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Social Sciences - Anthropology: Theses And Dissertations

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Theses and Dissertations

• SABINET: Union Catalogue of Theses and Dissertations Submitted at universities in South Africa.
• Thesis and Dissertations - ETDs Submitted at Wits University and available in electronic format since 2005.
• ProQuest Theses and Dissertations : The Humanaties and Social Sciences Collection Submitted at universities in Canada and the United States of America.
• NEXUS : Current and Completed Reearch Theses and Dissertations submitted at universities in South Africa.
• Database of African Theses and Dissertations DATAD is a programme to improve management and access to African scholarly work. Theses and dissertations represent a significant proportion of Africa’s research activity.

Open Access Theses and Dissertations

Proquest: theses and dissertations.

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• Last Updated: Mar 31, 2021 11:04 AM
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Nolwazi Mkhwanazi

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Nolwazi Mkhwanazi is a medical anthropologist who is interested in issues relating to gender and the politics of reproduction. She received her PhD from Cambridge University. Nolwazi teaches courses in the anthropology of medicine and the body; medical anthropology; and ethnographic writing and analysis. Over the last two decades Nolwazi has conducted long-term ethnographic research on early childbearing, kinship and care which is the subject of her current book manscript.  She has a forthcoming edited book titled Young families: Gender, sexuality and care . Nolwazi is on the editorial board of a number of  academic journals and has been involved in initiatives to encourage researchers from the Global South to write for publication. She has conducted writing workshops in Kenya, Nigeria, Spain and South Africa. Nolwazi is also involved in a number of national and international collaborative projects including a comparative research project on young people’s use of mobile technology to form sexual, intimate or romantic relationships in India and South Africa. She is currently supervising 7 PhD and 4 MA students. In 2017 and 2018 Nolwazi has been seconded  to the Wits Institute of Social and Economic research (WiSER) under the Medical Humanities program.

Photographs by Lisa King

Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

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• ETD Collection   22431

Andrew Wooyoung Kim

Office: #TBD (Anthropology and Art Practice Building)

Email: [email protected]

Office Hours: By appointment via Zoom 

Note for Anthro 1 Students: Email to schedule an appointment and include "ANTHRO 1" in the subject line

Special Interests

Intergenerational trauma, culture and mental health, psychiatric epidemiology, stress physiology, epigenetics, developmental origins of health and disease, biocultural anthropology, racial justice, critical and decolonial approaches to biological anthropology.

Andrew Wooyoung Kim is a biological anthropologist interested in the lifecourse and intergenerational health consequences of historical trauma and the contributions of such knowledge to movements for transitional justice and collective healing. Dr. Kim’s current research traces the biological mechanisms (e.g. genetics & epigenetics, HPA axis function, inflammation, vascular function) underlying the intergenerational effects of psychosocial stress and political violence from apartheid, as well as processes of reversibility and healing, in Soweto and Johannesburg, South Africa. His work explores these questions in collaboration with a 30-year project called “Birth to Thirty,” a birth cohort study based in Soweto & Johannesburg, South Africa that enrolled over 3000 pregnant women during the dissolution of the apartheid regime and has since documented the lives of these families across multiple generations.

His second project, through a collaboration with the Department of Psychiatry at the University of the Witwatersrand and the South African Depression and Anxiety Group, examines the politics and experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic in community settings and tertiary psychiatric hospitals in metropolitan Johannesburg. This project combines over two years of ethnographic and epidemiological research to examine population mental health trends, the lived experience of psychiatric patients and healthcare workers, and solutions for improving public mental healthcare systems. His newest work characterizes the psychiatric sequelae of acute COVID-19 infection and “long COVID” among adults in Johannesburg.

Dr. Kim’s research is supported by the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Social Science Research Council, and the Wenner-Gren Foundation.

Interested students, researchers, and practitioners are encouraged to contact Dr. Kim for potential opportunities in and collaborations with the Kim Lab. 

I received my Ph.D. in Biological Anthropology from Northwestern University in 2020 and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in psychiatric epidemiology at Massachusetts General Hospital. I also hold honorary appointments in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand through my wonderful, long-term collaborations with the South African Medical Research Council/Wits Developmental Pathways for Health Research Unit and the Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HE²RO). 

My research documents the biological, developmental, and health consequences of societal oppression and identifies strategies to promote resistance and healing in historically marginalized communities. My collaborators and I aim to conduct this work through a critical analysis of the history, culture, and politics of health inequities in local contexts and by centering the experiences of directly affected people. Finally, I am broadly interested in the interface of biology and culture to understand patterns of human health, development, and experience. This research is based in the Kim Lab, a wet lab focused on biomarker sample analysis and a separate computing facility located at the Department of Anthropology at UC Berkeley. 

Publications 

Kim, A.W., Maaroganye, K., Subramaney, U. (2021). Mental health experiences of public psychiatric healthcare workers during COVID-19 across southern Gauteng, South Africa: A call for strengthening public mental healthcare. 2021 South African Health Review

Kim, A. W., Nyengerai, T., & Mendenhall, E. (2020). Evaluating the mental health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic: perceived risk of COVID-19 infection and childhood trauma predict adult depressive symptoms in urban South Africa. Psychological Medicine , 1-13.

Kim, A. W. (2020). How should we study intergenerational trauma? Reflections on a 30-year birth cohort study in Soweto, South Africa. Somatosphere

Kim, A.W., Adam, E.K., Bechayda, S.A., Kuzawa, C.W. (2020). Early life exposure to domestic violence and HPA axis function independently predict adult depression in metropolitan Cebu, Philippines. American Journal of Biological Anthropology

Kim, A. W., Kaiser, B., Bosire, E., Shahbazian, K., & Mendenhall, E. (2019). Idioms of resilience among cancer patients in urban South Africa: An anthropological heuristic for the study of culture and resilience. Transcultural Psychiatry , 56(4), 720-747.

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• Research/Projects

Head of Department

Dr william ellis, publications.

