Minor in Anthropology

Program Learning Outcomes for the Minor in Anthropology

Upon completing the minor in Anthropology, students will be able to:

  1. Understand the origins and current state of approaches and methods across the discipline’s subfield.
  2. Describe anthropology’s unique, comparative, and historically informed perspective on human social, cultural, and political continuity and variation.
  3. Make use of anthropology’s critical perspectives to understand contemporary social and cultural practices in the world around them.
  4. Utilize critical reading and thinking skills to make original arguments about the significance of social and cultural practices in the world around them.

Requirements for the Minor in Anthropology 

Students pursuing the minor in Anthropology must complete:

  • A minimum of 6 courses (18 credit hours) to satisfy minor requirements.
  • A minimum of 3 courses (9 credit hours) taken at the 300-level or above.
  • A maximum of 2 courses (6 credit hours) from study abroad or transfer credit. For additional departmental guidelines regarding transfer credit, see the Policies tab. 

The courses listed below satisfy the requirements for this minor. In certain instances, courses not on this official list may be substituted upon approval of the minor’s academic advisor, or where applicable, the Program Director. (Course substitutions must be formally applied and entered into Degree Works by the minor's Official Certifier). Students and their academic advisors should identify and clearly document the courses to be taken.

Summary

Total Credit Hours Required for the Minor in Anthropology18

Minor Requirements

Core Requirements
Select 2 courses from the following:6
INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL/CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
INTRODUCTION TO BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY
INTRODUCTION TO ARCHAEOLOGY
Elective Requirements
Select 4 elective courses from departmental (ANTH) course offerings 112
Total Credit Hours18

Footnotes and Additional Information

Policies for the Minor in Anthropology

Program Restrictions and Exclusions

Students pursuing the minor in Anthropology should be aware of the following program restriction:

  • As noted in Majors, Minors, and Certificates, i.) students may declare their intent to pursue a minor only after they have first declared a major, and ii.) students may not major and minor in the same subject.

Transfer Credit 

For Rice University’s policy regarding transfer credit, see Transfer Credit. Some departments and programs have additional restrictions on transfer credit. The Office of Academic Advising maintains the university’s official list of transfer credit advisors on their website: https://oaa.rice.edu. Students are encouraged to meet with their academic program’s transfer credit advisor when considering transfer credit possibilities. 

Departmental Transfer Credit Guidelines

Students pursuing the minor in Anthropology should be aware of the following departmental transfer credit guidelines:

  • No more than 2 courses (6 credit hours) of transfer credit from U.S. or international universities of similar standing as Rice may apply towards the minor.
  • Requests for transfer credit will be considered by the program director (and/or the program’s official transfer credit advisor) on an individual case-by-case basis. 
  • Dr. Eugenia Georges is the undergraduate transfer credit advisor. All students seeking transfer credit in anthropology for courses taken elsewhere should see Dr. Eugenia Georges for approval.

Additional Information 

For additional information, please see the Anthropology website: https://anthropology.rice.edu/.

Opportunities for the Minor in Anthropology

Academic Honors

The university recognizes academic excellence achieved over an undergraduate’s academic history at Rice. For information on university honors, please see Latin Honors (summa cum laude, magna cum laude, and cum laude) and Distinction in Research and Creative Work. Some departments have department-specific Honors awards or designations.

Archaeological Field School in Sub-Saharan Africa

The Department of Anthropology offers an archaeological field school during the summer months in Africa. Past field schools have been on the island of Gorée, located off the coast of Senegal, where research focused on the development of Gorée as a supply port for the Atlantic trade, at Songo Mnara, a 15th-century Swahili urban center on the southern Tanzanian coast, and Basanga, an Iron Age settlement mound in southwest Zambia. This course is offered for a total of six hours of credit (ANTH 364 and ANTH 370). The course is offered without specific prerequisites, but there is a general requirement that students have some prior coursework in archaeology or African history. Program fees apply.

Additional Information

For additional information, please see the Anthropology website: https://anthropology.rice.edu/.