of early civilizations in the Americas,and 2) medical anthropology, the study of the influence of social relations and culture on psychological and biologicaladaption. The doctoral program is designed to prepare graduates with the skills needed to move easily into eitheracademic or non-academic positions.Admission RequirementsStudents seeking M.A. degrees in anthropology at The University of Alabama must satisfy departmental entrance andexamination requirements. An acceptable score on the Graduate Record Examination general test is required foradmission. Students seeking Ph.D. degrees must have already completed an M.A. in anthropology, either at Alabamaor elsewhere, before undertaking doctoral work. Students are required to have taken graduate-level coursework in atleast three of the four subdisciplines in anthropology before being admitted to the Ph.D. program.General Degree RequirementsFor the M.A. degree, each student must complete a minimum of 30 credit hours in courses numbered 500 or above.Without special prior approval of the student's advisor, the student's committee, and the director of graduate studies,neither ANT 598 Individual Investigations nor ANT 599 Thesis Research will count toward the 30 hours.All M.A. graduate students must successfully complete a core program consisting of one graduate course in at leastthree of the four fields of anthropology: ANT 636 Social Structure or ANT 641 Culture, ANT 501 AnthropologicalLinguistics, ANT 670 Principles of Physical Anthropology, and ANT 625 Survey of the History of Archaeology. Inaddition, the seminar course ANT 600 Research Methodology is required.Additional requirements include a comprehensive examination to be taken following the second semester inresidence, and reading knowledge of a foreign language or demonstration of a research skill such as statisticalanalysis. Thesis and non-thesis options are available and the specific requirements for these options are published onthe department's website: http://www.as.ua.edu/ant. The M.A. degree will be conferred by The University ofAlabama.For the Ph.D. program each student must complete 48 credit hours in courses numbered 500 or above. No more than24 hours can be transferred from an M.A. program to the Ph.D. program. A reading facility in one foreign languageappropriate to the research topic must be demonstrated. Knowledge of quantitative methods and other advancedresearch skills must also be obtained through the required seminar ANT 601 Advanced Research Methods inAnthropology. Additional requirements include two core courses, each of which are specific to the doctoral tracks. Forthe archaeology of complex societies, these seminars are ANT 603 Theory and Method in Archaeology and ANT 604Seminar in the Archaeology of Complex Societies. For biocultural medical anthropology, these seminars are ANT 610Theory and Method in Medical Anthropology and ANT 612 Seminar in Biocultural Anthropology. A preliminaryexamination must be passed before undertaking dissertation research. Six to 12 months of ethnographic orarchaeological field work is expected, followed by analysis and the writing of the dissertation. The dissertation itselfwill then be presented and defended before the student's committee and other interested faculty.Course DescriptionsPrerequisites: Twelve hours in anthropology and graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.ANT 501 Anthropological Linguistics. Three hours.