Applied Anthropology

Master's Degree Programs

By studying Applied Anthropology at the University of North Texas, you’ll have the opportunity to work with nonprofit and for-profit community agencies and learn how to help solve some of society’s most compelling problems.

Graduate opportunities

The Master of Science or Master of Arts degree in Applied Anthropology teaches you to take informed and thoughtful action as a street-level practitioner, administrator, agency-based researcher or program evaluator. A dual degree is also available in Applied Anthropology and Public Health through a cooperative effort with the UNT Health Science Center at Fort Worth. The master’s programs also prepare you to enter a doctoral program.

The Department of Anthropology offers several unique advantages including:

• Many opportunities to collaborate on projects with a variety of organizations including corporations and social service agencies
• Faculty members who are applied anthropologists with geographic focuses on Africa, Europe, Latin America, North America, South Asia, Oceania and the Middle East
• Flexibility to take classes online or on campus (We offer the nation’s first online master’s program in Applied Anthropology)
• Faculty members who are engaged in building networks around the diverse applications of anthropology locally, in the North Texas region and beyond
• Prime location in one of the nation’s largest urban areas for applied research projects such as those involving health issues of ethnic minorities, migrants and refugees from all over the world

In addition to their geographic expertise, our faculty members have extensive backgrounds in bilingual education, health, migration, race and ethnicity and sustainable communities. Some of their research has explored:

• Environmental health and sustainability
• Factors that influence food insecurity
• Outreach and educational attainment of Latinos
• Refugee and asylum seekers
• Place making and the urban environment
• Virtual communication and collaboration in the workplace
• User experience design anthropology

Areas of Interest

Students are not required to choose a specific track, but the department offers several areas of interest.

Anthropology of Education focuses on understanding various aspects related to the educational process. It explores the connection between culture and education in a variety of contexts, paying particular attention to concerns related to teaching and learning.

Business, Technology and Design Anthropology includes the areas of organizational analysis and change, teams, user-centered design, marketing, communication in the workplace, human-computer interaction, consumer behavior, diversity and globalization. We work with both the private sector and the nonprofit sector. The North Texas region offers opportunities for partnerships with a wide variety of organizations.

Crossing Borders: Migration, Religion, Identities includes the situations of migrants and refugees, religions and cultures of immigrant groups, and experiences of migrants to the United States. In this field, students have local access to the people and issues typical of a border state like Texas.

Environmental and Ecological Anthropology includes community-based conservation of natural and cultural resources, cultural landscapes/ seascapes, indigenous peoples and protected areas, spiritual ecology, traditional ecological knowledge, human ecology, sustainable development, ethnoecology, political ecology, environmental justice, world views concerning the environment and globalization and environmental policy.

Medical Anthropology includes public health, healthcare delivery, indigenous medicine and the health issues of ethnic minorities, migrants and/or refugees. Students have access to the affiliated UNT Health Science Center at Fort Worth. In addition, the North Texas region provides innumerable opportunities for students interested in the health issues of ethnic minorities, migrants and/or refugees from all over the world.

Attending UNT

Admission requirements

You'll need to meet the admission requirements for the Toulouse Graduate School^® and specific program requirements.

You must submit two separate applications to be considered for the program. One to the graduate school and one to the department. You will be asked to provide:

• Completed ApplyTexas application form
• Completed departmental application form
• GRE scores
• Transcripts of all attended colleges
• Statement of purpose
• Scholarly writing sample from your undergraduate career or any research you have completed since graduation
• Three letters of recommendation from persons familiar with your academic record

Adequate subject preparation in anthropology is a requirement for application. If accepted into the program with fewer than 12 credit hours in the subject, you will need to take an online prerequisite leveling course.

Degree requirements

If you are pursuing the M.A. you’ll need to demonstrate proficiency in a foreign language. If you are pursuing the M.S. you’re required to take a course in an additional skill appropriate to your specialty as part of the 36 required credit hours. Both degrees require the completion of:

• 15 credit hours of core courses
• 15 credit hours of electives
• 6 credit hours of applied thesis

The M.S./M.P.H. dual degree requires 63 credit hours, including the applied thesis. Specific course requirements and descriptions are available at the catalog.

Financial assistance

The department funds a number of scholarships and tuition waivers to help you pursue your master’s degree. The graduate committee recommends nominees based on their first-year status and academic achievements. On-campus students must take at least 9 credit hours, while online students must take at least 6 credit hours.

Several teaching assistant and grader positions are also available.

Visit the anthropology website for more information about financial assistance. You can also visit the financial aid site for additional information.