Welcome to the Anthropology Page!
In 1968, Teachers College and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of Columbia University initiated and implemented a Joint Program in Applied Anthropology. The joint venture between the Teachers College and the Department of Anthropology (Graduate School of Arts and Sciences) trains graduate students registered at either graduate school. By this agreement, all applied anthropological training at Columbia University is administered through Teachers College. The Joint Program offers a course of study and thorough training in applied anthropology that is certified by both institutions.
The Ph.D. program in Applied Anthropology is for those who plan to engage in scholarly writing and research, applied research and evaluation, or teaching and administrative responsibilities at colleges, universities, professional schools of education and medicine, research institutes, state, federal, and international agencies and bureaus. Students design and complete a 75 point (Ph.D.) course of study, pass the program's certification and language exams, conduct anthropological field research, and write and defend a research proposal and dissertation.
Each student develops, in collaboration with his adviser, a program of study in anthropology designed to establish a high level of competency. A minimum of 75 points of acceptable graduate credit is required for the Ph.D. Of these 75 points, a maximum of 45 points can be completed through another Faculty of Columbia University, or a maximum of 30 points may be transferred or earned in courses from other recognized graduate schools. These credits may be earned by ordinary course work, through independent study, and through guided research.
These courses prepare students with the requisite knowledge of the epistemological, theoretical, methodological, ethnographic, and substantive areas of anthropology. These courses also aim to develop competency in the discipline while addressing the specific intellectual interests of the student.
At least 15 points of the anthropology requirements must be taken within the program. A minimum of 25 points of the 40 point of the anthropology course requirements must be taken at Teachers College or in other faculties of Columbia University. Up to 15 points in anthropology courses may be taken at other graduate institutions who are members of the Inter-University Doctoral Consortium, to satisfy the major course requirements.
Within the major course requirements, 30 points in required courses must be taken: the four semester sequence of colloquiums and summer field research (a minimum of 12 points), which represents the core training module of the program; an additional theory course outside of the first semester colloquium (3 points); two ethnography courses, one within and one outside of one's interest (6 points); two sub-discipline courses (6 points), one in linguistics and one from either archaeology or physical anthropology; and an independent study (3 points) used in preparation for the certification examination and the dissertation proposal.
These courses provide a thorough grounding in the study and practice of anthropological research methods and the development of competency in related methods of statistical analysis. Courses in research methods may be pursued in Teachers College or in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Work in advanced seminars is considered as research training if certified as such by the seminar instructor.
At least 15 graduate points must be taken in relevant courses outside the major-field; at least 9 must be from fields foundational to anthropology (economics, history, linguistics, philosophy, psychology, sociology). Additional courses can be taken to increase competence in comparative, regional or international studies or to enhance technical skills. Courses presented in satisfaction of this requirement must be taken for examination credit.
Of the 75 graduate points required for the degree, a minimum of 45 must be taken for evaluative letter grade. With the adviser's approval, course credit not exceeding 9 points may be earned by attendance credit (R grade).
Each candidate must satisfy the foreign language requirement by demonstrating proficiency in two scholarly languages, or one scholarly language and one field language, or one scholarly language and a two semester sequence of prescribed statistics courses.
Certification is the means of indicating that the student has having attained the expected competencies outlined in the course requirements above. The following procedures and standards will be used to evaluate these competencies.
An overall B+ average is expected. At least two-thirds of all credits taken through Teachers College prior to certification must be taken for an evaluative letter grade. Grades below B in any course taken through Teachers College will not be regarded as showing the above competence.
Examinations set by the major adviser or advisers must be passed. The purpose of these examinations is to test the student's ability to deal with basic concepts and issues, and to allow the demonstration of one's mastery of the basic professional literature of the chosen area of specialization. The certification examinations consist of two parts: written and oral. Three written examinations are given on applied anthropology, one's theoretical area, and ethnographic region of interest. The written sections are prepared by the adviser and appraised by the adviser and at least one other member of the Department or the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. The oral section is administered by a committee of three or four members of the Department for the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. The membership of the oral examination committee is suggested by the adviser and appointed by the chairman of the Area Committee. Candidates must pass both parts of the examinations to be recommended for certification. Certification is by action of the faculty of the Department on recommendation of the faculty of the Applied Anthropology Program.
After passing the certification examination, the candidate should begin writing a dissertation proposal. A dissertation proposal must be presented and accepted at a Departmental Dissertation Conference.
One to two years of anthropological field research is required for the collection of original field data based on the dissertation research proposal.
After completing a period of field research the candidate is required to register for continuous dissertation advisement until the dissertation has received final approval.