• Ellis, W. (2019). “Situational chiefs: notes on traditional leaders amidst calls for KhoiSan recognition after 1994” in Skosana, D., M. Buthelezi, Beth Vale Traditional Leaders in a Democracy: Resources, Respect and ResistanceMISTRA, Johannesburg
• Ellis, W., Clement Cupido and Mogamat Igshaan Samuels (2021) Walking with herders: following into the multispecies classroom Anthropology Southern Africa, 2021 Vol. 44, No. 1  
• Ellis, W. (2019)  A Tree Walks through the Forest: Milkwoods and Other Botanical Witnesses in Catalyst: Feminism, Theory, Technoscience. Critical Perspectives: Plants, Race, and Colonialism, 5 (2) 
• Diana Gibson & William Ellis (2018) Human and plant interfaces: relationality, knowledge and practices, Anthropology Southern Africa, 41:2, 75-79, DOI: 10.1080/23323256.2018.1483735 
• William Ellis (2018) Plant knowledge: transfers, shaping and states in plant practices, Anthropology Southern Africa, 41:2, 80-91, DOI: 10.1080/23323256.2018.1476165

Academic Staff

Prof heike becker.

• Becker, H. 2018. “‘Global 1968’ on the African continent.” FocaalBlog, 9 February. www.focaalblog.com/2018/02/09heike-becker-global-1968-on-the-african-continent.
• Becker, H., and D. Schulz (Eds.) 2017. “Un/making Difference through Performance and Mediation in Contemporary Africa.” Special Issue of Journal of African Cultural Studies 29 (2).
• Becker, H. 2015. ‘How We See Our Culture’: Photographic self-representations from the Cape Flats, South Africa. Visual Anthropology 28(5): 373-397.
• Becker, H. 2012. “Anthropology and the Study of Popular Culture: A Perspective from the southern tip of Africa.” Review of African Literatures 43(4): 17-37.
• Becker, H. 2011. “Commemorating heroes in Windhoek and Eenhana: memory, culture and nationalism in Namibia, 1990-2010.” Africa. Journal of the International African Institute 81(4): 519-43.
• Becker, H., E. Boonzaier, and J. Owen. 2005. “Fieldwork in shared spaces: positionality, power and ethics of citizen anthropologists in southern Africa.” Anthropology Southern Africa 28(3&4): 123-132.
• Becker, H. 1995. Namibian Women’s Movement 1980 to 1992. From Anticolonial Struggle to Reconstruction. Frankfurt (Germany): IKO-Verlag für interkulturelle Kommunikation.
• Becker, H. (2020); Writing Genocide: Fiction, Biography and Oral History of the German Colonial Genocide in Namibia, 1904-1908,  Matatu 50 (dated 2018; published February 2020): 361-395.
• Becker, H. (2018): Changing Urbanscapes: Colonial and postcolonial monuments in Windhoek,  Nordic Journal of African Studies , 27(1), 1-21.  

Dr Jung Ran Annachiara Forte

Associate prof kelly gillespie.

• 2022. ‘Orders of Protection: Feminist lessons in anti-privatisation and authoritarianism from South Africa’. Cultural Anthropology, Vol. 37, Issue 4, pp. 599–624.
• 2021. (co-authored with Leigh-Ann Naidoo). ‘Abolition Pedagogy: Forcefields of Critique’ Critical Times 4 (2), pp.284-312.
• 2020. (co-authored with Gautam Bhan, Teresa Caldeira and AbdouMaliq Simone) ‘The pandemic, southern urbanisms and collective life’. Society + Space.  https://www.societyandspace.org/articles/the-pandemic-southern-urbanisms-and-collective-life 
• 2019. (co-authored with Leigh-Ann Naidoo). ‘Between the Cold War and the Fire: The Student Movement, Anti-assimilation, and the Question of the Future in South Africa’. The South Atlantic Quarterly 118(1), January, pp.226-239.
• 2014. ‘Murder and the Whole City’. Anthropology Southern Africa, Vol 37 (3/4), pp.203-212.
• 2011. ‘Containing the “wandering native”: Racial Jurisdiction and the Liberal Politics of Prison Reform in 1940s South Africa’ in Journal of Southern African Studies, Vol 37 (3).
• 2008. ‘Moralizing Security: “Corrections” and the Post-Apartheid Prison’ in Race/Ethnicity, Vol 2 (1).
• (with Bernard Dubbeld). 2007. ‘The possibility of a critical anthropology after apartheid: relevance, intervention, politics’. Anthropology Southern Africa. Vol 30(3&4). 

Associate Prof Sakhumzi Mfecane

Ms hameedah parker, publications .

• Parker, H. 2020. Women in the Making of Place, Social Networks and Surviving the Gang Streets. Politeia, 39(1) https://doi.org/10.25159/2663-6689/6607
• Louw, Q; Grimmer, K; Dizon, J.M; Machingaizde S; Parker, H. & Ernstzen, D. 2018. Building capacity in primary health care rehabilitation clinical practice guidelines. A South African initiative. Health Research Policy and Systems 16(96) https://doi.org/10.1186/s12961-018-0368-z
• Dizon, J.M; Grimmer, K; Louw, Q; Machingaizde S & Parker, H. 2018. South African primary health care allied health clinical practice guidelines: the big picture. BMC Health Services Research 18(48) https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-018-2837-z
• Parker, H. 2018. “Doing” diabetes: the unobtrusive presence of plants. Anthropology Southern Africa, 41(2) https://doi.org/10.1080/23323256.2018.1474120
• Dizon, J.M; Grimmer, K; Louw, Q; Machingaizde S; Parker, H & Pillen, H. 2017. Barriers and Enablers for the development and implementation of allied health clinical practice guidelines in South African primary healthcare settings: a qualitative study. Health Research Policy and Systems 15(79) https://doi.org/10.1186/s12961-017-0243-3 
• Creative Outputs - Poem titled: Obstructed, published online - https://loratomokwena.com/2022/08/10/obstructed-by-hameedah-parker/

Dr Lindy-Lee Prince

• Prince, L. 2023. Queer Femme Drag Futures. Nordic Journal of African Studies, 32(3), 206-228 https://doi.org/10.53228/njas.v32i3.1086
• Prince, L. 2023. “Drag Lives Here” in Beyond the Mountain: Queer Life in ‘Africa’s Gay Capital’, University of South Africa Press
• Prince, L. 2017. All Drag, all the time – One night in Cape Town with Lola Fine. Anthropology Southern Africa, 40(2), 122-137 https://doi.org/10.1080/23323256.2017.1318709

