All careers

Anthropologists and Archeologists

  • Bright Outlook
  • Rapid Growth

Study the origin, development, and behavior of human beings. May study the way of life, language, or physical characteristics of people in various parts of the world. May engage in systematic recovery and examination of material evidence, such as tools or pottery remaining from past human cultures, in order to determine the history, customs, and living habits of earlier civilizations.

What you’d do

  • Collect information and make judgments through observation, interviews, and review of documents.
  • Teach or mentor undergraduate and graduate students in anthropology or archeology.
  • Write about and present research findings for a variety of specialized and general audiences.
  • Plan and direct research to characterize and compare the economic, demographic, health care, social, political, linguistic, and religious institutions of distinct cultural groups, communities, and organizations.
  • Create data records for use in describing and analyzing social patterns and processes, using photography, videography, and audio recordings.
  • Train others in the application of ethnographic research methods to solve problems in organizational effectiveness, communications, technology development, policy making, and program planning.
  • Identify culturally specific beliefs and practices affecting health status and access to services for distinct populations and communities, in collaboration with medical and public health officials.
  • Apply traditional ecological knowledge and assessments of culturally distinctive land and resource management institutions to assist in the resolution of conflicts over habitat protection and resource enhancement.

Skills that matter

  • Speaking
  • Writing
  • Active Listening
  • Critical Thinking
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Active Learning

How to get there

Extensive preparation: most need graduate school, such as a master's degree or higher

Also called

  • Archaeologist
  • Communication and Folklore Specialist
  • Forensic Anthropologist
  • Researcher
  • American Indian Policy Specialist
  • Applied Anthropologist

Related careers

See all careers

  • Historians

    Research, analyze, record, and interpret the past as recorded in sources, such as government and institutional records, newspapers and…

    Extensive preparation: most need graduate school, such as a master's degree or higher

  • Sociologists

    Study human society and social behavior by examining the groups and social institutions that people form, as well as various social…

    Extensive preparation: most need graduate school, such as a master's degree or higher

  • Anthropology and Archeology Teachers, Postsecondary

    Teach courses in anthropology or archeology. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of…

    Extensive preparation: most need graduate school, such as a master's degree or higher

  • Geographers

    Study the nature and use of areas of the Earth's surface, relating and interpreting interactions of physical and cultural phenomena.

    Considerable preparation: most need a four-year bachelor's degree

  • Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary

    Teach courses pertaining to the culture and development of an area, an ethnic group, or any other group, such as Latin American studies…

    Extensive preparation: most need graduate school, such as a master's degree or higher

  • History Teachers, Postsecondary

    Teach courses in human history and historiography. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of…

    Extensive preparation: most need graduate school, such as a master's degree or higher