Anthropology is the study of human culture in its widest sense, extending back to our primate origins.  Because of its broad sense, anthropology provides an appreciation of the relationships among the environment, biology, and culture though time.  It is a forum for a unique bridging and bonding of the natural sciences, the social sciences, and the humanities.

The range of studies in anthropology includes prehistoric, traditional, developing, and industrialized societies.  There are three approaches to the study of the field.  Cultural anthropology seeks to understand the way people live in varied societal systems or cultures around the world.  Archaeology is concerned with understanding societies that existed in the past.  Archaeologists locate, excavate, and interpret the artifacts of societies from prehistoric to recent times.  Physical anthropology investigates the bicultural evolution and biosocial variation of humans.  Physical anthropologists, in addition to the study of the behavioral and biological adaptations of living human populations, research the demographic and epidemiological profiles of forensic and archaeological skeletal collections.

The Classroom and Beyond
Training in anthropology contributes to an enhanced ability to interact with people from a wide range of backgrounds. Students learn and apply the investigative research methods and theoretical ideas used by anthropologists, develop writing and communication skills, analytical thinking and problem-solving proficiency.

Students of Anthropology at Adelphi can expect to explore the discipline not only through classroom studies, but through hands-on lab research on campus and off-site field work that will bring the subject matter into close perspective.

Careers
The field of anthropology has undergone significant changes over the past few decades. Anthropologists traditionally focused on non-western societies and worked in universities or museums. Today, anthropologists engage in research in a wide variety of settings, urban to rural in the U.S. and beyond. Many professional anthropologists are employed outside academics, working in government, industry, health care and more.

Department Tracks
There are three approaches to the study of the field at Adelphi:

• Cultural anthropology seeks to understand the way people live in varied societal systems or cultures around the world.
• Archaeology is concerned with understanding past societies. Archaeologists locate, excavate, and interpret artifacts from prehistoric to recent times.
• Physical or biological anthropology, in addition to the diachronic study of human adaptations on the planet, focuses on forensic anthropology, paleopathology, and the ecology of disease distribution.