• People/Staff

PhD Programme

The School of Human and Community Development currently offers:     

• The general PhD (by thesis OR including publication)
• The PhD including publication in the area of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy and Practice

The application procedure detailed below pertains to both types of PhD

Disciplines covered in this School: Psychology, Social Work, Speech Pathology, Audiology – for PhDs in other disciplines please contact the relevant Department/School

Application process

Please note that application into PhD studies in our School is contingent upon the following criteria:

a) A minimum aggregate mark of 70% in the Master's degree (NQF level 9).

b) A mark of 70% for the Masters research component is required in order to be considered for admission into the PhD program. Applicants with a mark between 65 - 69% for the Master’s research component will need to provide a motivation and evidence of additional scholarly outputs, for example, peer-reviewed journal articles or equivalent, along with the concept paper in order to be considered. References may also be requested from the Master’s supervisor and/or a motivation from a potential PhD supervisor.

c) Submission of a concept paper that outlines the proposed PhD project, and which is found to meet the requirements for PhD level study by the School's PhD committee (See information below on how to write a concept paper).

d) The availability of a supervisor for the proposed project.  For information on staff research interests, please Click Here to download the document highlighting the staff research interests

The application process begins with a formal submission to the Student Enrolment Centre (SEnC).

The School is represented at SEnC by a postgraduate team who will facilitate the submission. The School requires that the following documents be included in the submission:

• The online application form.
• A full academic transcript of all previous university courses taken, including percentage scores where possible. Students who completed degrees at Wits do not need to submit transcripts for these.
• A SAQA equivalence certificate if the Master’s degree was not completed at a South African University. Please note that this can take some time to obtain, and an application for this should be made to http://www.saqa.org.za/  well in advance of the application to Wits.
• A copy of the Master’s research report or dissertation, as well as any publications.
• A recent curriculum vitae, including the details of two referees.
• A concept paper outlining the proposed PhD project. Information on what is expected in the concept paper is available Click Here
• Further documentation will be required for applicants who do not meet the 70% minimum academic requirement as explained under point b) above.
• All queries related to the actual submission should be directed to SEnC postgraduate team via their call centre on 011 717 1888 or via e-mail on [email protected] once complete, the application is forwarded on to the Faculty and then the School for screening.

Upon receipt of the application, the documents are sent for independent review by two members of staff in the School. The reviews should be complete within 3 weeks of receipt.

The reviews are then scrutinised by the School’s PhD Committee and a potential supervisor, identified by the PhD committee. The application is then accepted or rejected. A telephonic or Skype interview with the candidate may be requested, and the applicant may be offered an opportunity to revise the concept paper if the concept has potential but does not fully meet the criteria for a PhD project. The outcome will then be communicated to the Faculty. The Faculty officer will then inform the student of the outcome. Candidates are expected to commit to a number of face-to-face meetings per annum with their supervisor – this includes candidates who do not reside near to the university, and this factor needs to be budgeted and planned for when considering a PhD.

In the case of acceptance for candidature, the applicant will be invited to register with the Faculty of Humanities. The candidate will also be informed when s/he is expected to present a proposal of acceptable quality to the School Committee within 6 months (if registered Full-time) and one year (if registered Part-time) of registration, and before the proposal is send to Faculty for review. During this point, the candidate’s registration is provisional, and final acceptance into the PhD is contingent upon the proposal being acceptable and meeting the criteria for a PhD project. The Committee reserves the right to terminate a student’s candidature at any point during this proposal registration period at its discretion.

The Committee makes one of the following decisions at the School proposal presentation:

• Accept the proposal for submission to the Faculty.
• Accept the proposal for submission to the Faculty subject to revisions undertaken to the satisfaction of the supervisor.
• Call for re-presentation.
• Reject the proposal and terminate the candidature.

Should the Committee take decision 3, the candidate will be expected to re-present the proposal within one month, at which time the Committee will make one of the following decisions:

• Accept the proposal for submission to Faculty
• Accept the proposal for the submission to Faculty subject to revisions undertaken to the satisfaction of the supervisor
• Reject the proposal and terminate his/her candidature

Following approval by the SHCD the candidate’s PhD process will be governed by the generic Faculty structures outlined  Click Here to download the document

The document includes information on the graduate infrastructure and support offered by the University and importantly provides guidelines for preparing the final proposal for submission to the School and Faculty after the six month/ one year formal preparation period.

Fees and funding

Please go to https://www.wits.ac.za/study-at-wits/fees-and-funding/ for information on Fees and funding/scholarships/bursaries.

Many students will find it difficult to self-fund their PhD studies. This means that a large proportion of our students do their PhD part-time. Unfortunately, this limits eligibility for many of the funding opportunities. Visit http://www.wits.ac.za/study-at-wits/fees-and-funding/  for information on University opportunities for funding. In addition, some research projects may come with funding linked to the supervisor. It is recommended that you speak to potential supervisors about this possibility (please note that this funding is usually attached to specific research projects).

The Faculty and School hold various workshops and writing retreats for PhD students during the course of the year (see https://www.wits.ac.za/humanities/faculty-services/humanities-graduate-centre/ )

Should you have any queries regarding the PhD process, please contact the Chair of the School’s PhD Committee, Professor Thobeka Nkomo, [email protected]

Please note that this pertains to PhDs in Psychology, Speech Pathology, Audiology and Social work only. For PhDs in other disciplines, please contact the relevant Department/School.

We look forward to receiving your application.

Ph.D. in Anthropology

Earn Your PhD in Anthropology

Our Ph.D. program in anthropology is designed to provide a broad background in the field with a primary emphasis on sociocultural anthropology, biological anthropology, or archaeology. The degree prepares students for careers in academia, consulting, or other applied professions in the discipline. 

The major foci of research and instruction in sociocultural anthropology include religion, law and politics, ethnicity, gender, history and anthropology, problems of social change and economic development, culture and the environment, cognition and culture, and medical/psychological anthropology. The study of the Islamic world, East and Southeast Asia, and Africa are the greatest strengths among our sociocultural faculty and students. 

