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Overview

Faculty

Program Committee

Catherine Beck (Geosciences), co-director

Nathan Goodale (Anthropology), co-director

Department/Program Goals

The goal of the Geoarchaeology Program is to encourage connections between geological concepts and methods to aid in the interpretation of the archaeological record of past societies.

Department/Program Student Learning Outcomes

Students Will Learn to:

  • Engage with disciplinary fundamentals from anthropological archaeology
  • Engage with disciplinary fundamentals from geosciences
  • Combine practice and methodology through research design
  • Apply disciplinary perspective(s) in an original research project

Concentration/Minor Description and Requirements

Geoarchaeology uses geologic methods and principles to enhance interpretations of the archaeological record, focusing on such issues as geochronology and stratigraphic succession, processes of deposition and diagenesis, paleoenvironmental reconstruction and landscape evolution. Designed for students with shared interests in geology and archaeology, the concentration builds on the common histories and research domains of these fields.

A concentration in geoarchaeology consists of 10 units of credit taken from the existing curricula of the Anthropology and Geosciences departments. Required courses include: ARCH-106 and any 100-level Geoscience course; ARCH-325; two courses from ARCH-243, ARCH-245 or ARCH-249; GEOSC-211; two courses from GEOSC-220, GEOSC-236 or GEOSC-290; and GEARC-500 and GEARC-501. Concentrators must fulfill their senior project requirement through satisfactory completion of GEARC-500 and GEARC-501. Beginning with the class of 2020, students concentrating in Geoarchaeology will satisfy the Social, Structural, and Institutional Hierarchies requirement by completing the requirement offered in either Anthropology, Geosciences, or both. Honors will be awarded on the basis of excellence in coursework and a superior Senior Project.

Students are encouraged to take field courses in both disciplines, especially ARCH-281 and ARCH-282. Students considering careers in geoarchaeology or related fields should take additional courses in biology, chemistry and other sciences.