Anthropology

Year 2

Compulsory modules

• Life in the Tropics

  In this module, you'll be introduced to the major patterns of biodiversity in tropical regions and the biogeographical, ecological and evolutionary processes that shape them. You'll develop your understanding of how climate, geology, landscape structure and historical change influence the distribution, diversity and composition of tropical communities, with particular attention to plants and primates as key components of tropical ecosystems.
  
  You'll be equipped with core research and analytical skills relevant to tropical biogeography and ecology. Through case studies and applied examples, you'll be encouraged to critically engage with contemporary debates surrounding tropical biodiversity conservation, environmental change and human–environment interactions in tropical regions.

• Material Culture

  You'll be introduced to the anthropological study of material culture and how objects, materials, technologies, digital collections, and built environments shape and are shaped by social life. You'll develop your ability to analyse artefacts, material practices, and material environments across social, biological, and archaeological perspectives. You'll explore how objects mediate relationships, embody histories, express identities, and participate in economic, political, and ritual processes.
  
  You'll get the opportunity to closely engage with artefacts, collections, and material settings, equipping you with the analytical and interpretive skills needed to ‘read’ material evidence. You'll consider ideas about how anthropologists work with things, how materials generate knowledge, why material culture is central to understanding past and present societies, and how material analysis contributes to contemporary concerns including heritage, sustainability, technology, and everyday life.

• Human Evolution

  In this module, you’ll dive into human evolution. You’ll explore how the biological stages of human evolution link to changes in society and behaviour. You’ll gain specialist knowledge of the palaeoenvironmental (environment of a past age) and palaeogeographical (geographical features of a past age) context of human evolution.

• Professional Development in Practice

  You'll embark on the second of three action-orientated experiential modules that form a spine of Supportive Challenge learning opportunities which run throughout the programme of study. You'll be offered the opportunity to draw meaningful, practical experiences to develop personal awareness and self-efficacy while developing your understanding of your chosen subject or profession in the context of the contemporary world and the future world of work.
  
  You'll also be allowed to experience the real-world of the so-called 'wicked problems' which are complex and cannot be addressed by only one subject, discipline or professional context. You'll immerse yourself in interactive projects, enhancing your understanding and aspirations and cultivating deep personal values leading to a greater sense of self-belief, confidence and resilience in your ability to succeed in complex contexts. 

• Researching Oxford and Beyond

  In this module, you'll be introduced to the development, application and realities of different research methods in the social sciences. You'll be equipped with both the understanding and skills required to analyse research methods, design, processes and research outcomes. You'll study the methods that social scientists use to gather and analyse 'data' and evidence. You'll experiment with applying research methods by investigating existing examples of research in social sciences. You'll also get the opportunity to design your own project, in preparation for your third-year extended project work.

• Social Anthropology Theory

  In this module you’ll explore theoretical developments in social anthropology. ‘Theory’ may seem opaque and intimidating, but through creative teaching and embodied learning you will gain a strong knowledge of how social theory helps us to understand the world.

  From social structures and forms of transformation, to gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, and identity, you will consider fascinating debates and approaches.

  You will be challenged to explore concepts such as:

  • functionalism
  • symbolic anthropology
  • structuralism
  • post-structuralism
  • postcolonialism
  • marxism.

  You will also explore emerging ideas grounded in materiality, embodiment, ontology, critical race theory and decolonising theory.

• Anthropology in Practice

  This module will provide you with the core methodological skills you need to take your research interests in exciting directions. You'll have the support to gain the skills you'll need for your disseration and other work, including:

  • planning
  • research
  • analytical techniques 

  From ethnographic fieldwork to surveying and data analysis, the module provides a great platform from which to launch into your own projects.  

  This module links to ‘Anthropology in Action’, where your focus is on the applications of anthropology. This ensures you will be able to take the practice based approaches developed in this module and put them ‘into action’ as you progress.

Optional modules

• Ritual and Society

  What are rituals, and why do we perform them? In this module, you’ll explore the key role of rituals in society. You’ll look at various human communities as you consider the origins of ritual, and its different definitions. You’ll gain valuable critical skills as you explore key anthropological concepts, including:

  • rites of passage
  • liminality
  • anti-structure
  • communities.

• Anthropology Work Placement

  On this module, you will build skills that are attractive to employers. You will gain an understanding and awareness of work and your future employability.

  You will be supported to participate in work, community and extra curricular settings. You will develop and engage with self-directed learning and structure reflection. Learning from your experience and personal advancement, you will gain insight and direction for possible future professional roles.

• Health, Culture, and Ecology

  The module covers two main areas in the study of interactions between humans and their biological and social environments, past and present. 
  
  Throughout the module your focus will be to build a deep understanding of the principles of human ecology, with a particular focus on the relationship between human health and environmental sustainability.
   

• Quaternary Environmental Change

  Sea levels are rising; glaciers are melting; Arctic sea ice is thinning and weather events are becoming more extreme. We are in the grip of global warming. But how do these changes compare with the environmental changes that have occurred in the past? What does the past teach us about how natural and human factors may interact to change our climate and environment in the future? 

  In this module you’ll examine changes to the physical environment throughout the Quaternary: the last 2.6 million years of geological history and time during which humans have evolved and spread across the earth. You’ll examine the causes of climatic and environmental change over different timescales and the complex interactions between human impacts and natural processes, gaining perspective on current environmental and climatic concerns.

   

Optional Year Abroad

Optional modules

• Year Abroad

  This module offers the opportunity to study abroad, experience a new culture, and apply your skills in different contexts to enhance your employability. It will help you develop self-management, cross-cultural communication, and interpersonal skills.

