Degree Requirements
Without a Masters Degree
All students who are accepted into the Doctoral program without a Master's degree (or its coursework equivalent) must successfully complete the program of study, below. Students transferring to the Doctoral Program from accredited graduate programs but lacking a Master's degree may receive approval to transfer some coursework to UTSA, pending review by the Graduate Program Committee. Each student's transcript will be evaluated by the Graduate Program Committee, and credit will be determined on a course-by-course basis to satisfy the requirements of the degree. For credit to be accepted from an outside institution, a student must have earned course grades of “B” (“B-” is not acceptable) or better.
A. 6 semester credit hours of Doctoral Core Courses:
ANT 6603 Ecological Anthropology
ANT 6703 Human Population Ecology
B. 15 semester credit hours of Foundational Courses:
ANT 5023 History, Method, and Theory of Archaeology
ANT 5033 Paradigms of Americanist Anthropology
ANT 5073 Advanced Biological Anthropology
ANT 6303 Seminar in Research Design and Proposal Writing
ANT 6353 Field Research Methods in Cultural Anthropology
or
ANT 6623 Seminar in Analytical Methods in Archaeology
or
approved coursework in statistics
C. 21 semester credit hours of Designated Elective courses, distributed among three categories as follows:
1. 6 semester credit hours of Theory Electives selected from the following:
ANT 5283 Hunter and Gatherers
ANT 5483 Landscape and Settlement
ANT 6133 Seminar in Medical Anthropology
ANT 6203 Seminar in Recent Trends in Archaeological Method and Theory
ANT 6223 The Archaeology of Household and Residence
ANT 6613 Seminar in Economic Anthropology
ANT 6713 Seminar in Primate Behavioral Ecology
ANT 6913 Seminar in Evolution and Human Behavior
2. 9 semester credit hours of Applied Electives selected from the following:
ANT 5043 Seminar in Laboratory Methods in Anthropology
ANT 5556 Field Course in Archaeology
ANT 6503 Seminar in Cultural Resource Management
ANT 6633 Current Technological Applications in Archaeology
ANT 6803 Medical Ecology
ANT 6903 Anthropology of Gender
ANT 6923 Conservation of Primates and Other Threatened Species
ANT 6973 Special Problems
3. 3 semester credit hours of Area Electives selected from the following:
ANT 5413 Seminar in the Prehistory of Texas and Adjacent Areas
ANT 5453 Seminar in the Archaeology of the American Southwest and Adjacent Regions
ANT 6113 Seminar in the Anthropology of Mesoamerica
ANT 6213 Topics in the Anthropology of Native North America
D. 3 semester credit hours of coursework outside the student's major concentration
E. 9 semester credit hours of Free Elective courses chosen in consultation with the student's advisor
F. 3 semester credit hours of ANT 7003, Dissertation Proposal (after successful completion of 51 semester credit hours of coursework and qualifying examination)
G. Doctoral Research and Dissertation (minimum 24 semester credit hours):
ANT 7011-3 Directed Doctoral Research (12 hours minimum)
ANT 7021-3 Doctoral Dissertation (12 hours minimum)
Qualifying Examination. Students may take the qualifying examination upon successful completion of 30 hours of coursework; this coursework must include all required Doctoral Core and Foundation courses. At least two months prior to taking the qualifying examination, the student and the Supervising Professor will select a Dissertation Committee, which needs to be approved by the Dean of the College and the Dean of the Graduate School (see Chapter 6, Doctoral Degree Regulations, for further information on requirements of committee composition), and schedule dates for the qualifying examination. The examination consists of three written literature reviews in areas most relevant to the student's research and will cover issues of geographical/topical, methodological, and theoretical relevance. It is intended that the qualifying examination will help lay the groundwork for subsequent dissertation research.
Proficiency in Foreign Language, Statistics, or Computer Programming. Doctoral students are required to have proficiency in a foreign language, statistics, or computer programming as deemed necessary by the Graduate Program Committee. This requirement must be fulfilled prior to the oral defense of the dissertation proposal. Should coursework be necessary, students may apply their credit hours to the free electives requirement of the Doctoral degree.
Doctoral Dissertation Proposal. Following successful completion of required doctoral coursework and the qualifying exam (51 semester credit hours), students will produce a dissertation proposal that will be submitted to their Dissertation Committee for review. Students must orally defend the proposal in order to qualify for doctoral degree candidacy. Students will enroll in 3 credit hours of ANT 7003 (Dissertation Proposal), in order to conduct preliminary research and write a successful proposal.
Advancement to Candidacy. Doctoral students can apply for admission to candidacy once they have met all requirements for the Doctoral degree other than dissertation research and write-up. The requirements include successfully completing all coursework, forming a dissertation committee approved by the University, passing the qualifying examination, passing a foreign language examination or demonstrating statistical or computer competency, as applicable, and submitting and successfully defending the dissertation proposal.
Dissertation. Candidates must demonstrate their ability to conduct independent research by completing and defending an original dissertation that makes a significant contribution to the field. The student, in consultation with his or her Supervising Professor, determines the research topic. The student's Dissertation Committee will guide and critique the candidate's research. The Dissertation Committee must unanimously approve the completed dissertation. The dissertation shall then be defended publicly before the Dissertation Committee. Students should be continually registered in Directed Doctoral Research (ANT 7011-3) and Doctoral Dissertation (ANT 7021-3) each semester the dissertation is in progress.
Final Oral Examination. Students must orally defend their dissertation as the final degree requirement. The Supervising Professor must notify the Graduate School in writing at least two weeks prior to the final scheduled oral defense. Awarding of the degree is based on the approval of the Dissertation Committee and the acceptance of the Graduate School. The Dean of the Graduate School certifies the completion of all University-wide requirements (see Chapter 6, Doctoral Degree Regulations, for further information).