In biological anthropology, our faculty and students primarily study living and fossil human and non-human primates, including their evolutionary morphology, behavior, genomics, and sensory adaptations. For more information on ongoing research in biological anthropology, visit our laboratories page . 

Finally, the major foci in archaeology include human-environment interactions, urbanism, households, and material culture viewed in deep historical perspective. Faculty and students are primarily interested in Mesoamerica, North America, and the Mediterranean. To learn more about research and fieldwork in archaeology, click here .

PhD Learning Outcomes

• Demonstrate mastery of the fundamentals of the traditional four subfields of American anthropology (social/cultural anthropology, archaeology, biological anthropology, and linguistic anthropology) sufficiently to make them effective and competent teachers of introductory undergraduate courses in general anthropology, social/cultural anthropology, and/or biological anthropology.
• Demonstrate the ability to conceive, plan, propose, carry out, and write up a major piece of anthropological research, related to current theoretical discourse in their chosen subfield and constituting a significant contribution to the discipline.
• Be able to make compelling and interesting presentations of their ideas and findings to audiences of professional anthropologists in several forms—oral, written, and graphic.
• Carry out all these tasks in a manner consonant with the highest prevailing standards of ethical and professional conduct in research and teaching.

Each year, Boston University’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GRS) offers incoming Ph.D. students Dean’s Fellowships, which include full tuition, a living stipend, and health insurance for five years; along with a new summer stipend beginning in 2021.

For more information on financial aid for doctoral students, visit the GRS page on fellowship aid .

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Soas-wits joint mphil/phd in applied development economics.

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Key information

Course overview.

This joint PhD programme delivered in partnership with the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa will coordinate a programme of work in heterodox (feminist) economics or political economy that focuses on the way in which mutually reinforcing tendencies of climate breakdown, financialisation, and post-pandemic economic and social pressures affect multiple dimensions of wellbeing, including the institutions, norms, policies and practices conditioning daily life in Africa.

Why study the SOAS-Wits Joint MPhil/PhD in Applied Development Economics?

• We are ranked 27th in UK for economics (QS World University Rankings 2023)
• We are top 20 in the UK for student satisfaction with teaching (Complete University Guide 2023)
• We are top 40 in the UK for economics (Complete University Guide 2023)

The joint PhD between SOAS and Wits pushes boundaries of heterodox economics or political economy by anchoring the analysis explicitly in African realities and confronting particular conceptual frames with emerging empirical evidence. Whether they focus on a micro or macro object, the research projects will have in common a systemic and historic analysis, taking into account, as appropriate, intersecting social relations, mutations of the state and evolving international political-economic and financial relations.

The research projects will hence strengthen analysis that is strongly theoretically grounded while empirically informed, in contrast to current trends in (development) economics to eschew theory in favour of an experimental and purely empirical knowledge base. The research programme will also be explicitly decolonial, by critically querying existing research practices, by drawing on knowledge across Africa, and by explicitly situating contemporary phenomena in their historically evolved (and regionally interdependent) contexts.

The programme seeks candidates interested in conducting doctoral research on one of the following areas/projects:

Project 1: Labour relations, financialisation and technological change in Africa  

We call for PhD research proposals that explore changing labour relationships and forms of work in Africa in the context of financialisation of the economy and technological change. Over the last twenty years, these economies have undergone transformations linked to financialisation and digitalisation. These changes in modern capitalism have impacted both the core and the periphery of the global economy, including areas where industrialisation is least advanced. This has had an impact on the contractual forms involving wage relationships and on the organisation of labour in Africa, regardless of the sectors and the degree of formality of these jobs. Moreover, it has also had an impact on the daily life of Africans, retroacting on the wage relationship, and other forms of labour and work more generally. Thus, much of the working life that takes place in the sphere of production is connected to and partly determined by other spheres, including circulation and reproduction. How does the digitalisation and financialisation of everyday life in Africa impact on the mutations of work in Africa? 

Supervisors: Ben Fine (SOAS), Bruno Tinel (Wits) and Satoshi Miyamura (SOAS) 

Project 2: Unlocking sustainable structural transformation pathways in Africa  

This call is for PhD proposals that investigate new structural transformation pathways in an age of climate crisis, with a focus on the industrial, competition and political economy dynamics of diversification in Africa. In this context, the research will also look at the role of government, specifically with respect to industrial and competition policy as key instruments for promoting structural transformation, shaping industrial value chains and regulating markets. 

The project would explore country or value chain specific issues at the intersection of four inter-linked research and policy areas: energy transition, mineral resources, reorganization of supply chains, and infrastructure development. Each one of these areas will be explored from a developmentalist perspective, hence looking at them as opportunities for industrialisation (or re-industrialisation) in Africa.   

The project would include an assessment of the feasible pathways through which structural transformation can be made more environmentally sustainable and socially inclusive. In this respect, one aspect of this research will be also to analyse ways in which real (and apparent) trade-offs between social, economic and environmental objectives have been understood and overcome in specific country contexts. 

We welcome comparative and mixed methods approaches, including quantitative and qualitative analysis based on both primary and secondary data, interviews with key stakeholders and secondments in relevant organisations. 

Supervisors: Antonio Andreoni (SOAS) and Lumkile Mondi (Wits) 

Project 3: Examining the financialisation of infrastructure in Africa: a feminist political economy approach  

This project seeks to examine the implications of private financial involvement in public sector infrastructure provision in Africa using an interdisciplinary feminist political economy approach. We seek proposals which explore infrastructure provision in African economies, with particular reference to the imperatives posed by the climate crisis for both mitigation and adaptation, preferably utilising the Systems of Provision approach as pioneered by Fine and Leopold (2013) (see Bayliss and Fine 2021) to provide a multidimensional assessment of the chosen sector. Proposals can focus on any (infrastructure) sector of interest to the candidate (for example, transport, water, energy, and so on) and focus on one or multiple African countries. The proposal is part of a broader Wits-SOAS doctoral programme that seeks to advance heterodox (feminist) political economy in a research programme that examines the implications of the interactions between climate breakdown, financialisation and post-pandemic economic and social pressures for the infrastructure of daily life on the African continent. 

