Course Overview
We will encourage you to practise, not just learn about, anthropology. Part of doing anthropology means getting out into the real world to find out what people are up to. We believe that being in new situations and experiencing new cultural practices students are offered a particular breadth and depth of understanding that being in lecture theatres cannot give. Because of this we urge our students to get as much hands-on experiential learning as possible during their time with us.
We believe that learning needs to be a dynamic and active process and that for it to be effective students need to engage experientially with what is being studied. With this in mind, our course adopts a radical approach to teaching. We get our students out of lecture theatres and offer a significant percentage of study time 'in the field'. 'In the field', in this case, means getting practically involved and gaining first-hand experience of how other people live. From this personal perspective students acquire a discerning sense of the complexities associated with other people's existences, which affords the kind of expertise that fosters genuinely informed solutions.
Each year of the degree involves trips to different locations where you will learn 'as you go'. At present the course allows students to spend time living with Giriama farmers in rural Kenya, with monks in a Hindu monastery, alongside First Nation Inuits in Canada, explore the workings of reforestation and conservation initiatives, as well as do independent fieldwork in a location, and on a topic, of the student's choosing.
Key Features
Reasons to choose this course include:
- Travel opportunities in Kenya and Canada
- Opportunity to do fieldwork on three continents
- Dynamic classes exploring real world issues
- Transferable interpersonal skills
- Opportunity to develop independent research projects
- Opportunities to study abroad and to undertake volunteer work in Africa
- Expert teaching from research-active lecturers and tutors
Modules
Typical modules include:
- Introduction to Fieldwork
- Interactions with the Environment: Making things, Transforming things
- People's Worlds: Lives and Livelihoods
- Fieldwork in Action
- Themes and Theories
- Anthropology in Context
- Approaches and Methods in Anthropology
- Material Worlds: Approaches to Economic Relations
- Reading Cultures
- The Body, Culture and Society
- Sacred Journeys and Holy Sites
- Water and Society
- Philosophical Anthropology
- Political Anthropology: Power and Principles
- Kinship, Gender and Sexuality
- Museums, Heritage and Representation
- Human Evolution
Course Tutor(s)
- Luci Attala
- Dr Emma-Jayne Abbot
- Dr Penny Dransart
- Ros Coard
Assessment
The programme is assessed in a variety of ways and will include several of the following type of assessment: essays of 1,000 to 4,000 words in length, document analysis, book/journal reviews, short reports and reflective journals, time tests, seen and unseen exams, field journals, posters, group and individual presentations, dissertations of 10,000 words, wikis, commentaries and film evaluations.
Career Opportunities
Career and employment opportunities include:
- Film and media
- International development, aid and charity organisations
- Cultural and social advocacy
- Fundraising, management consultancy, research
- Publishing
- Race relations, community, social work, caring professions
- Teaching
- Health, food and lifestyle
- Communication, business
- Museums, heritage, tourism
- Human, animal and land rights
- Voluntary work
- Conservation
- Development
- Social welfare
- Caring professions
Further Information
Our students do not explore all forms of human social and cultural behaviour by simply sitting and listening to how other anthropologists understand the world, but by also experiencing what is to live like them.
We focus particularly on applying and engaging with theory to address social issues. We recognise that practical, first-hand engagement with 'other' cultures is the best way to understand the anthropological endeavour. If you choose to study with us you will be given plenty of opportunity to be an anthropologist - by applying the knowledge you learn in the classroom in the 'real' world.
If you would like to find out more, you can visit us on an Open Day. To book, click here.
Related Courses
- BA Archaeology and Anthropology
- BA Anthropology
- BA Religious Studies
- BA History
- BA International Development, Humanitarianism and Law
Tuition Fees
Annual tuition fees for entry in the academic year 2017/18 are as follows:
UK/EU: £9,000
International: £14,900
Tuition fees for years of study after your first year are subject to an increase of 3% for International students and at the capped fee rate as set by the UK Government for UK/EU students.
You can find further information on fees and how to pay on our Student Finance pages.
You may be eligible for funding to help support your study. To find out about scholarships, bursaries and other funding opportunities that are available please visit the University's Bursaries and Scholarships page
Additional Costs
Students on the Applied Anthropology programme are required to undertake a 40-credit ethnographic field trip at Level 5 as a compulsory part of academic study. A number of field trip options are available overseas and within the UK. These field trips are based on collaborative partnerships the university has with other external agencies and universities. In addition to these, students are free to arrange their own ethnographic field study but only through consultation with the programme director and module tutors. To support students in undertaking this study, the faculty provides a field trip scholarship to each student of up to £1000. Any additional costs over this figure will have to be met by the student.
