Before You Apply

The graduate program in Anthropology at the University of Colorado Boulder is one of the most selective and prestigious public PhD programs in the US. All applicants should consider the following guidance before applying.

Fall 2025ÌýApplication CycleÌý

1.Ìý Choose the appropriate subdiscipline

  • Ìý ÌýThose applying to the archaeologyÌýprogram should be interested in studying past societies through their material remains. Our program offers geographical expertise in North and Central America and topical foci in community archaeology, ritual and religion, materiality, ethnohistory, ethnogenesis, domestication, environmental archaeology, and complex systems.Ìý
  • Ìý ÌýThose applying to the program in biological anthropology should be interested in studying human biological variation. Our program offers expertise in ecology, biogeochemical techniques for studying the diets and habitats of modern and fossil fauna, growth and development, primate behavior and biology, ancient genomics, bioarchaeology, and related topics.Ìý
  • Ìý ÌýThose applying to the program in cultural anthropology should be interested in studying contemporary societies through ethnographic method and theory. Our program offers expertise in affect, culture and power, environmental anthropology, ethics, gender and sexuality, history and memory, kinship, medical anthropology, modernity, and science and technology.

2.Ìý Choose the appropriate track

  • Ìý ÌýIn archaeology, applicants seeking a PhD should apply to the PhD track.ÌýApplicants do not need an MA to apply to the PhD program.ÌýApplicants seeking an MA should apply to the terminal MA track.ÌýPlease note that the MA track is reserved primarily for those working in applied areas such as Cultural Resource Management.
  • Ìý ÌýIn biological anthropology, applicants are only considered for the PhD track.
  • Ìý ÌýIn cultural anthropology, applicants seeking a PhD should apply to the PhD track.ÌýApplicants do not need an MA to apply to the PhD program.ÌýApplicants seeking an MA should apply to the terminal MA track.ÌýApplicants to the terminal MA program should articulate a clear vision for a professional route outside of academia.

3.Ìý Contact a potential faculty advisor

  • Ìý ÌýAll applicants should review faculty profiles closely and assess the degree to which their interests align with those of the faculty.Ìý
  • Ìý ÌýAll applicants should identify potential faculty advisors with whom they would like to work and correspond with them in advance of the application deadline.ÌýFaculty are happy to speak with and advise potential students about their suitability for our graduate program. Prior communication with potential faculty advisors is a component of admissions evaluations, and applicants are expected to communicate with faculty prior to applying.

Please do not hesitate to contact the Director of Graduate Studies or the Graduate Program Assistant with any questions.

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