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Anthropology, Minor

The Minor in Anthropology

Professor Noah Theriault, Faculty Advisor, History Department
Location: Baker Hall 240C, noaht@andrew.cmu.edu

Dr. Alexandra Garnhart-Bushakra, Academic Program Manager, History Department
Location: Baker Hall 240G, 412-268-1260, agarnhar@andrew.cmu.edu

Ms. Beth Jameson, M.A., Academic Advisor and Humanities Coordinator, History Department
Location: Baker Hall 240A, 412-268-5666, bjameson@andrew.cmu.edu

Overview

Anthropology is the study of all forms of human diversity across time and space. The Minor in Anthropology at Carnegie Mellon exposes students to the methods and theories that anthropologists use to study cultural variation and change. Courses in the minor explore the history and practice of ethnography, apply anthropological approaches to global problems, and examine how cultural differences interact with a range of other social, political, and environmental forces. Students also gain a deeper understanding of how cultural differences shape (and are shaped by) the arts, technology, economics, politics, and ecology. The Minor in Anthropology, which may be combined with any major, equips students with a sophisticated understanding of human diversity in a rapidly changing world.

Curriculum

The Minor in Anthropology requires that students complete two "Method and Theory" courses (18 units) and three "Anthropological Electives" courses (27 units). In addition, 79-201 Introduction to Anthropology is required (9 units), but it may be taken at any time during the student's coursework. Including this course, the Minor in Anthropology totals 54 units.

Please note that students may “double-count” a maximum of two courses for the Anthropology minor that are used to fulfill the requirements of other majors and programs, including those administered directly by the History Department.

Minor in Anthropology54 units

I. General Education Course, Disciplinary Perspectives: Social Sciences9 units

This requirement need not be satisfied before beginning the minor.

Units
79-201Introduction to Anthropology9
II. Method and Theory18 units

Students must complete 18 units (typically 2 courses) in Method and Theory, selecting from the list below. (Other courses may fulfill these requirements, with permission of the Faculty Advisor.)

79-275Introduction to Global Studies9
79-283Anthropology of Energy9
79-314How Do We Remember? The Politics and Cultures of Memory9
79-317Art, Anthropology, and Empire9
79-332Medical Anthropology9
79-379Experimental Ethnography9
79-380Hostile Environments: The Politics of Pollution in Global Perspective9
79-381The Multispecies City: Anthropology of Urban Environments9
III. Anthropological Electives27 units

Students must complete 27 units (typically 3 courses) in Anthropological Electives, selecting from the list below.  (Other courses may fulfill these requirements with permission of the Faculty Advisor.)

57-306World Music9
79-110Introduction to the Medieval Mediterranean World9
79-112Introduction to Asian American History9
79-115Introduction to Jewish Studies9
79-116Introduction to the Modern Middle East9
79-122Ancient Mediterranean Civilizations9
79-150Medieval Science, Magic, and Wonders of Nature9
79-170Introduction to Science, Technology, and Society9
79-203The Other Europe: The Habsburgs, Communism, & Central/Eastern Europe, 1740-19909
79-208Witchcraft and Witch-Hunting9
79-210Identity, Ethnicity, and Place in Modern China9
79-211Modern Southeast Asia: Colonialism, Capitalism, and Cultural Exchange9
79-215Environmental Justice from Conservation to Climate Change9
79-221From Compton to Kabul: Sound, Power, and Global History9
79-223Mexico: From the Aztec Empire to the Drug War9
79-227Modern Africa: The Slave Trade to the End of Apartheid9
79-234Technology and Society9
79-239Theories of Nationalism9
79-245Capitalism and Individualism in American Culture9
79-246War, Genocide, and Gender in Modern Europe9
79-262Modern China: From the Birth of Mao ... to Now9
79-264Tibet and China: History and Propaganda9
79-270Anti-Semitism Then and Now: Perspectives from the Middle Ages to the Present9
79-276Beyond the Border9
79-278How (Not) to Change the World9
79-280Coffee and Capitalism9
79-289Animal Planet: An Environmental History of People and Animals9
79-304History of Eugenics and Scientific Racism9
79-305Global Perspectives in LGBTQ+ History9
79-313"Unwanted": Refugees, Asylum Seekers, and Patterns of Global Migration6
79-315The Politics of Water in Global Perspective9
79-329Introduction to Queer Studies9
79-331Body Politics: Women and Health in America9
79-368Un-natural Disasters: Societies and Environmental Hazards in Global Perspective6
79-377Food, Culture, and Power: A History of Eating9

Relevant Anthropology courses may be taken at another university (for instance, study abroad, the University of Pittsburgh, or other Pittsburgh institutions) with permission of the Anthropology Minor's Faculty Advisor.

IV. Anthropology Internship3-9 units
79-506Global Studies Internship3-9

The Anthropology program strongly encourages students to locate internship opportunities in Pittsburgh or elsewhere that complement their historical interests (as, for example, in a museum or archaeological fieldwork) or in areas of policy research that complement their anthropological interests (as, for example, in a government agency or non-profit organization). The Academic Program Manager, Dr. Alexandra Garnhart-Bushakra, will assist students with matching their interests to local organizations. Anthropology students can earn up to 9 units in each internship. Up to 9 anthropology internship credits may count toward fulfillment of elective course requirements for the Anthropology minor.

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