Supervisors: Gilad Isaacs (Wits) and Elisa Van Waeyenberge (SOAS) 

Project 4: State responses to unemployment in South Africa  

This is a call for PhD proposals that interrogate state responses to unemployment in post-apartheid South Africa. South Africa has one of the highest rates of unemployment in the world, and it might have been expected that substantially reducing unemployment would have been a priority of the democratically elected government from 1994. Part of this research project would involve cataloguing the different government initiatives to reduce unemployment over the last three decades and contextualising these initiatives in the national political economy of South Africa as well as within the global economic context. The project would also engage with the effectiveness of different interventions and compare the approaches adopted by the government in South Africa to those adopted in other countries in the Global South with high unemployment regimes. The project considers mixed methods approaches, including econometric analysis based on survey and administrative data, international comparative analysis and a close examination of policy documents, appropriate databases, and relevant academic literatures. There is also the possibility of including qualitative research methods, involving, for example, interviews with key stakeholders in government and other institutions. 

Supervisors: Dorrit Posel (Wits) and Miguel Niño-Zarazúa (SOAS) 

Admissions and Entry Requirements

Students will need to apply to both institutions via each institution websites by 31 May 2024 . For details on how to apply to SOAS, see the how to apply pages .

Students will need to meet entry requirements of both institutions. For SOAS, this is a "good" Masters degree in (development) economics or any relevant discipline and a reference. For Wits, this is a Masters in Economics or in Applied Development Economics or any other suitable background.

As part of the application process, students will be asked to indicate either SOAS or Wits as their ‘home institution’. This is the institution where students will physically enrol and be based at for the duration of the PhD.

International Mobility

All students will be offered the opportunity to undertake international mobility to and from SOAS or Wits during the PhD, however it is not mandatory to complete this programme.

The research degree embodies a core of training in research methods combined with a clear structure of progression thereafter. The duration and structure of the research degree will be as follows:

Full time research degree: 3 years plus 1 year writing up

Year 1 - research training.

Research training will be offered by the SOAS Economics Department and the SOAS Doctoral School and delivered in a blended fashion, providing the opportunity for remote attendance for the PhD students with Wits as their home institution.

Year 1 – Literature review and Upgrade

Students will normally be expected to set the foundations of their project through an extensive literature and plan for the continuation of the research and, on this basis, pass an upgrade from MPhil to PhD status within 9 months of commencing the degree.

Year 2-3 - Research

Core research undertaken; primary and secondary data collection as appropriate, thesis chapters finalised. Students may also choose to undertake international mobility to and from their home institution.

Year 4 - Write up

If necessary, a fourth year can be taken to write the final thesis. Examination of the thesis will take place after submission within the 4th year.

Upon successful completion of the programme, students will be awarded a single co-badged certificate conferred by both SOAS and Wits.

Teaching and learning

Supervision arrangements.

Each research project will be jointly supervised across SOAS and Wits. Remote access will be deployed to facilitate joint meetings. Students will have a supervisor at SOAS who will normally be located in the Economics Department and a supervisor at Wits who will usually be located in the School of Economics and Finance. Supervisors from each institution will be appropriately qualified for doctoral supervision. Beyond this, at SOAS, the Departmental Director of Doctoral Studies has overall responsibility for SOAS

research students, being available to discuss general problems. At Wits, this role falls to the PhD Coordinator of the School of Economics and Finance. Further details are set out in the Student Agreement. The PhD Student Agreement must be approved by the Participating Student and designated authorised signatories from each Partner Institution.

Fees and funding

Fees for 2024/25 entrants per academic year.

• Please note that fees go up each year.

Scholarships

Scholarships are not available for the 2024/25 intake of this programme.

Graduates of this programme will leave with a solid grounding in technical and statistical skills, research methods and data collection and an ability to think laterally, take a global perspective, and employ critical reasoning with a detailed insight into the context of African countries.

Professor Costas Lapavitsas

Theory of banking and finance, History of economic thought, Japanese financial system.

Dr Sara Stevano

Social reproduction, Intersecting or co-constituted inequalities, work and employment, Food and nutrition, Development processes and hierarchies, Methodology for political economy.

SOAS Voices

SOAS Economist assists in unveiling plaque to Joan Robinson

On Tuesday 9 April, English Heritage unveiled another of its characteristic blue plaques on the house at 44 Kensington Park Gardens, in the Notting Hill district of London, where the famous economist Joan Robinson (1903-1983) lived, while attending St. Paul's School (she was then Joan Maurice).

Feminist political economy is essential for understanding inequality

Dr Sara Stevano advocates for the integration of feminist approaches into mainstream economic discourse and shows how SOAS is one of the few institutions offering dedicated modules in feminist economics.

What is the current state of capitalism? Insights from SOAS academics

In the aftermath Global Financial Crisis, the world entered a period of transition, prompting crucial questions about the trajectory of global capitalism. Matteo Giordano highlights some of the key economic analyses from SOAS scholars.

Involving Multilateral Development Banks in debt relief: not only feasible, but desirable 

Dr Marina Zucker-Marques explores the compelling reasons why Multilateral Development Banks should get involved in debt relief.

Transforming Finance in the Era of the Climate Crisis

Responding to the climate emergency and reducing growing inequalities are two key challenges of our age. Tackling these challenges requires a rapid transition to a net zero carbon economy. Such a transition won’t be achieved without the implementation of a wide range of radical policies as part of a transformational Green New Deal.

How should central banks respond to the climate crisis?

Central banking has entered a new era – the era of the climate crisis. It is now uncontroversial that central banks should take climate change into account. But a big question remains: how should they do so? This is where an important battle of ideas and politics is under way.

Greening the Financial System in Thailand: Advancing Climate and Environmental Analytics and Knowledge for Resilient Finance

Business models.

This research focuses on understanding the emerging business models and how innovation, including in the area of venture capital investments, can promote sustainable structural transformation in Africa.

Industrial policy

This research focuses on how governments can reshape industries creating new markets and building productive coalitions, to direct the economy towards sustainable prosperity.

Infrastructure development

This research focuses on how government and private sector can cooperate in building the infrastructure for sustainable energy system and mobility system.

