Careers for Graduates with a Degree in Anthropology

Small Major, Large Opportunities

Provided By: Associated Content, Inc.

Graduates with a degree in anthropology are definitely not a dime a dozen but careers for graduates with a degree in anthropology are more numerous and interesting than you might expect. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree in anthropology are encourage to qualify for better paying positions by furthering their studies to the completion of a doctoral program. Still there are careers available for graduates starting out with a basic bachelors degree in anthropology.

College Professors One of the reasons graduates with a degree in anthropology are encouraged to continue their studies is because additional degrees and post graduate work can be the key to good pay and steady employment as a college instructor or professor.

Surprisingly enough even though universities don’t find large numbers of students who want to major in anthropology there are many students who sign up for the equivalent of anthropology 101 , a survey or introductory course that fulfills core curriculum requirements or sounds like an interesting elective. Graduates with a degree in anthropology who have post graduate courses or additional degrees may qualify to teach these essential college offerings.

Teaching on the college level is a unique experience giving graduates with a degree in anthropology the opportunity to share their degree centered knowledge with underclassmen but also to share the academic life with other faculty members. Because introductory anthropology is offered in a significant number of colleges and universities graduates with a degree in anthropology and post graduate degrees or experience have a good chance to find employment in a geographic area of their choosing.

Writers The study of anthropology combines a variety of areas of human interest. Gradates with a degree in anthropology have likely experienced course work in art, geography, history, philosophy, psychology, literature and the sciences. This broad educational background gives them many fields of interest out of which to write creatively about human development if they also have the skill and interest.

Magazines, newspapers and book publishers are always in the market for new perspectives, interesting angles and unusual takes on the way our human community functions. Graduates with a degree in anthropology who also demonstrate creative writing ability can present themselves and their work with solid academic credentials behind both.

Writing in any venue of course can have professional hazards. The market for the written word is unpredictable and often distributes financial rewards in an unpredictable way. still there are definitely writing opportunities for those graduates with a degree in anthropology who have creative ability and a willingness to take a risk.

Travel Positions The academic and in many cases the practical experiences of graduates with a degree in anthropology prepare them in a very special way to work with travel agencies. Today many colleges, universities, fraternal or business groups seek unique travel opportunities to exciting and exotic locales for their alums and members. Trips may run two or three weeks or more and are developed not just as sightseeing junkets but as trips that provide enrichment and in some occasions real learning experiences.

Agencies that offer such trips may choose to employ as guides graduates with a degree in anthropology who can provide the cultural framework for a variety of trips. These same grads can often help travelers to fit what they are learning into what they already know. The value of a employing a graduate with a degree in anthropology to guide a travel group is clearly seen in terms of the client enjoyment and satisfaction he or she can supply.

Salaries for tour guides are not necessarily high, but they are generally well supplemented by good tips and of course the wonderful opportunity to travel at company expense. Graduates may never have pictured themselves as a tour guide when they picked up their degree in anthropology but the enticement of a travel centered career path can be pleasantly compelling especially for those who love to learn about diverse people and cultures on location.

Museum Work For many graduates with a degree in anthropology there seems a natural connection between their course work and potential museum careers. Today’s museum opportunities are in fact more varied and rewarding than ever before. Picturing a museum career no longer means seeing yourself carefully uncrating exhibits in a musty storage area or spending long hours alone at a desk trying to keep the museum financially afloat.

Today’s museum careers for graduates with a degree in anthropology can eventually lead to positions as curators or museum directors, depending of course on additional course work and experience. Along the way to such lofty positions graduates with a degree in anthropology should be on the lookout for interim work in museums as exhibit officers or directors . Some museums also will be offering positions to graduates with a degree in anthropology to serve on a rotating schedule throughout the museum as information or education specialists. For graduates with a degree in anthropology who want to use their expertise to the benefit of others but who aren’t really interested in a full time college job, this kind of museum work can prove a comfortable fit.

There are plenty of jobs available for graduates with a degree in anthropology and even more positions for those who have extended their studies to achieve a doctorate. There may be good reasons, that aren’t alphabetical, for listing anthropology among the first few majors in college catalogs.