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  • Degrees Available:
    • B.A.
  • Major: Yes
  • Minor: Yes
  • Graduate Degree: No
  • Campus: Macomb
  • Study Opportunities:
    • GradTrac
    • Honors

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Undergraduate Majors, Minors & Programs of Study

Program: Anthropology

Program Overview

Created to provide students with the understanding and skills related to explaining the diversity of human cultures by comparing and contrasting past and present cultures around the world. This includes behavioral, biological, and social variation.

Our faculty deliver a four-field approach to anthropology with courses in archaeology, cultural anthropology, physical anthropology, and linguistics. The overarching goal of anthropology is to provide a holistic account of humans and human nature.

A dynamic major, the program addresses many topics including anthrozoology, cultural diversity, ecofeminism, resource sustainability, forensic and environmental anthropology, human biological and cultural adaptation, archaeology, law enforcement and justice administration, applied anthropology, primate ecology, and gender issues.

Additionally, with a research concentration in environmental sustainability, the new anthropology major provides graduates of the program with greater ability to apply knowledge of human biological and cultural diversity to contemporary problems.

The program will be delivered at the WIU-Macomb campus beginning Fall 2009.

Why Anthropology at WIU?

Anthropology faculty at WIU have extensive field research experience in the Dominican Republic, Caribbean, Ecuador, Germany, Mexico, Venezuela, the United States, and the Middle East and are cutting-edge scholars who specialize in human relationships with the environment and applied methodology.

The program is also enhanced by frequent guest-speakers and lecturers, anthropology-oriented field trips, the collaboration of anthropology faculty with undergraduate students in current research projects, and active anthropology student club events. Each of these extracurricular experiences expose our students to variety of topics critical to the understanding of modern anthropological research and practice.

Using their appreciation for cultural diversity and variation in the human condition, students are equipped with tools to enhance the study or the practice of a variety of fields, including, but not limited to, medicine, law, human and cultural resource management, museum studies, law enforcement and administration, community organization, political science, education, business, human biology, and history.

Interested students are encouraged to visit with one of our anthropologists— Drs. Patricia Anderson, David Casagrande, Heather McIlvaine-Newsad, or Jess White— to learn more about the anthropology major or minor. Please call (309) 298-1056 or e-mail us.

Faculty

In addition to teaching undergraduate and graduate courses, the full-time faculty members are actively involved in their respective disciplines. Each year they publish numerous articles and books, present papers at state, regional and national meetings and secure research grants from private, state and federal sources to advance knowledge in their disciplines. All teaching faculty of the department possess first-hand research experience in their specialties. From their first introductory courses to graduate level seminars, students will be taught by Ph.D. sociologists and anthropologists who have established national--and in some cases international--reputations in their field.

Extracurricular Opportunities

Alpha Kappa Delta
The international sociology honor society was founded in 1920 and is dedicated to promoting "an interest in the study of sociology, research of social problems, and such other social and intellectual activities as will lead to improvement in the human condition."
American Anthropological Association
The American Anthropological Association (AAA), the primary professional society of anthropologists in the United States since its founding in 1902, is the world's largest professional organization of individuals interested in anthropology.
American Sociological Association
The American Sociological Association (ASA), founded in 1905, is a non-profit membership association dedicated to advancing sociology as a scientific discipline and profession serving the public good.
Midwest Sociology Society
The Midwest Sociological Society, founded in 1936, is a professional organization of academic and applied sociologists as well as students of the discipline.
Graduate Sociology Organization
For information, please contact Dr. Richard Gee, the Graduate Student Organization advisor.
Western Anthropology and Sociology Club
The WASC of Western Illinois University is comprised of numerous students enrolled in the program and holds regular meetings.