Anthropology, B.A.

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The anthropology major at Sonoma State University teaches students about humans and their societies throughout the world, how they developed, the significance of their differences, and how they change over time. By taking courses in all four subfields (archaeology, biological anthropology, cultural anthropology, and linguistic anthropology), students learn to formulate theoretical and practical questions, and collect, organize, and interpret data. The combination of knowledge about human ways of life and training in analytical skills are crucial to any field dealing with human biology, society, and culture. This perspective is invaluable in preparing students for careers in a wide range of professional fields, including cultural resources management, environmental planning, education, public health, business, law, community development, and international service.

Note: A maximum of 12 transfer units in lower-division courses can be used to complete the 40-unit anthropology major options and advisory plans.

* Students must earn a C- or better in any course applied to the major.

Program Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the program, students should have:

An appreciation for the comparative perspective that uniquely allows anthropologists to explore the forms and foundations of human social, cultural, biological, and linguistic diversity, past and present.
An ability to integrate the four major subfields of anthropology – sociocultural, biological, archaeology and linguistic – via holistic and contextualized interpretations of evidence.
An understanding of how anthropological perspectives, methods, and theories came to be, and how their application can contribute to solving the issues and controversies of our time.
Competence in the qualitative and quantitative methods of at least one anthropological subfield, and the ability to apply these methods to real-world scenarios.
An awareness of the ethical issues involved in anthropological inquiry, scholarship, professional practice, and public citizenship, at the level of local communities and our increasingly globalized world.
An ability to critically locate, understand, evaluate, and synthesize anthropological scholarly materials, and to communicate resulting interpretations orally and in writing, individually and collaboratively.

Degree Requirements

See the “Degree Requirements ” in the University Catalog for complete details on general degree requirements.

General Education Requirements (48 units).

See the “General Education Program ” requirements in the University Catalog for information on General Education requirements. Some major requirements may double count for GE requirements.

Major Core Requirements

Complete the following four introductory courses.

The introductory course should be completed prior to enrolling in the respective upper division subfield course.

ANTH 200 - Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology Unit(s): 3
ANTH 201 - Introduction to Biological Anthropology Unit(s): 3
ANTH 202 - Introduction to Archaeology Unit(s): 3
ANTH 203 - Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Unit(s): 3

Complete the following synthesis course during the first year of upper-division instruction:

ANTH 300 - Nature, Culture, and Theory: The Growth of Anthropology Unit(s): 4

Complete one course from each of the four subfields of anthropology and a methods course as listed below.

The respective introductory course listed above should be completed prior to enrolling in an upper division course.