Ph.D. in
Anthropology

 

 
 
UCI anthropology Ph.D. students
 
 

     Leah Sanchez is a digital anthropologist who studies how intellectual property laws affect the creativity and livelihoods of artists who sell their work online.
 

 

about
OUR PROGRAM

Department of Anthropology A programmatic powerhouse. Full financial aid and funding. A lens-worthy location. The reasons students choose the UC Irvine School of Social Sciences for their graduate pursuits are many. The Department of Anthropology within social sciences is known for its collegiality, creative teaching and research, and leading role developing new methods, theory and applications of anthropological knowledge. Faculty and graduate students are known for their research in economic anthropology, the anthropology of law, migration studies, urban and environmental studies, science and technology studies, security studies, and data studies. UCI anthropology graduate students move through a carefully designed series of courses that focus in the first year on the field’s history and theory then in the second year on ethnographic methods and research design. Graduate students also take a wide array of elective courses, both in and outside the department. Many pursue concentrations in critical theory, feminist studies, or medicine, science and technology studies.

Learn more about research specialties...

 


 

recent

RANKINGS

#01

 

university committed to economic diversity and upward mobility
- New York Times College Access Index

#02

 

"coolest school" for sustainability
- Sierra Magazine

#06

 

best college in the nation
- Money Magazine

#09

 

best public university in the U.S.
- U.S. News & World Report

 

 And UCI anthropology is widely recognized as the top department for experimental ethnography. 

 


 

quick

FACTS

 


 

recent

JOB PLACEMENTS

 

Cal State Long Beach

Filene Research Institute

Rice University

Smith College

Swiss Academy of Sciences

Tufts University

UNESCO

UC Riverside

University of Notre Dame

University of Pittsburgh

University of Wisconsin

U.S. National Parks Service

Wellesley College

 

Read more about alumni...

 


 

research

SPECIALITIES

 

Modernity and development

Environmental problems and politics

Politics, law and economy

Ethnographic research methods

Science, technology and medicine

 


 

graduate

SPOTLIGHT

 


    Jennifer Zelnick, UCI anthropology, received prestigious NSF fellowship to support her graduate research on Cambodian deportees

 Read More

 


    Anthropology grad student Akil Fletcher wins National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship for his work on racism in online gaming

 Read More

 


 

what makes us

UNIQUE

 

 
 
Student walking on aldrich park
 
 

    UCI's campus is beautiful, rotating around Aldrich Park, a 19-acre botanical garden. The campus is also less than 10 miles from the Pacific Ocean and beaches.
 
 

 

UCI anthropology offers admitted students 6-7 years of guaranteed funding. Faculty and students also have a very strong record earning competitive research funding from agencies like the National Science Foundation, the Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research, Social Science Research Council, Fulbright Foundation, and Ford Foundation. This past year, UCI anthropologists brought in $1 million in external grant funding.

UCI anthropologists publish widely, reaching anthropological, interdisciplinary and public audiences - through journal articles, books, films, digital exhibits, sound installations and other media. UCI anthropologists also have diverse career paths - in academia, business and the public sector.

UCI's campus community is notably diverse, and is known for supporting first generation students.

In 2015 and 2017, the New York Times ranked UCI as the #1 university doing the most for the American dream. In 2020, Money Magazine ranked UCI the #6 best college in the U.S. and U.S. News & World Report ranked UCI the #9 public university in the U.S.
 

 

 A top 10-ranked program with research strengths in theory & methodology. 

 


 

So what are you waiting for?

APPLY TODAY

UCI anthropology is vibrant in many ways! Please contact us if you have questions about our application process.
 

Department Chair

Justin Richland
 j.richland@uci.edu
 

Graduate Director

Mei Zhan
 mzhan@uci.edu
 

Graduate Admissions Director

Eleana Kim
 eleana.kim@uci.edu
 

Graduate Advisor

Jennifer Gerson
 jennifer.gerson@uci.edu
 949.824.4074

 

connect with us

         

© UC Irvine School of Social Sciences - 3151 Social Sciences Plaza, Irvine, CA 92697-5100 - 949.824.2766