What should i minor in if I want to be an anthropology professor?

Question

I am going to graduating next year, and I'm just looking at all my options. Should I be more wide opened instead of narrowing it down just to anthropology? Would that help if I were going to other countries to continue my profession?

Answer 1

look at your area of interest within anthropology...examine the work done by successful researchers in the area.  Talk to profs in your area of interest and ask what they recommend.  You might want to look at graduate catelogues or talk to the graduate coordinator it you are in a larger college which offers graduate degrees.

Do you like research?  Have you done some, preferable with a prof teaching in an area of interest.  Graduate programs are based on interest.  And ask about requirements to get into grad school - they can be competitive.  Find out about graduate program requirements once you get accepted.

Be sure you want to go to grad school.  You will need a PhD to become a prof, and that takes several years of hard work and dedication.  In addition to having a lot of A's in your major, you should be very interested, or you will lose motivation.

You will likely need to find a supervising professor as part of the admission process to grad shcool.  You should have similar interests.  Find out if the prof has had other graduate students and ask about their experiences with them.  The prof should be knowedgable in his/her area, well organized, and able to keep his/her students motivated in a tactful way.  

Most graduate students receive a subsistance stipend which covers their expenses (often with a tuition fee write off)   Does the prof have grant funds to cover a stipend?  Are there other sources of income available (TA, bursaries).  How competitive are scholarships? (usually very competitive).

Your venue for graduate work depends the location of the sponsoring professor.  If you are in your home country, it is easier to get financial support and you don't have to worry about getting permission from immigration.  You can also work while you are writing your thesis without special permission from immigration.

If you want to become a prof, you will need to work for several years after finishing a PhD in a post doc or similar position.  These jobs allow you to continue your research and publish.  Again, you need to find a sponsoring professor with funds to hire you (or access to funds at his/her university).  If you have the opportunity to work abroad, this is probably the best time to do it.  )you will still need permission form immigration)

Demand for new professors varies:  sometimes there is a lot of hiring and at other times there is none.  So, go for it, but have a back up plan which will allow you to use your training to earn a living in a different way.  That's a good idea anyway, as the reality of graduate students is that is can be competitive, and grad students sometimes realize that academics is rallly not for them (sometimes in terms of interest as much as ability).  Others enjoy it and become successful faculty.

Answer 2

Perhaps minor in education.  There are many historical sites in the US where anthropologist can volunteer or work for pay.  There are also anthropology clubs/association even in small towns.

A good friend of mine is an anthropologist, which is how I learn about what is going on in that field.

Answer 3

There are many types of Anthropology, so you could pair it with almost anything.  If you wanted to minor in Cultural Studies, it could gear you towards more of a Cultural Anthropology profession.  If you wanted to minor in Biology, it would give you a more biological twist on regular Anthropology.  

Answer 4

It depends.  I imagine your major is anthropology? If so, then it depends what area of anthropology you're more interested in.  I've only taken one anthropology class, and have considered majoring in it, but from the one class I've taken it talked about different areas, such as linguistic anthropology (so if interested in that, do a linguistics minor) and physical anthropology (biology minor) and so on, so maybe just explore what would interest you more and minor in that.