OU Department of Anthropology

Sociocultural Anthropology

Current Faculty Research Projects

Ethics of genetics research and community research methods (Foster)
Cultural perceptions of health and health care in Oklahoma African-American communities and in Cuba (Hirschfeld)
Evangelical religious movement, direct sales, and voluntary orgainizations in Mexico (Cahn)
Parenthood in South Africa (Anderson)
Politics and ethnohistory in Plains Indian communities (Foster)
Political economy and women in South Africa (Harris)
Economic anthropology in the South Pacific Islands (Rambo)
Health system in Cuba (Hirschfeld)

Partnered Research with Tribal Communities

Fourteen tribal communities in Oklahoma have initiated and helped design studies conducted by students that combine anthropological research in the areas of historical anthropology, medicine, genealogy, politics, sociolinguistics, and oral history with tribal goals such as federal recognition, tribal histories and archives, better health care, tribal cultural studies programs, and native language education.

Independent Research Projects

Students also do independent ethnographic and ethnohistorical research. There are research opportunities at the Oklahoma Historical Society in Oklahoma City, the Western History Collections at OU, the regional Bureau of Indian Affairs archives, and the Gilcrease Institute in Tulsa. The Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History sponsors research projects to which students contribute, particularly in the area of Native America. The Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art also enlists students to work with Native American art exhibits. In Tulsa, the Gilcrease Museum uses OU students to assist curators.

Program Requirements

Students who apply to the Ph.D. program without a Master's degree in anthropology take a three-semester core course and a fourth semester course that focuses on methodology appropriate to the student's research interests. Ph.D. candidates also take a core course in archæology, linguistics, and in biological anthropology. Ninety credits of course work, including 30 hours of dissertation research, a general exam, and a dissertation are required. Students who enter with a Master's degree in anthropology take 60 credits of course work, including 30 hours of dissertation research, and take the general exam. Areas of faculty expertise are historical anthropology, language and culture, medical anthropology, political economy, and politics. The M.A. Program emphasizes medical anthropology, linguistic anthropology, and museum studies. Students must complete 30 hours of course work and a thesis. The program is tailored to the student's interests in consultation with the faculty.

Faculty

Dr. Kermyt Anderson
Dr. Peter Cahn
Dr. Morris Foster
Dr. Betty Harris
Dr. Katherine Hirschfeld
Dr. Lori Jervis

Dr. Misha Klein
Dr. Mary Linn
Dr. Sean O'Neill
Dr. Gus Palmer
Dr. Karl Rambo
Dr. Paul Spicer
Dr. Dan Swan

Overview
Anthropology has been taught at the University of Oklahoma since 1905 and became its own department in 1927. Celebrated faculty like Morris Opler and Robert Bell established the Department as a leader in the scholarly study of Native North America. In addition to conducting research in the southwest, southeast, and plains of North America, we have maintained a secondary emphasis on contemporary Latin America.

We offer an M.A. in anthropology, an M.A. in applied linguistic anthropology, and the only Ph.D. in anthropology in the state. Students receive rigorous training in the four subdisciplines of anthropology: sociocultural, archaeological, biological, and linguistic.
With over twenty full-time professors and about seventy graduate students, degree candidates receive personalized attention from faculty mentors.

As part of a medium-sized department, our students benefit from the resources of a large research university while enjoying a nurturing intellectual environment. Our graduates have been successful in securing tenure-track academic jobs as well as positions in cultural resource management, museums, and government archaeology. For more information or to set up a meeting with faculty, contact the Graduate Liaison, Dr. Paul Spicer.

Resources
The Department of Anthropology maintains close connections with several academic units across campus. The Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, the Oklahoma Archeological Survey, and the Center for Applied Social Research provide research and training opportunities for our students. Also, students can establish linguistic and ethnographic projects with the more than 35 Native American tribal entities across the state. The Department offers laboratory facilities for research in genetic and physical anthropology and archaeology as well as summer field schools in archaeology.

Financial support usually consists of a half-time graduate assistantship, usually as a grader for an undergraduate class or research assistant for a faculty member. Ph.D. students may teach their own classes. We fund master’s students for two years and doctoral students for a maximum of four years beyond the Master’s degree. In recent years, nearly all students who applied for funding received support from the Department. Our students have also been successful in obtaining extramural funding.

Requirements
All M.A. and Ph.D. students will take a core course in each of the four subfields of anthropology. The M.A. requires 30 credit hours, including the four cores, elective seminars, and four hours of thesis research. The Ph.D. requires 90 credit hours, including 30 hours of dissertation research. Students in the M.A. in applied linguistic anthropology take 30 credit hours, substituting linguistic methods courses for the core classes in biological and archaeological theory.

In their first year of the program, doctoral students will work closely with their committees to complete the advisory conference report. That document will list any courses beyond the departmental requirements that the committee deems critical for well-rounded scholarship. The faculty expects students at both the Ph.D. and M.A. levels to be familiar with the tools necessary for research, including foreign or Native American languages and statistics, and may require students to demonstrate proficiency.

