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Departmental Degree Programs
Courses numbered from 1000 to 1999, inclusive, are primarily advanced undergraduate courses, but under appropriate circumstances they may be taken for graduate credit. All courses numbered 2000 and above are open only to graduate students unless special permission is granted. Descriptions of graduate courses offered in a particular term in departments of Arts and Sciences are given in the Course Descriptions issued each term just prior to registration. Copies can be obtained in departmental offices and in 140 Thackeray Hall. Anthropology Department Chair: Robert D. Drennan Main Office: 3H01 Forbes Quadrangle (412) 648-7500 (phone) (412) 648-7535 (fax) http://www.pitt.edu/~pittanth Primary Faculty: Professors BROWN, DeWALT (Associate Dean, Faculty of Arts and Sciences), DRENNAN (Chair; Director of Graduate Studies), GAULIN, KAUFMAN, NUTINI (University Professor), PLOTNICOV, RICHARDSON (Division of Anthropology Chair, Carnegie Museum of Natural History), SCAGLION, SCHWARTZ, SIEGEL, STRATHERN (Andrew Mellon Professor); Associate Professors BERMANN, CONSTABLE, de MONTMOLLIN, HAYDEN (Director, Russian and East European Studies), SANABRIA; Assistant Professors ALLEN, ALTER; Lecturer BENJAMIN Affiliated Faculty (Adjunct faculty and those with primary appointments in other areas): Professors B. DeWALT (Public and International Affairs; Director, Latin American Studies), DONAHUE (Geology and Planetary Science), EVERETT (Chair, Linguistics), FABREGA (Medicine), LINDUFF (History of Art and Architecture), ROLLINS (Geology and Planetary Science), SABLOFF (University Professor; Adjunct), SALMON (Chair, History and Philosophy of Science); Associate Professors FRECHIONE (University Center for International Studies), McGLYNN (Greensburg), MODELL (Adjunct), MOONEY (Dental Medicine), SILVERMAN (Public Health), WATSON (Adjunct), WINKLER (Titusville); Assistant Professors ANDREWS (Africana Studies), HARRIGAN (Adjunct), PORTER (Education); Research Professor SCHORR (Public Health); Research Associate Professors COWIN (Adjunct, CMNH), OLSEN (Adjunct, CMNH), TODHUNTER (Adjunct), WATTERS (Adjunct, CMNH); Research Assistant Professor McALLISTER (Public Health) Emeritus Faculty: Professors SINGLETON (Education), SMOLE, TUDEN; Associate Professor McPHERRON The Department of Anthropology takes a four-field approach, offering graduate training in cultural anthropology, archeology, physical anthropology, and linguistics. There are special programs in Latin American archeology; medical anthropology; ethnicity, nationalism, and the State; and human evolutionary biology. Geographical emphasis is on Latin America, Asia and the Pacific Islands, Melanesia, Eastern Europe, and the United States. Among the research topics of faculty in social and cultural anthropology are urban and development studies, economic anthropology, demography, medical anthropology, legal and political anthropology, family and kinship, and religion and symbolism. Physical anthropology specialties include experimental study of morphology and behavior, development of cranio-facial structures, hominoid evolution, and evolution of behavior. Opportunities in linguistics are offered in cooperation with the Department of Linguistics, and are especially focused on Latin American Indian languages. Archeology stresses the empirical investigation of models of the origins and development of prehistoric complex societies. Training in cultural resources management and field training are available. Strong ties to other departments in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and to other schools in the University provide for interdisciplinary study and research. Laboratories for archeology are maintained in the department. There are physical anthropology laboratories for paleontology, behavioral and environmental studies, primate research, and histology. Computer facilities are provided in the department and are integrated into all laboratories. A cooperative relationship with the Carnegie Museum of Natural History provides expertise, facilities, and training in museology. Admission to Graduate Studies Entrance into programs leading to the MA and PhD degrees in Anthropology requires a baccalaureate degree in one of the arts or sciences from an accredited institution of higher learning. Qualified students from any discipline are considered for admission. Applicants must submit Graduate Record Examination scores. See Admission and Registration in the first section of this bulletin. Graduate Student Support Graduate student financial support awarded to PhD students by the Department of Anthropology includes teaching assistantships and fellowships, research assistantships, and Heinz and Mellon Fellowships in Latin American archeology. Master's Degree Requirements The MA degree program is separate from the PhD program and is oriented to students' specific needs and interests. MA students should read the PhD requirements for additional clarification of certain requirements. Faculty of Arts and Sciences requirements for the master's degree also apply. Course Credits: A minimum of 30 course credits in anthropology is required for the MA degree. Of these, at least 21 credits must be in formal courses (as opposed to readings courses, independent study, or thesis credits). At least 12 of these 21 must be courses at the 2000 level. If the student is accepted at a later date into the PhD program, courses taken toward the MA will satisfy doctoral degree credit and residency requirements. The student may petition the Committee on Graduate Studies to accept toward the total of 30 credits a maximum of six credits earned in another approved graduate school. Likewise, the student may petition the Committee on Graduate Studies to accept courses taken in another department toward the total of 30 credits. Advisory Committee: By the end of the first year, the student establishes an advisory/evaluation committee consisting of at least two Graduate Faculty members from the Department of Anthropology, including the student's advisor, plus at least one additional Graduate Faculty member who may be either from the Department of Anthropology or from another department. This committee will supervise and evaluate the MA paper. The student