Field Programs

Students of Anthropology have a variety of opportunities to gain experience in research and with other cultures by means of a semester abroad, field courses, independent research during the semester, or summer research.

  1. International Programs – Study Abroad
    Courses of the Department of Anthropology are linked to three programs in the International Academic Program:
    • Academic Safari in Northern Tanzania
      This program is offered during the summer and provides the opportunity to learn about the cultural and natural landscapes of northern Tanzania.
    • Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar
      The Institute for the Conservation of Tropical Environments (ICTE) organizes this Study Abroad Field Course in Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar. It is offered during the fall semester and is 15 credits of science based courses including an independent research project.
    • Turkana Basin Field School, Kenya
      A new initiative of the Turkana Basin Institute and the Department of Anthropology is to create a field school to provide archaeological and paleontological field experience in Kenya. The first season is expected to begin in the summer of 2008.
  2. Field courses
    The Institute for Long Island Archaeology (ILIA) and the Department of Anthropology frequently offer summer field programs in archaeology on Long Island. Additional information is provided in the SOLAR system under the relevant course numbers.
    4. Research and Fieldwork opportunities
    Students have the option of conducting independent study in the field or in one of the archaeology or physical anthropology laboratories. Faculty in the Department of Anthropology maintain field sites concerned with research on and conservation of nonhuman primates - in the Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo (Doran-Sheehy), Madagascar (Wright), and Thailand (Koenig and Borries). Faculty are also engaged in archaeological excavations – on Long Island (Bernstein), Ethiopia (Hildebrand), Kenya (Shea and Hildebrand), and Turkey (Stone and Twiss). Faculty are also engaged in primate and human paleontology projects in Kenya (Rossie) and South Africa (Grine). Additional information about opportunities for research in the field and in the various laboratory facilities can be obtained by consulting individual faculty web pages.