Restructuring of supply chains

This research focuses on how supply networks should be re-organised and developed for development of mobility- and energy-related industries in Africa.

Critical minerals

This research focuses on how African economies should manage the relationships with international mining companies promoting socio-economic development.

Energy transition

This research approaches the issue of energy transition in Africa, investigating the existence of feasible opportunities to realise green industrialisation in Africa.

Unlocking finance and managing climate risks for India’s transition to a resilient, Paris-aligned economy

This project, led by the Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI), aims at engaging with and supporting the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on climate-related issues.

Political Economy Analysis of Food Industry (PEAFI)

Debt relief for a green and inclusive recovery.

The Debt Relief for a Green and Inclusive Recovery Project is a collaboration between the SOAS Centre for Sustainable Finance, the Boston University Global Development Policy Center and the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung. Utilizing rigorous research, the DRGR Project seeks to develop systemic approaches to both resolve the debt crisis and advance a just transition to a sustainable, low-carbon economy in partnership with policymakers, thought leaders and civil society around the world.

Scaling Up Green Investment in the Global South: Strengthening Domestic Financial Resource Mobilisation and Attracting Patient International Capital

The research project will provide evidence-based analysis that will help to design policies that will support the scaling up of sustainable investment in the Global South.

INSPIRE Sustainable Central Banking Toolbox Policy Briefing Paper Series

Policy briefing paper series designed to support central bankers and financial supervisors in calibrating monetary, prudential and other instruments in accordance with sustainability goals.

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PhD in Anthropology: Biological Anthropology

Program overview.

Admission | Advising  | MPH/PhD | Concentrations  |  Program Structure  | Events

Graduate students in Biological Anthropology acquire the PhD degree through mastery of a core curriculum and completion of advanced study and research in a chosen field of specialization. The curricular goal is to foster understanding of human biological adaptation and its evolutionary basis through study of ecological, demographic, genetic, developmental, paleontological, behavioral, and epidemiological dimensions of human adaptation. Comprehensive training in theory and topical research provides the base from which a student’s specialization can be developed under the direction of a Supervisory Committee .

During the first six quarters of enrollment, the student gains contact with faculty in the program and acquires the general competence and background necessary for advanced work through a series of required core courses. The comprehensive and general examinations follow this part of the program. The second part of the program involves research and completion of an acceptable dissertation project. Ideal time for completion of the entire program is five to six years.

Applicants are encouraged, but not required, to submit GRE's. An applicant for admission to the graduate program must have a BA or BS degree. An undergraduate major in anthropology is helpful, but those who have not majored in anthropology are also encouraged to apply. In the review of an application, course work in the following areas is considered especially desirable as preparatory for advanced studies: biological anthropology, cultural anthropology, archaeology, biology and zoology, mathematics, and statistics. Before applying, prospective applicants are strongly advised to consult the list of departmental biological anthropology faculty, to carefully note whether the faculty they are interested in working with are accepting new graduate students, and to get in touch with prospective faculty mentors. 

The application deadline for enrollment beginning in Autumn 2025 is December 15, 2024.  Applications open on September 15th. Applicants may apply for and be admitted for autumn quarter only. Offers of admission are usually mailed prior to the first of March. Those receiving offers of admission must respond by April 15.  Please visit the Graduate School's  Admission Requirements  page for a complete list of requirements. Visit  Anthropology's Graduate Admissions  page for admission information specific to our department. Visit  Apply Now  to submit your application. 

An entering student is assigned a chair (advisor) from the biological anthropology faculty. Students should stay in regular contact with their chair, bring questions to them, keep them apprised of their progress, let them know of challenges they are facing and consult with this person each quarter concerning study plans. A student may change to have another chair based on the changing interests of the student—however students should always have at least one chair.

Within one quarter after the successful completion of their comprehensive examination, the student should work with their chair to choose an associate advisor from the biological anthropology graduate faculty. The associate advisor is intended to be a resource for students to help provide them multiple perspectives and support. As with the chair (primary advisor), a student may change to have another associate advisor. The student should meet at least once a year with their associate advisor to keep them apprised of their progress, inform them of their research plans, get feedback and ask questions.  Should a student have a co-chair an additional associate advisor is not necessary.

MPH/PhD Concurrent degree program

This concurrent degree program offers interdisciplinary curriculum in the fields of public health and anthropology. Students who complete this program will receive two degrees, a Master of Public Health (MPH) and a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Anthropology. Students will matriculate into one of four MPH tracks and complete either the Sociocultural OR Biological Anthropology PhD track programs. For more information about this option please visit MPH/PhD Program .

Statistics Concentration

Graduate student pursuing a PhD in anthropology may also consider completing a  Statistics Concentration in Anthropology .

Please visit the Department of Anthropology's main calendar  and the  Biological Anthropology Seminar Series (BASS)  calendar for a list of upcoming events.

Program Structure

Supervisory Committee | PhD Degree | Curriculum | Comprehensive (Written) Examination |   Dissertation Proposal | Colloquium | General (Oral) Examination | Teaching Requirement  | Seminar & Final Examination | Grant Funding & Publishing

Supervisory Committee

A student should always have at least one chair (faculty advisor) throughout their entire time in the PhD program, although a student may change to another chair. Students should constitute a full committee as they begin to write their dissertation proposal. The student should discuss committee member choices with their chair and their developing projects with prospective committee members. Associate advisors may be members of the Supervisory Committee, but are not required to be.

Please refer  Policy 4.2: Supervisory Committee for Graduate Students for a complete list of Supervisory Committee composition requirements. The Supervisory Committee shall consist of a chair (who is the primary the advisor) chosen from the graduate faculty in biological anthropology, a Graduate School Representative (GSR), and from two to four other members. At least half of the full committee (excluding the GSR) must be from the biological anthropology faculty. The GSR committee member must not be in the same department as the student/committee chair and must not have collaborations or other conflicts of interest with the student/committee chair. 

Faculty become official members of the committee when (1) the student submits a completed form for establishing a PhD Supervisory Committee   to the Graduate Program Assistant, and (2) the Graduate School responds by officially inviting all proposed committee members to serve as members of the supervisory committee.  At least three members of the Supervisory Committee will also serve on the PhD dissertation Reading Committee. Students should contact the Graduate Program Assistant if they would like to change the composition of their committee after it is officially established.