The M.A. can be completed in two to three years following a timeline such as this suggestion:

Master of Arts
30 credit hours = 26 hours coursework + 4 thesis hours

Sociocultural and linguistic track
Fall semester Spring semester

First year

5223 sociocultural core
One or two electives

Select a committee chair

5363 linguistic core
One or two electives

Select a master’s committee

Second year

6713 archaeology core
One or two electives

Have thesis topic approved by committee

6633 biological core
One or two electives

Begin data collection (and over summer)

Third year

Thesis hours

File for admission to candidacy by first Monday in October

Thesis hours
5693 Thesis writing seminar**

Defend thesis
File for graduation by March 1

Archaeological and biological track

First year

6713 archaeology core
One or two electives

Select a committee chair

6633 biological core
One or two electives

Select a master’s committee

Second year

5223 sociocultural core
One or two electives

Have thesis topic approved by committee

5363 linguistic core
One or two electives

Begin data collection (and over summer)

Third year

Thesis hours

File for admission to candidacy by first Monday in October

Thesis hours
5693 Thesis writing seminar**

Defend thesis
File for graduation by March 1

The Ph.D. is designed to take between five and six years to complete, as shown in this hypothetical timeline:

Doctor of Philosophy
90 credit hours = 60 hours coursework + 30 dissertation hours (Up to 30 hours from M.A. coursework may be counted)

Sociocultural and linguistic track
Fall semester Spring semester

First year	5223 sociocultural core* 6713 archaeology core* or Elective Begin language training Select a committee chair	5123 sociocultural II 5363 linguistic core* or Elective Language training (and over summer) Select a committee Schedule advisory conference
Second year	6713 archaeology core* 5213 methods* Work on dissertation proposal	6633 biological core* 5543 research design* Course with outside member** General exam fields approved Apply for Human Subjects Permit
Third year	Electives Apply for extramural funding	Electives Apply for permission to take general exams two weeks prior Take general exams
Fourth year	Fieldwork	Fieldwork
Fifth year	Dissertation hours	Dissertation hours 5693 Writing seminar**
Sixth year	Dissertation hours Apply for jobs	Dissertation hours Apply for graduation by March 1 Defend dissertation and file

Archaeological and biological track
The archaeology faculty recommends that all Ph.D. students in archaeology take Public Archaeology, an appropriate regional archaeology course, at least one topics course, and at least one methods course. They also recommend that archaeology students take a sociocultural course beyond ANTH 5223

Fall semester Spring semester

First year	6713 archaeology core* 5223 sociocultural core* or Elective Begin language or tool training Select a committee chair	6633 biological core* 5363 linguistic core* or Elective Language or tool training Select a committee Schedule advisory conference
Second year	6803 advanced theory 5223 sociocultural core* Course with outside member** Work on dissertation proposal	5413 public archaeology** 5363 linguistic core* General exam fields approved
Third year	Electives Apply for extramural funding	Electives Apply for permission to take general exams two weeks prior Take general exams
Fourth year	Research	Research
Fifth year	Dissertation hours	Dissertation hours 5693 Writing seminar**
Sixth year	Dissertation hours Apply for jobs	Dissertation hours Apply for graduation by March 1 Defend dissertation and file

*If not previously taken
**Recommended

Applying
The Department welcomes applications from students with bachelor’s degrees in any field. However, we recommend that applicants have taken at least the introductory undergraduate classes in the four subfields of anthropology. Students with a master’s degree in anthropology may apply directly to the Ph.D. program and transfer up to 30 credit hours.

The Graduate College sets a minimum GPA of 3.0 for applicants. Although we require the GRE for application, we set no minimum score for consideration. Most important in the decisions for admission are the undergraduate transcript, statement of purpose, and letters of recommendation. Faculty look for an appropriate fit between the applicants’ intellectual interests and the research strengths of the department. To that end, we strongly suggest that applicants contact the graduate liaison, Dr. Paul Spicer, or potential faculty advisers before submitting their completed applications.

Applicants must submit information to both the Graduate College and the Department.

Please send to the Graduate College:
1. Completed Graduate College Application
2. Official transcripts

Please send to the Department of Anthropology by April 1
(January 31 to be considered for financial support):

1. Statement of Purpose
In no more than two pages, state the research questions that motivate your interest in graduate study. Please list specific faculty you believe would be able to help you achieve your intellectual goals.
2. GRE Scores
Please have the Educational Testing Service forward your scores to the Department. There is no subject test for anthropology.
3. Two Letters of Recommendation
Ask two professors who know your work to attest to your preparation for graduate level study.
4. Graduate Assistantship/Tuition Waiver Application
If you apply before January 31, you will be considered for a graduate assistantship. Fill out the application form [link to it] and attach a current CV.
5. Copy of Graduate College Application
6. Copies of transcripts
May be unofficial transcripts or photocopies of those sent to the Graduate College

You and your recommenders may e-mail your application materials to Dr. Spicer .

Send hard copies to:
Graduate Liaison
Department of Anthropology
455 West Lindsey Street, Room 521
Norman, OK 73019