  You’ll receive support to secure a place at a partner institution abroad, where you can choose modules related to your degree or explore new areas that complement your studies.

  Studying at an international university will help you enhance your interpersonal skills through cross-cultural communication with students and tutors, allowing you to build lasting relationships. You'll also improve your study skills by focusing on your chosen areas of interest, gaining valuable international experience that will strengthen your CV.

  This year abroad module lasts for one academic year and is taken after the conclusion of your second year of study, once you’ve completed all your level 5 studies. Your year abroad is not credit-bearing.

Final Year

Compulsory modules

• Anthropological Futures

  Embark on the third in the set of three action-oriented experiential modules that form a spine of Supportive Challenge learning opportunities which run throughout the programme of study. You'll be provided with the opportunity to draw on meaningful, practical experiences to develop personal awareness and self-efficacy whilst also developing understanding of anthropology in the context of the contemporary world and the future world of work.
  
  Your learning will build upon experiences of the previous two Supportive Challenge modules. You'll be guided in your transition out of university, equipped with a good understanding of anthropology, yourself, how to articulate your motivations, aspirations, strengths and strategies for success, including a personal plan of action which recognises the opportunities that exist in anthropology and how to make a contribution and add value in whatever you choose to do next. 
   

• Anthropology Dissertation (compulsory for single honours, optional for joint honours)

  This module gives you the chance to do research on a topic that fascinates you. You’ll have the support of expert tutors, and it is an opportunity for you to showcase your passions, expertise and advanced learning in Anthropology.

• Social Science Extended Project

  In this module, you'll develop and utilise your research skills and take a deep dive into topics encountered in other elements of the programme through an extended project. You'll either work on a community project or a research dissertation. If you're studying a joint-honours course, you'll have the opportunity to undertake a discipline-specific project or an interdisciplinary project. 

Optional modules

• Africa: Past and Present Transformations

  In this module you'll focus on the diverse dimensions of African life, reflecting on cultures, histories, economies and societies from past to present. You'll explore a range of material to reflect on key topics that have shaped the continent. You'll gain a broad understanding of areas including, but not limited to, history, colonialism, decolonisation, conservation, witchcraft, religion, medicine, art, music, gender, intergenerational tensions, love, consumption and migration.
   

• Anthropology of Criminalisation

  In this module, you'll delve into anthropological and ethnographic perspectives on crime, incarceration, surveillance, and marginalisation. Through visualisation and ethnographic accounts, you'll discover the reality of criminalised communities and how subtle forms of social control and indignity rob individuals of their rights and autonomy. You'll compare how these issues shape systems worldwide and gain a cross-cultural understanding of how the complexities of history and power affect societies, from Mexico and Brazil to Nepal, Ghana, Britain, and the US. 

• Culture, Capitalism and Social Transformation

  By studying this module, you will develop a detailed understanding of theoretical and ethnographic approaches to culture, capitalism and global transformation. 
  
  Your study will focus on ethnographic material that engages with the everyday lives of people and communities from around the world. Through this focus, you will gain insight into the complex relationships between cultural practice and capitalist development, and you will build your understanding of the world around you.
   

• Development and Humanitarianism

  In this module, you’ll gain a strong grounding in international development (the idea that different countries have different levels of development). You'll explore the changing relationship between anthropology and international development. You’ll gain key analytical skills as you dive into debates on the relationship between anthropology and development. You’ll explore key issues for anthropologists working in international development, including:

  • gender relations
  • environment
  • health
  • youth
  • religion.

  You’ll compare ideas and practices in international development. You’ll look at approaches to social policy, inequality and well-being in the UK. You'll also disrupt the lines we draw between North and South, developed and underdeveloped, or advanced and emerging economies and societies.

• Cognitive Evolution

  In this module, you’ll dive into human intelligence and its evolution. You’ll gain fantastic research skills as you evaluate the evidence for the development of cognitive traits such as:

  • language
  • culture
  • tool use
  • symbolism.

  You’ll uncover fossil and archeological records for evidence of human intelligence and its development. You'll also draw on:

  • evolutionary psychology
  • cognitive science
  • philosophy
  • linguistics
  • primatology (the study of intelligent mammals).

• Dawn of Civilisation

  How did humans change from nomadic hunter-gatherers to the pioneers of enormous changes in technology, subsistence and organisation? In this module, you’ll look at human history from 10,000 until 1,000 BC that led to an avalanche of development. You’ll gain key critical skills as you review:

  • archeological data
  • geography
  • the environmental record
  • mythology from the world’s first civilisations.

• People and Other Animals

  As humans, we’ve lived closely with other animals since the dawn of time and we have a long history of interacting with each other. In this module, you’ll examine the complex and contradictory elements in people-animal relations, including:

  • animals as food
  • companion animals
  • animals as nature.

• Primate Conservation

  From forest loss to climate change, living primates (including humans) are facing huge threats to their environment and conservation. In this module, you’ll get to know the impact of humans on non-human primates, from hunting for trade to the issues of co-existence. You’ll discover why our non-human primate relatives are at greater risk of extinction now than ever before. You’ll understand the major challenges facing primates, how international legislation protects them, and how we can help the world’s most threatened species.

• Independent Study

  In this module, you’ll develop fantastic transferable skills for work, and gain the research skills to succeed in your degree. You’ll develop the knowledge and expertise to become an independent researcher. Within our internationally acclaimed department, you’ll enjoy access to the current research our staff are working on.