To obtain a PhD, the student must:

• Satisfy the Graduate School's requirements ( see the UW Graduate School ).
• Complete the core curriculum.
• Pass the comprehensive examination.
• Submit an acceptable PhD dissertation proposal.
• Present a dissertation colloquium.
• Pass the general examination.
• Fulfill the teaching requirement.
• Submit an acceptable PhD dissertation; present a seminar based on the dissertation.
• Pass the final examination.

a) A student with a limited background in biological anthropology must complete, upon entry to the program:

BIO A 502 (6 credits) Preceptorial Reading in Biological Anthropology.

b) If, in the view of the chair (advisor), a student has a limited background in other subfields of anthropology, the student must complete, as soon as possible, either or both of the following:

i)       ANTH 500     (6 cr) Preceptorial Reading in Sociocultural Anthropology ii)      ARCHY 501 (6 cr) Preceptorial Reading in Archaeology

c) Students must take at least five 400 or 500 level BIO A core courses (of at least 3 credits each). Among these five courses, students must complete at least one course in each of the four core competency areas. A single course can only fulfill competency requirements for one area at a time. Students should select their core courses in consultation with their advisor(s).  Students who have taken graduate courses at other institutions may petition for one or more of these courses to count towards their PhD requirements. Students who want to petition for this should work with their chair to generate a written request for consideration by the biological anthropology faculty.

Core competency areas:

1)     Human Biology/Health (HB) 2)     Paleoanthropology/Anatomy (PA) 3)     Evolution (E) 4)     Primatology (P)

Core courses with competency area categories in parentheses:

BIO A 413 Human-Primate Interface: Implications for Disease, Risk, & Conservation (P) BIO A 420 Anthropological Research on Health Disparities (HB) BIO A 450 Biodemography Seminar  (HB, E) BIO A 455 Reproductive Ecology Laboratory Seminar (HB) BIO A 465 Nutritional Anthropology  (HB) BIO A 470 Evolution of Human Behavior (E) BIO A 471 Evolutionary Perspectives on Parenting and Childcare  (HB, E) BIO A 473 Biological Adaptability of Human Populations  (HB, E) BIO A 476 Sociocultural Ecology and Health  (HB, E) BIO A 477 Evolutionary Perspectives on Sex and Gender Roles  (E) BIO A 482 Human Population Genetics  (E) BIO A 483 Human Genetics, Disease, and Culture  (HB, E) BIO A 484 Human Life Cycle  (HB, E) BIO A 485 Research in Growth and Development (HB, E) BIO A 486 Primate Socioecology  (P, E) BIO A 487 Human and Comparative Osteology  (P) BIO A 488 Primate Evolution  (P, E, PA) BIO A 491 Issues in Human Paleontology  (PA) BIO A 495 Growth and Development: Infancy  (HB) BIO A 496 Growth and Development: Adolescence and Reproductive Maturity  (HB) BIO A 520 Human Behavioral Ecology (3-5) (E) BIO A 521 Hominin Evolution  (E, PA) BIO A 522 Hominin Evolution   (E, PA) BIO A 523 Social Networks and Health: Biocultural Perspectives  (HB) BIO A 526 Quantitative Methods and Modeling for Biocultural Anthropology (HB) BIO A 544 Applied Biomechanics of Human Movement  (PA) BIO A 550 Skeletal Biology and Prehistoric Demography  (PA) BIO A 559 Laboratory Methods in Anthropological Genetics   BIO A 568 Human Reproductive Ecology  (E, HB) BIO A 569 Behavioral Ecology and Demography  (E) BIO A 584 Topics in Ecology and Adaptation  (E) BIO A 588 Topics in Primate Evolution  (PA, P) BIO A 591 Issues in Hominin Paleontology  (PA)

d) In addition to the five core courses required above students must take BIO A 525  Biocultural Research Methods & Study Design

e) These courses provide a broad view of the theory, methods, research, and ethical concerns of biological anthropology. Training in the ethical conduct of research is woven throughout BIO A topical courses and graduate student professional development, with the goal of understanding past, present, and future ethical considerations of the discipline. These courses also provide students an opportunity to identify their primary research and theoretical and methodological expertise of the faculty. A student must complete the core courses with a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0. A grade of less than 2.7 in any core course is unsatisfactory; normally, the student must repeat the course, but may, by petition to the biological anthropology faculty, seek to remedy the deficiency in another way.

f) Finally, each student must complete one of the below statistics sequences for a grade (or the equivalent as approved by the biological anthropology faculty)

BIOST 511, 512, and 513 , or BIOST 517 and 518 , or SOC 504, 505, and 506, or POL S 500, 501, and 503

g) Each student must satisfactorily complete all of the requirement listed above (except completion of BIO A 525  Biocultural Research Methods & Study Design) before taking the comprehensive examination.

h) Students may choose to take additional courses relevant to their particular research interests; these should be chosen in consultation with the student’s committee members and other advisors.

i) While in residence, PhD students are expected to attend the biological anthropology seminar series (BASS). If there are extenuating circumstances which make this difficult, the student should discuss these with their advisor. BASS is designed to be a forum for professional development and features a combination of research seminars from students and faculty at the UW and beyond as well as occasional sessions on topics such as career development. Students should reserve the BASS time slots on their calendar ( https://anthropology.washington.edu/bass-calendar ).

j) A student must register for a minimum of 27 credits of dissertation writing (ANTH 800) over a period of at least three quarters. 

Comprehensive (Written) Examination

This is an examination of the student’s general knowledge of biological anthropology, as derived primarily from the contents of the core courses and as applied to current issues in the field. The examination consists of questions selected by the faculty and is designed to test a student’s ability to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate theories, concepts and data. Students are expected to work with their chair to pick an additional one or two committee members. No official paperwork needs to be submitted to create a pre-masters comprehensive written examination committee.  This comprehensive written examination committee will make a recommendation to the graduate faculty in biological anthropology who will determine the final score of the exam.