With a Masters Degree
Students who are accepted into the Doctoral Program with Master's degrees in anthropology from accredited institutions may receive approval to transfer up to 30 hours of their Master's-level coursework. Outside coursework will be reviewed by Anthropology's Graduate Program Committee. Each student's transcript will be evaluated by the Graduate Program Committee, and credit will be determined on a course-by-course basis to satisfy the requirements of the degree. The Committee has the option of requiring or recommending additional courses if it is deemed that the student has not obtained a background equivalent to training at UTSA. For credit to be accepted from an outside institution, a student must have earned course grades of “B” (“B-” is not acceptable) or better.
To complete their Ph.D. program of study, students entering the program with an acceptable Master's degree and 30 hours of transfer credit must complete the following requirements:
A. A minimum of 21 hours of coursework chosen in consultation with the Graduate Program Committee from the following domains:
1. Doctoral Core Courses:
ANT 6603 Ecological Anthropology
ANT 6703 Human Population Ecology
2. Foundational Courses:
ANT 5023 History, Method, and Theory of Archaeology
ANT 5033 Paradigms of Americanist Anthropology
ANT 5073 Advanced Biological Anthropology
ANT 6303 Seminar in Research Design and Proposal Writing
ANT 6353 Field Research Methods in Cultural Anthropology
or
ANT 6623 Seminar in Analytical Methods in Archaeology
or
approved coursework in statistics
3. Designated Elective courses, distributed among the following three categories:
Theory Electives
ANT 5283 Hunter and Gatherers
ANT 5483 Landscape and Settlement
ANT 6133 Seminar in Medical Anthropology
ANT 6203 Seminar in Recent Trends in Archaeological Method and Theory
ANT 6223 The Archaeology of Household and Residence
ANT 6613 Seminar in Economic Anthropology
ANT 6713 Seminar in Primate Behavioral Ecology
ANT 6913 Seminar in Evolution and Human Behavior
Applied Electives
ANT 5043 Seminar in Laboratory Methods in Anthropology
ANT 5556 Field Course in Archaeology
ANT 6503 Seminar in Cultural Resource Management
ANT 6633 Current Technological Applications in Archaeology
ANT 6803 Medical Ecology
ANT 6903 Anthropology of Gender
ANT 6923 Conservation of Primates and Other Threatened Species
ANT 6973 Special Problems
Area Electives
ANT 5413 Seminar in the Prehistory of Texas and Adjacent Areas
ANT 5453 Seminar in the Archaeology of the American Southwest and Adjacent Regions
ANT 6113 Seminar in the Anthropology of Mesoamerica
ANT 6213 Topics in the Anthropology of Native North America
B. 3 semester credit hours of ANT 7003, Dissertation Proposal (after successful completion of 51 semester credit hours of coursework and qualifying examination)
C. Doctoral Research and Dissertation (minimum 24 semester credit hours):
ANT 7011-3 Directed Doctoral Research (12 hours minimum)
ANT 7021-3 Doctoral Dissertation (12 hours minimum)
Qualifying Examination. Students may take the qualifying examination upon successful completion of 30 hours of coursework; this coursework must include all required Doctoral Core and Foundation courses. At least two months prior to taking the qualifying examination, the student and the Supervising Professor will select a Dissertation Committee, which needs to be approved by the Dean of the College and the Dean of the Graduate School (see Chapter 6, Doctoral Degree Regulations, for further information on requirements of committee composition), and schedule dates for the qualifying examination. The examination consists of three written literature reviews in areas most relevant to the student's research and will cover issues of geographical/topical, methodological, and theoretical relevance. It is intended that the qualifying examination will help lay the groundwork for subsequent dissertation research.
Proficiency in Foreign Language, Statistics, or Computer Programming. Doctoral students are required to have proficiency in a foreign language, statistics, or computer programming as deemed necessary by the Graduate Program Committee. This requirement must be fulfilled prior to the oral defense of the dissertation proposal. Should coursework be necessary, students may apply their credit hours to the free electives requirement of the Doctoral degree.
Doctoral Dissertation Proposal. Following successful completion of required doctoral coursework and the qualifying exam (51 semester credit hours), students will produce a dissertation proposal that will be submitted to their Dissertation Committee for review. Students must orally defend the proposal in order to qualify for doctoral degree candidacy. Students will enroll in 3 credit hours of ANT 7003 (Dissertation Proposal), in order to conduct preliminary research and write a successful proposal.
Advancement to Candidacy. Doctoral students can apply for admission to candidacy once they have met all requirements for the Doctoral degree other than dissertation research and write-up. The requirements include successfully completing all coursework, forming a dissertation committee approved by the University, passing the qualifying examination, passing a foreign language examination or demonstrating statistical or computer competency, as applicable, and submitting and successfully defending the dissertation proposal.
Dissertation>. Candidates must demonstrate their ability to conduct independent research by completing and defending an original dissertation that makes a significant contribution to the field. The student, in consultation with his or her Supervising Professor, determines the research topic. The student's Dissertation Committee will guide and critique the candidate's research. The Dissertation Committee must unanimously approve the completed dissertation. The dissertation shall then be defended publicly before the Dissertation Committee. Students should be continually registered in Directed Doctoral Research (ANT 7011-3) and Doctoral Dissertation (ANT 7021-3) each semester the dissertation is in progress.
Final Oral Examination. Students must orally defend their dissertation as the final degree requirement. The Supervising Professor must notify the Graduate School in writing at least two weeks prior to the final scheduled oral defense. Awarding of the degree is based on the approval of the Dissertation Committee and the acceptance of the Graduate School. The Dean of the Graduate School certifies the completion of all University-wide requirements (see Chapter 6, Doctoral Degree Regulations, for further information).