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Admission to the Major
Incoming Students: Apply to the University at Buffalo
Incoming freshman or undergraduate transfer applicants who are interested in pursuing anthropology must first apply and be accepted to the University at Buffalo.
When applying, you should indicate your intended major on the application form. All relevant information, including admissions criteria; the online application; dates and deadlines; and standardized test score requirements, can be found by visiting UB Undergraduate Admissions.
All first-year and transfer students who select Anthropology BA on their UB application are listed as approved majors. The College of Arts and Sciences Advisement and Services office will contact new students about their initial course schedule after the tuition deposit is made and the Orientation Data Form completed.
Current Students: Request to Change to the Major
Submit the CAS Major/Minor Change Request form to request one of the following changes to your academic plan:
- Add a major, minor, or certificate in the College of Arts and Sciences
- Drop any major
- Drop any minor
Major Requirements
UB policy mandates that all courses used to satisfy a requirement for the major must be successfully completed with a letter grade of C- or above. S/U grades are not acceptable. UB’s only exception to the S/U rule is courses taken through the Study Abroad Program.
To be in good standing, students must maintain both an overall GPA and an Anthropology GPA of at least 2.0 through completion of their undergraduate program.
Upper-Division Requirement
Students matriculating at UB in Fall 2018 or later must complete at least 24 credits in courses at the 300-level or above in the Anthropology major.
REQUIRED COURSES:
12 Anthropology Courses + 1 Statistics Course
APY 401 – Theory in Anthropology
Offered every spring and focusing on theory and its applications in all three sub-fields. Students should plan to take this course in their sophomore or junior year.
Courses about the culture(s) of a specific geographic region; prehistory courses are acceptable, with adviser’s consent.
Courses focusing on specific topical/theoretical themes or methodological issues in anthropology.
APY 494 – Senior Seminar
This seminar required for full majors and is intended to be taken in the senior year. Topics vary each semester.
Majors may choose the electives from any of the APY-prefix courses to fulfill this requirement.
Double and Triple Majors
Frequently, students will apply for major status in an additional department, or even in two additional departments. Students should inform the Undergraduate Office and the faculty advisers of this choice to ensure it is properly recorded in the student file.
Joint Major Requirements
The Department of Anthropology offers a joint major with other departments offering BA degrees in the College of Arts and Sciences. The joint major is an opportunity for students to develop an individualized degree program spanning two departments, while taking a smaller number of credits in each course of study than a double major requires.
Interested students should propose a program of study in consultation with their Anthropology faculty adviser and with their adviser in the second department. Their proposed plan of study should be submitted to the Anthropology Undergraduate Office to be entered into student’s departmental file. Subsequent courses taken should conform to the plan.
The senior seminar (494), anthropological theory course (401) and statistics course are not required for the joint major.
REQUIRED COURSES: 8 Anthropology Courses
A course about the culture(s) of a specific geographic region; prehistory courses are acceptable with adviser’s consent.
A course focusing on specific topical/theoretical themes or methodological issues in anthropology.
Majors may choose the electives from any of the APY-prefix courses to fulfill this requirement.
Double Degrees
It is possible to major in Anthropology, which awards a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree, and another program awarding a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree. This is not at all an uncommon occurrence, especially for those students who plan on going to medical or dental school.
Double degree students must still complete all major requirements for each program. Students should inform the Undergraduate Office and the faculty adviser of this designation to ensure that it is properly recorded in the student file.