should request the Committee on Graduate Studies' approval of the composition of the advisory committee. Core Course Requirement: Full-time MA students must pass the core course in their declared subfield by the end of their second term in residence (or, for part-time students, before they have completed 18 credits). An MA student specializing in a focused area within anthropology can petition the Committee on Graduate Studies for a specialized written examination (administered by his/her MA committee) in lieu of the core course. However, if such a student subsequently enrolls in the PhD program, the specialized MA exam will not substitute for the core course in the student's area of study. Language Requirement: Same as for the PhD program. Method/Theory Requirements: Students in archeology must pass ANTH 2534 or 2524 with a B- or better. They may petition the Committee on Graduate Studies to accept another course in quantitative methods in lieu of these. Students in physical anthropology or linguistics must pass with a B- or better one course in quantitative methods selected from among those offered in the Department of Anthropology or elsewhere. They must petition the Committee on Graduate Studies for approval of this course. Students in cultural anthropology must pass with a B- or better one methods course approved by the Committee on Graduate Studies and ANTH 2750 or a comparable seminar approved for this purpose by the Committee on Graduate Studies (see the Method/Theory Requirements for the PhD). Graduation: See Requirements for the Master of Arts, Master of Science, and Master of Fine Arts Degrees in the first section of this bulletin. Doctoral Degree Requirements Faculty of Arts and Sciences requirements for the PhD also apply. Advising and Supervision: A temporary faculty advisor is assigned to each incoming student. At any time after arrival, but not later than the end of the first year, each new student selects a permanent principal advisor (or advisors) with whom to work, and who agrees to serve in this capacity. Until the student selects an advisor, the Graduate Secretary and the temporary faculty advisor will provide general advice and help register the student for courses. Students are free to change their advisors at any time. Advisors consult with the students on their course selections and on their research and career plans, and monitor their advisees' progress in the graduate program. They are also responsible for formally approving their advisees' course programs term by term. Student progress is also monitored by the Committee on Graduate Studies and the Graduate Secretary. Progress of all active graduate students is sytematically reviewed by the faculty in each subdiscipline annually early in the Spring Term. Faculty advisors should notify the Committee on Graduate Studies of their advisees' successful completion of comprehensive examinations, and students should petition the Committee on Graduate Studies for formal approval of their comprehensive examination committees and thesis committees (see below). After review by the full faculty, students receive written response to their petitions from the Committee on Graduate Studies. The Graduate Secretary records progress towards advanced degrees. Students are advised to check with the Graduate Secretary periodically to ensure that their files are up to date. Course Credits: A minimum of 72 course credits in anthropology is required for the PhD degree. Of these, at least 60 credits must be in formal courses (as opposed to readings courses, independent study, or thesis or dissertation credits). The remaining 12 credits may be any combination of formal courses, readings courses, independent study, and/or thesis and dissertation credits. Generally, a full-time student will be enrolled in a minimum of three formal courses during Fall and Spring Terms until the required 60 credits of formal course work is attained. Full-time students may or may not register to take courses during the Summer Term. Reading or independent study courses, if taken prior to completion of the 60-credit minimum of formal courses, are generally taken during the Summer Term or in addition to the three formal courses that are the minimum for full-time students during the Fall or Spring Terms. A student may petition the Committee on Graduate Studies to accept toward the 72-credit minimum (and/or the 60-credit minimum of formal courses) 1) a maximum of 24 credits for course work at the master's degree level earned in another approved graduate school, and 2) a maximum of 12 additional credits for work beyond the master's degree at another approved graduate school. Students may also petition the Committee on Graduate Studies to accept toward the 72-credit minimum (and/or the 60- credit minimum of formal courses) course credits taken outside anthropology. FAS regulations also apply to transfer credits. Core Courses/Preliminary Examinations: The core course system of the Department of Anthropology fills the role of the preliminary examination in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences requirements for the PhD. Core courses are offered in the four subfields of anthropology: cultural anthropology, archeology, physical anthropology, and linguistics. PhD students are required to pass (with a grade of B- or better) at least three of these four core courses, to include the core course in the student's chosen subfield of specialization. A broad foundation, based on a general familiarity with all four subfields, is considered to be highly beneficial to the practice of anthropology, but students may elect to omit one of the four core courses. Full-time students are expected to pass the required core courses by the end of their second term in residence. Language Requirement: Before a student is advanced to candidacy, he or she must demonstrate competence in a language other than English that possesses a substantial body of anthropological literature. For common foreign languages (for example-French, German, Spanish), the student may choose either to 1) pass with a grade of B- or better the level IV or VIII course offered by that language department, or 2) pass at a level determined by this department the examination for evaluating graduate students currently offered by that language