Program Description
Vermont State University’s Bachelor of Science in Anthropology, Archaeology, & Geography (AAG) is an innovative new program that emphasizes experiential learning, collaborative research, cutting-edge technologies, and interdisciplinary, place-based approaches to the study of humanity across both time and space. With three disciplines articulated within a single, integrated major, students will learn to examine complex cultural phenomena through multiple lenses while applying a suite of 21st-century methods and approaches. Through courses covering topics as diverse as cultural geography, ethnocuisine, historic preservation, world religions, cultural landscapes, 3D technologies, and Native American studies, students will develop their own strengths, interests, and career aspirations.
VTSU’s Anthropology, Archaeology, and Geography program is structured around hands-on learning experiences that challenge and engage. Students will work closely with program faculty and other experts, both within and outside the classroom, to build career-oriented skills through travel, fieldwork, and internships. Ongoing offerings include summer archaeological fieldwork, international humanitarian aid work, and travel-based experiences both within the United States and abroad. AAG is a lead program on the new, National Endowment for the Humanities-funded Granger House Museum and Learning Lab where students can work as paid interns in curation, research, exhibit development, and public outreach. The new Valade Working and Learning fund supports a range of additional internships and fieldwork experiences. The AAG Program is also home to the new Innovation Lab where students can acquire highly marketable skills with state-of-the-art 3D scanners, 3D printers, virtual reality technology, drones, and geographic information systems.
Through its multidisciplinary approach, focus on hands-on learning, and emphasis on career-oriented skills and credentials, the Anthropology, Archaeology, and Geography program provides a unique, applied experience that is unavailable elsewhere in the United States. Students who complete this program are prepared for a dynamic and competitive workforce, graduate school, and a lifetime of learning in diverse fields including international relations, cultural resource management, ecotourism, sustainability, geographic information systems, medical anthropology, regional planning, ethnographic research, and museums.
Program Outcomes
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Describe how cultural, environmental, and historical processes have shaped human behavior and led to diversity in human behavior and spatial organization.
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Apply relevant theories, methods, skills, and cutting-edge technologies drawn from the related disciplines of Anthropology, Archaeology, and Geography to real-world applications.
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Draw connections and distinguish among basic theoretical and methodological approaches to Archaeology, Geography, and Anthropology.
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Collect, evaluate, and interpret various forms of evidence in the management of academic and career-oriented projects.
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Produce a tangible work product that demonstrates a student’s ability to communicate effectively in oral, written, and graphic form.
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