Anthropology

About the Program

Program Goal: Transfer

GE Pattern(s): Cal-GETC

Program Code: 31964.31AA-T

Students completing Associate Degrees for Transfer are guaranteed admission to the CSU system. Please see the beginning of the “Academic Programs” section for details.

Anthropology is the study of humans worldwide, both in the past and present. The program is designed to introduce students to culture as the core concept for understanding human behavior. The four subfields of anthropology (physical, archaeological, linguistics and cultural) are used as a foundation to examine varied perspectives about the world. Anthropology students graduate with an awareness of cultural and biological diversity and the complexity of past and contemporary societies. The degree offers courses required in the CSU, Chico major core program, in addition to courses approved for Cal-GETC.

The program in anthropology is designed to prepare students for a variety of exciting careers, which may include education, research, medicine, business, non-profit and public service fields. As an example, anthropologists may be employed on international research teams, such as with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention scientists working to control Ebola outbreaks in West Africa. Anthropologists may also be employed as resident scientists at the Intel Corporation or as curation specialists in the US Army Corps of Engineers. Numerous anthropological skills, such as the ability to think critically and creatively about the world and the ability to apply research methods to solve problems, translate to various employment sectors. For more information on possible careers, please visit the American Anthropology Association's Careers in Anthropology webpage.

Program Learning Outcome(s): Upon successful completion of the program, the student will be able to:

1. Identify and discuss major topics relevant to Physical Anthropology, including human and primate evolution and variation among hominids.
2. Define culture and apply the concept to a broad cross-cultural understanding of human behavior.
3. Examine past cultural systems through analysis of physical cultural remains.
4. Describe and analyze human linguistic systems and the influence of language on human perceptions of the world.