The Department of Anthropology offers a graduate program leading to the Master of Arts degree in Anthropology. The course work in this program is conceptually three-field, with faculty strengths in archaeology, cultural anthropology, and biological anthropology. The department follows an apprenticeship model, and thus the MA student works directly under the supervision of their graduate adviser. Students are informed of who their graduate adviser is when they are admitted to the program. Visit the Faculty Page for the UCF Department of Anthropology for more information about our faculty. Students in the program are prepared to enter doctoral programs or begin professional careers following the MA degree.
Degree-seeking students in the Anthropology MA program may elect to follow either a thesis or non-thesis plan of study. Each plan of study requires a minimum of 30 credit hours, 15 of which must be at the 6000-level. The thesis option is designed for students who plan to enter doctoral programs, while the non-thesis option is more appropriate for students entering or continuing profession careers following the MA degree.
The anthropology faculty conduct research in many geographical areas including Bolivia, Colombia, Egypt, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru, the Philippines, Turkey, the United States and various other locations in the Caribbean and Europe. The department also has multiple research facilities on the Orlando campus that including the following: an archaeology lab specializing in lithic and ceramic analysis, a forensic anthropology lab, a paleoethnobotany archaeology lab, a bioarchaeological sciences lab, an isotope geochemistry and zooarchaeology lab, and an interdisciplinary geospatial science lab. Students may have the opportunity to conduct research projects in the various countries or research facilities as part of their program.
Total Credit Hours Required: 30 Credit Hours Minimum beyond the Bachelor's Degree
Degree Requirements
Required Courses
12 Total Credits
- Complete all of the following
- Complete the following:
- ANG5094 - Writing in Anthropology (3)
- ANG6110 - Archaeological Theory and Method (3)
- ANG6587 - Seminar in Biological Anthropology (3)
- ANG6930 - Seminar in Cultural Anthropology (3)
- These courses provide an in-depth understanding of the epistemological foundations of the discipline. Students are introduced to the theory and practice of anthropology at a level of synthesis that will prepare them for future doctoral study should they wish to pursue it. These courses also establish the foundations of understanding that will prepare students for nonacademic careers that employ anthropological perspectives and knowledge.
Elective Courses
12 Total Credits
- Complete all of the following
- A minimum of 12 additional credit hours must be selected from the list below in consultation with the faculty adviser and/or the advisory committee members and approved by the program graduate coordinator. Additional electives may be selected as they become available or as they are added to the course curriculum. With prior approval, the student may take one elective (3 credit hours) in another department. Under special circumstances, students may enroll in a graduate-level Directed Independent Study course or a Directed Independent Research course to fulfill their non-required elective course requirements. No more than 6 hours of graduate-level courses in Directed Independent Study or Directed Independent Research may be included in a student's program of study.
- Earn at least 12 credits from the following:
- ANG5166 - Problems in Maya Studies (3)
- ANG5228 - Maya Iconography (3)
- ANG5486 - Quantitative Research in Anthropology (3)
- ANG5742 - Problems in Forensic Anthropology (3)
- ANG5525C - Human Osteology (4)
- ANG6520C - Advanced Human Osteology (3)
- ANG6740C - Advanced Forensic Anthropology (3)
- ANG5531 - Nutritional Anthropology (3)
- ANG5738 - Advanced Medical Anthropology (3)
- ANG5822 - Maya Field Research (3)
- ANG5852 - GIS Methods in Anthropology (3)
- ANG5853 - Advanced GIS Methods in Anthropology (3)
- ANG5168 - Maya Archaeology (3)
- ANG6821 - Forensic Archeology Field Methods (3)
- ANG6181C - GIS Applications in Anthropology (3)
- ANG6324 - Contemporary Maya (3)
- ANG6701 - Public and Applied Anthropology (3)
- ANG6801 - Ethnographic Research Methods (3)
Thesis/Nonthesis Option
6 Total Credits
- Complete 1 of the following
Thesis- Earn at least 6 credits from the following types of courses: ANG 6971: Thesis In the thesis option, the student must write and defend an original research thesis. The thesis will be written under the guidance of the adviser and a Thesis Advisory Committee made up of at least three members, including the adviser who will serve as chair. The committee needs to be established prior to defending the thesis proposal and enrolling in thesis hours. When a thesis topic has been selected, students, in conjunction with their faculty adviser, will develop a thesis proposal. A proposal meeting will be scheduled with the student and advisory committee prior to enrolling in thesis hours. Students who elect to write a thesis should become familiar with the university's requirements and deadlines for organizing and submitting the thesis The completion of the thesis must be followed by an oral defense before the Thesis Advisory Committee. A successful format review, oral defense, and electronic submission of the thesis to the College of Graduate Studies for review completes the program requirements. Students are required to follow all procedures and timetables specified by the College of Graduate Studies.
Nonthesis- Earn at least 6 credits from the following types of courses: Restricted Electives Students selecting the nonthesis option take an additional 6 hours of elective course work for a total of 18 credit hours of electives.
Comprehensive Examination
0 Total Credits
- At the conclusion of course work, nonthesis students will be given a comprehensive examination. The comprehensive examination will be administered by an Examination Committee comprised of the faculty adviser and two additional faculty members.
Independent Learning
0 Total Credits
- Students who choose the thesis option will gain independent learning experiences through their thesis research where they are expected to design and conduct their own research which culminates with the writing and defense of their thesis. Students will also gain this experience through their core course requirements as each course contains an independent research assignment. Students in the nonthesis option will gain independent learning experiences through their core courses, all of which contain an independent research component.
Grand Total Credits: 30
Application Requirements
Application Deadlines
Financial Information
Graduate students may receive financial assistance through fellowships, assistantships, tuition support, or loans. For more information, see the College of Graduate Studies Funding website, which describes the types of financial assistance available at UCF and provides general guidance in planning your graduate finances. The Financial Information section of the Graduate Catalog is another key resource. For more information on how the Department of Anthropology allocates funding please visit the department website.
Fellowship Information
Fellowships are awarded based on academic merit to highly qualified students. They are paid to students through the Office of Student Financial Assistance, based on instructions provided by the College of Graduate Studies. Fellowships are given to support a student's graduate study and do not have a work obligation. For more information, see UCF Graduate Fellowships, which includes descriptions of university fellowships and what you should do to be considered for a fellowship.
