Boston University says that, “Though easy to define, anthropology is difficult to describe. Its subject matter is both exotic (e.g., star lore of the Australian aborigines) and commonplace (anatomy of the foot). And its focus is both sweeping (the evolution of language) and microscopic (the use-wear of obsidian tools). Anthropologists may study ancient Mayan hieroglyphics, the music of African Pygmies, and the corporate culture of a U.S. car manufacturer.

But always, the common goal links these vastly different projects: to advance knowledge of who we are, how we came to be that way—and where we may go in the future”. (http://www.bu.edu/anthrop/about/what-is-anthropology/)

Anthropology has four main subfields—sociocultural, biological, archaeology and linguistic anthropology, in each of which there are Masters and PhD programmes. Some use different nomenclature – for example New York University uses physical anthropology or biological anthropology. According to them, “Physical anthropology or biological anthropology is an area of investigation that examines all aspects of the biological domain of humans. As a subdiscipline of anthropology it has its intellectual and academic roots in the social sciences, but it also has strong interdisciplinary connections with the natural sciences, especially biology, psychology, ethology and the earth sciences.

Sociocultural anthropology, which we understand to include linguistic anthropology, is concerned with the problem of difference and similarity within and between human populations.

Linguistic anthropologists examine how language use and choice shape the cultural and social diversity of communities and persons”.

(http://anthropology.as.nyu.edu/page/graduate)

There is also Applied Anthropology which deals with applying anthropology to contemporary issues in society and culture. The Society for Applied Anthropology wants “to promote the investigation of the principles of human behavior and the application of these principles to contemporary issues and problems”.

New York University, Department of Anthropology, offers Graduate Program on Ancient Technologies in their Environmental Contexts, Graduate Program in Biological Anthropology.

The Department of Anthropology at Berkeley offers two PhD programs, in Anthropology and Medical Anthropology. It offers also an interdisciplinary MA program in Folklore, with an option to simultaneously apply for a PhD in another discipline.

(http://anthropology.berkeley.edu/graduate/graduate-programs)

Columbia University in the City of New York offers a MA in Program in Sociocultural Anthropology

(http://anthropology.columbia.edu/graduate/applications-and-admissions/ma-program). The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University does not offer terminal Master’s degree, with the exception of Medical Anthropology. (https://www.gsas.harvard.edu/programs_of_study/anthropology.php)

Department of Anthropology

The San José State University, College of Social Sciences and Boston University offer a Masters in Applied Anthropology.

(http://www.sjsu.edu/anthropology/academics/maa/)

(http://www.bu.edu/anthrop/graduate/ma/).

 

UCL, London’s Global University, offers an MSc in Social and Cultural Anthropology (http://www.ucl.ac.uk/anthropology/studying/msc-social-cultural-anthropology). LSE, SOAS in London and The University of Manchester offer a MA Social Anthropology

(https://www.soas.ac.uk/anthropology/programmes/masocanth/), (http://www.lse.ac.uk/anthropology/degree_programmes/mscsocanth.aspx)

and (http://www.manchester.ac.uk/study/masters/courses/list/01311/social-anthropology-ma/)

University of Copenhagen and University of Oxford offer an MSc in Anthropology (http://anthropology.ku.dk/studies/msc/) and (http://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/graduate/courses/msc-social anthropology). University of Heidelberg, Institute for Ethnology and UCLS offer a MA in Anthropology (http://www.eth.uni-heidelberg.de/studium/master_en.html) and (https://grad.ucla.edu/programs/social-sciences/anthropology/).