Program of Study
The Anthropology Minor at California State University San Marcos provides students with opportunities to engage in interdisciplinary and integrated studies of human nature, society, and culture. Employing the comparative, holistic, and evolutionary frameworks that are the hallmark of the anthropological perspective, the minor aims to provide students with theoretical and methodological perspectives that enable integrated understanding of human cultural achievements such as medicine, religion, mythology, migration, environmental adaptation, and technology. Rather than duplicating anthropology programs offered at other regional institutions that emphasize the four traditional subfields of anthropology—social/cultural anthropology, archeology, biological anthropology, and linguistic anthropology— the Anthropology Minor at CSUSM is unique in that it draws upon areas of specialization, such as medical anthropology, cultural ecology, Latin American studies, women’s studies, art, ethnic studies, and border studies, that reflect the strengths of CSUSM scholars. Emphasis is placed on achieving an understanding of human behavior as influenced by the social, political, economic, and cultural contexts in which it occurs.
A fundamental goal of the minor is to provide students with opportunities to engage in active, community-based ethnographic research that stimulates self-reflection and critical analysis of their own world view assumptions and cultural belief systems.
The minor prepares students for careers that require multicultural and culture-sensitive perspectives such as social services, health and medical services, education, and civil services, and provides a balanced foundation in anthropological concepts for students wishing to attend graduate school.
The minor requires completion of twenty-one (21) units of credit, eighteen (18) of which must be at the upper-division level. Twelve (12) units must be completed at Cal State San Marcos, three (3) of which must be at the 400 level. Each course counted toward the minor must be completed with a grade of C (2.0) or better.
Preparation
High school graduates or equivalent are encouraged to seek diverse and broad exposure to all natural and behavioral sciences, social sciences, humanities, and interdisciplinary courses.
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