Anthropology or history?

Question

I am going back to college to finish my degree but I am undecided between anthropology or history. I love both and they are similiar yet very different. I eventually want to work in a museum and plan on grad school for museum studies and anthropology or history.

Answer 1

It really depends on the school you will be attending.  Often times museum studies and historic preservation courses are taught in the history department, other times they are in anthropology.  Most departments are also willing to work with you, and allow you to take relevant classes in other departments.  I suggest talking to professors in both departments, informing them of your interests, and seeing what they think.  You will most likely need a graduate degree to get a job you really want, and most anthropology departments that I know will accept you with a bachelors in history, however, you may need to make up requisite course work.

Answer 2

I chose my major to be history and my minor to be anthropology.  I want to be at a collegiate level of teaching, or possibly working in a museum.  You can get a degree in history with an emphasis in anthropology.

I've heard that more people have a hard time with obtaining a job in anthropology than with history, but then again, some of my friends that said this are pretty lazy :(

good luck dear!

Answer 3

do both, double major

Answer 4

Anthropology/archeaology

These two will cover anything in history and give you a leg up when applying for a curator position or something of equal stature.

Answer 5

Do both! My BA is in anthropology and history.

Answer 6

Well I love history, but anthropology has its' perks. I'm thinking of giving up business studies (I hate the corporate world) and switch back to my history major and be a professor, or something along those lines.

I'd go for history because I love studying modern world history, but for working in museums I don't know if that would work as well as anthropology. If I wanted to work in a museum I'd go for paleontology.. but again, just me. Good luck!

Answer 7

You could choose to do historical archaeology. This is the study of societies using historical documents as well as archaeology. The field starts with the European discovery of the New World and goes forward from there.

Take a look at the Society for Historical Archaeology website: http://www.sha.org for more information. Also Kris Hirst's About.com page on the subject: http://archaeology.about.com/od/historic...

Answer 8

for ur career choice u could really do either

Answer 9

From what I understand of the two subjects, anthropology is more concerned with the study of cultures, languages, morphology, archaeology and society in general, and tends more to prehistory- how societies first developed, and ethnological concerns, while history tracks more paticularly how human life has built upon those cultures that existed in prehistory. History focuses more on the details of civilization, and the development of races, and not the human species in general.

Taking those as true, then judge by your own tastes. Do you prefer prehistory to the Rennaissance? Neanderthals to Puritans? Ethnic communities to the French Revolution? There are different kinds of museums and, by my own definition, museums that cater to the relics of the past- by displaying pots and bowls, and beads and bits of bone- are in a different, though equally important, class of museums that showcase the Declaration of Independence and Mayflower splinters.

Of course, I'm not so sure as to your country, but in mine, history (however scant they already may be in comparison to other more popular professions) offers more job opportunities than anthropology. You might have to take that into consideration, but of course interest shall have to win. Either way you'll have to sacrifice a little, I think. I'm going to take up history myself, and my former history teacher warned, "Be prepared to starve."

Oh, well. Small consequences for living the dream. Either course is appealing, and who knows, we might get to meet some fine day..