Cultural Anthropology Paths to Success

The following are examples of course sequences that prepares students for specific jobs or careers

The listed courses for particular career paths are suggestions only. Be sure to seek the advice of Keri Canada, your Academic Success Coordinator, as well as your professors to help you choose courses best suited for your career endeavors. Consult the CSU Course Catalog to ensure you are meeting degree requirements. Also, pursue practical experience through field school, practicums, internships, and volunteer opportunities.

In addition to taking the required courses for an anthropology major with a concentration in archaeology, the sections below illustrate other courses useful to specific career paths.

Art, Performance, & Expressive Culture

  • ANTH 225 - Anthropology of the Arts
  • ANTH 322 - Anthropology of Religion
  • ANTH 335 - Language and Culture
  • ANTH 444 - Cultures of virtual worlds: Research methods
  • GR 320 - Cultural Geography

Positions available for art, performance, and expressive culture include work in the area of local and national cultural production and management roles, NGOs promoting cultural education and comprehension, cultural events planning, and non-profit organizations that provide offer therapeutic art/music/performance-based ways to engage traumatized local populations or those suffering from incurable diseases. Jobs in this category are found at Colorado State University, Midtown Arts Center, Non-Profit Organizations in Fort Collins, WANGO.org, and NGOJobBoard.org.

Field Schools

Ethnographic Field School

Internships

Internships, Practicums, and Independent Study

Environment & Sustainability

  • ANTH 330 - Human Ecology
  • ANTH 405 - Public Anthropology and Global Environmental Change
  • ANTH 417 - Indigenous Environmental stewardship
  • ANTH 442 - Ethnographic Field School for Risk and Disaster
  • GR 213 - Climate Migrants

Positions available for environment and sustainability include eco-tourism, global planning, climate change research, NGOs promoting sustainable energy alternatives, educational institutions with sustainability offices, and positions with NGOs that provide aid and sustainable plans to help strengthen local communities in the US and abroad. Jobs in this category are found at Colorado State University, Non-Profit Organizations in Fort Collins, WANGO.org, and NGOJobBoard.org.

Field Schools

Ethnographic Field School

Internships

Internships, Practicums, and Independent Study

Globalization & Development

  • ANTH 310 - African Cities, Ethnographic Perspectives
  • ANTH 314 - Southeast Asian Cultures and Societies
  • ANTH 315 - Global Mobilities: Transnationalism, Culture, and the African Diaspora
  • ANTH 479 - International Development: Theory and Practice
  • GR 330 - Urban Geography
  • GR 415 - The Geography of Commodities

Positions available for globalization and development include global planning, business and technology user research, non-profit agencies promoting international development, cultural ministries inside foreign governments that plan and implement development projects, and NGOs working in different countries to promote community-based development projects. Jobs in this category may be found at Devex International Careers, foreignpolicy.com, Development Classifieds, United Nations, EPIC, Dice, Microsoft, and Google.

Field Schools

Ethnographic Field School

Internships

Internships, Practicums, and Independent Study

Health and Well-Being

  • ANTH 340 - Medical Anthropology
  • ANTH 379 - Evolutionary Medicine and Human Health
  • ANTH 416 - Gender Culture and Health
  • ANTH 423 - Cultural Psychiatry
  • ANTH 445 - Psychological Anthropology

Positions available for health and well-being include work for health care institutions such as hospitals and clinics, NGOs at the local, national or international organizations that promote wellness, agencies that research disease and work to understand the relevance of cultural factors in achieving positive health outcomes. Jobs in this category are found at UC Health, Banner Health, Health District of Larimer County, Larimer County, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Pan American Health Organization, and the World Health Organization.

Field Schools

Ethnographic Field School

Internships

Internships, Practicums, and Independent Study

The American Anthropological Association and the National Association for the Practice of Anthropology have additional resources about jobs and cultural anthropology career paths.

American Anthropological Association
National Association for the Practice of Anthropology