department. In the case of languages for which such avenues of evaluation are not available, the student, after seeking advice from his/her advisor, should petition the Committee on Graduate Studies for alternative forms of evaluation. Method/Theory Requirements: Students in archeology must pass with a grade of B- or better ANTH 2534 and ANTH 2524 (Archeological Data Analysis 1 and 2). They may petition the Committee on Graduate Studies to accept other courses in quantitative methods in lieu of these. Students in physical anthropology or linguistics must pass with a grade of B- or better two courses in quantitative methods selected from those offered in the Department of Anthropology or elsewhere. They must petition the Committee on Graduate Studies for approval of these courses. Students in cultural anthropology must pass with a grade of B- or better ANTH 2763 (Field Methods) and ANTH 2750 (Seminar on Contemporary Theory) or a comparable seminar approved for this purpose by the Committee on Graduate Studies. They may petition the Committee on Graduate Studies for approval of other courses to satisfy this requirement. Comprehensive Examinations: After completing the core course requirement and prior to advancement to PhD candidacy, students must pass two written comprehensive examinations designed to test breadth and depth of knowledge in the chosen areas of expertise. Students generally take their comprehensive examinations at the end of their third year of residence. Each examination is designed and administered by a committee constructed by the student. The committee consists of at least three faculty members (at least two of whom must be in the department). One of these is designated as chair of the committee. Well in advance of the exam, the student submits to the committee a bibliography of sources from which he or she intends to work. Members of the committee may recommend additional sources. The student must request approval of the topic and committee for each examination from the Committee on Graduate Studies. Levels of evaluation on comprehensive examinations are Pass with Distinction, Pass, and Fail. The structure of the comprehensive examinations differs from subfield to subfield:
Dissertation Committee: As soon as possible after completion of the core course requirements, and certainly by the third year in residence, prior to admission to candidacy, the student must establish a doctoral dissertation committee that will 1) participate in the student's preparation of the dissertation research proposal; 2) administer the oral dissertation overview; 3) offer advice while the student is collecting field or laboratory/museum data as well as while the student is writing the dissertation; and 4) conduct the oral dissertation defense. This committee consists of at least three Graduate Faculty members from the Department of Anthropology, including the student's advisor, and at least one Graduate Faculty member from another department of the University or from another university. If a member of the Graduate Faculty of another university is selected, he or she must be approved in advance by the Assistant Dean of Graduate Studies. This person should be selected on the basis of contributions he or she can make by virtue of the particular areas of scholarly interest or expertise relevant to the dissertation topic. In addition, a scholar with a special competence in the area of research of the dissertation may be appointed as an official member of the doctoral committee. The student must petition the Committee on Graduate Studies for approval of the dissertation committee. Dissertation Overview: Before actively pursuing dissertation research, the student makes an oral presentation of the intended project to his/her dissertation committee. The student gives the members of the committee a well-researched and well-written dissertation proposal at least one month ahead of time. This overview is not pro forma and should not be the first discussion of the project between the student and his/her committee members. If, after the overview, the committee members agree that the student should proceed with the dissertation project, they sign the Advancement to Candidacy form, which is then forwarded to the Assistant Dean of Graduate Studies. Dissertation Format: Copies of Style and Format of Graduate Theses, Dissertations and Abstracts are available from FAS Graduate Studies, Student Services (140 Thackeray Hall). Public Presentation: Each student presents a formal colloquium to the department based on the dissertation research. This may form part of the dissertation defense, or it may come at an earlier stage so that the experience may be of benefit as the ideas in the dissertation take shape. Dissertation Defense and Graduation: By the time of the oral defense of the dissertation, the student will have prepared and presented to his/her committee members a final version of the dissertation. It is expected that there will be sufficient interaction between the student and the committee members that alterations subsequent to the defense will be minimal and minor. All members of the doctoral dissertation committee should be present at the defense. The procedures for the final oral examination are outlined in the Requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree in the previous section of this bulletin. Normally, the term during which the defense takes place is also the term during which the student graduates and receives the degree. The student must be formally registered for at least one credit during the term of graduation. A formal application for graduation must be filed in 140 Thackeray Hall. (Note that the deadline for submission of the Application for Graduation form generally comes at the beginning of the term.) In addition to the final unbound University copy of the dissertation, a bound copy of the final dissertation must be filed with the department. Part-time Students: A part-time student should take the core course in his/her subfield before taking more than 18 credits of formal course work. He or she should complete the core course requirement before taking more than 36 credits of formal course work and proceeding with the other aspects of the program. Courses
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