Students are expected to take this examination during finals week in the spring quarter of their second year. The faculty sets the dates of the examination. S tudents must submit a Master's Degree request (non-thesis) in MyGrad prior to the exam . Please refer to the Procedural Steps to Degree page for details about how to submit requests in MyGrad.   The exam comprises four questions and is scheduled for six hours. The complete examination may be taken once and leads to one of three outcomes:

• Pass, with the recommendation to proceed in the PhD program – awarded when the score on each question is 3.0 or above.
• Conditional Pass – awarded when the answer to one or two questions are scored at or below 2.9. The condition is satisfied when the student demonstrates competence by successfully retaking the relevant portion(s) of the examination.
• Failure – awarded when the answers to three or more questions are scored at or below 2.9. Students who fail this examination may not proceed toward the PhD although they may, provided the overall score on the comprehensive examination is at least 2.7, earn a terminal MA.

Master's Degree

Upon completion of all required coursework and scoring at least 2.7 overall on the comprehensive examination the student can obtain a Master of Arts (MA) in Anthropology: Biological Anthropology.  Once the Graduate Program Assistant is informed that the student has completed their Comprehensive (Written) Examination and fulfilled all related degree requirements, the degree request will be approved .

Dissertation Proposal

Students should constitute a complete Supervisory Committee as they begin to write their dissertation proposal.   After completing the master’s degree, the student subsequently presents a formal written proposal of original research to the Supervisory Committee. The Supervisory Committee may require the student to complete one or more literature reviews as part of developing the dissertation proposal. Where appropriate, the proposal should be prepared in a form suitable for submission to a funding agency (e.g. NSF DDIG).

The candidate presents an overview of the proposed dissertation research in a colloquium to which all members of the Department of Anthropology are invited. The colloquium is usually held before the general exam, but also can be combined with the general examination.

General (Oral) Examination

A two-hour general examination focusing on the candidates proposed area of research and its theoretical and methodological foundation is administered by the Supervisory Committee . The general examination should be taken within five quarters (of enrollment) of taking the comprehensive examination. Students must submit a Doctoral (General Exam) request in MyGrad prior to the exam .  Please refer to the Procedural Steps to Degree page for details about how to submit requests in MyGrad.

The PhC is normally conferred once the student receives a Pass on their General Examination, and all department and  UW Graduate School requirements are met. Once the Graduate Program Assistant is informed that the student has completed their General Examination and fulfilled all related degree requirements, the exam request will be approved. 

Teaching Requirement

Before receiving the PhD degree, the candidate is expected to serve as a teaching assistant in anthropology, or teach a course in anthropology at least once. The course must be evaluated by the students enrolled and this evaluation should be shared and discussed with the PhD student's chair. 

Seminar & Final Examination

Following completion of research, the candidate prepares a dissertation which is submitted to the dissertation Reading Committee . On the recommendation of this committee, the candidate presents to the community a seminar based upon the dissertation, and then sits for the Final Examination (an oral defense of the dissertation required by the Graduate School and administered by the PhD Supervisory Committee ).

Once the date and time of the final examination have been established, the student must submit a Doctoral (Final Exam) request in MyGrad . Please refer to the Procedural Steps to Degree page for details about how to submit requests in MyGrad.   For information about how to submit the dissertation, visit the Dissertation Submission  page and the Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs): Overview . Please take note of any relevant deadlines on the Graduate student dates & deadlines and the Academic Calendar .

Grant Funding & Publishing

While not a formal requirement of the PhD program, students are strongly encouraged to apply for external grant funding and to begin publishing their research in peer-reviewed journals before completion of their PhDs. Peer-reviewed publications allow the broader dissemination of one’s work to benefit the scientific community and demonstrate one’s capability to so meaningfully contribute. Grant funding allows one to conduct higher quality research and demonstrates one’s ability to support their work and have an external check on the merits of their research plans. It is difficult to get post-PhD jobs in academia without a strong grant funding and publication record. For students who decide not to continue in academia, grants and publications are still likely to be helpful on the job market. Students should strategize with the chair of their Supervisory Committee and associate advisor about applying for grants and submitting their work for publication.

Please visit the Graduation Requirement page for a comprehensive list of University requirements. 

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Anthropology

Doctor of philosophy in anthropology.

The Doctor of Philosophy program in anthropology requires a minimum of 72 s.h. of graduate credit.

The Ph.D. degree leads to the accomplishment of professional-level skills in conducting independent research, and normally features specialized training in one or two of the discipline’s subfields. Doctoral education is guided by a Ph.D. committee composed of members of the faculty competent in the particular areas and topics chosen by a student.

The doctoral program includes an integrated process of progressively developing and completing reading lists, developing and submitting research proposals to funding agencies, developing and defending a dissertation prospectus, and writing two comprehensive exam essays. Upon successful completion of the comprehensive examination and the dissertation prospectus, a student advances to candidacy for the Ph.D. To complete the Ph.D. degree, all doctoral candidates are required to conduct independent anthropological research, write a dissertation, and defend it.

For students who enter the doctoral program with an existing M.A. (in anthropology or a related field), the faculty develop an individualized program of study based on a student's existing coursework and goals.

Ph.D. students also may elect to pursue an optional concentration in either feminist anthropology or paleoanthropology.

Listed below are the general categories of coursework required to earn the degree; for more specific information on courses, curriculum, and requirements of the Doctor of Philosophy in anthropology, visit the UI General Catalog .

Important Deadlines

Application Deadline : January 1st (for all programs)

Applicants for admission to the graduate program in anthropology are considered regardless of their previous field of training. Students without previous training in anthropology are expected to perform additional work as necessary to achieve competence expected for their degree objective.

Students normally are admitted under the assumption that they intend to pursue the Ph.D. degree. Students without an M.A. in anthropology devote the first two years fulfilling the M.A. requirements. After those requirements are completed, the student's committee may award the M.A. with admittance to the Ph.D. program.

Students with an M.A. in anthropology from another institution may proceed directly into a Ph.D. program organized around their special research interests. If they lack any of the requirements of the graduate program at the University of Iowa, they are informed of those requirements when admitted. Acceptance of credit hours from other institutions will follow UI regulations.

Applicants whose first language is not English must submit official test scores to verify English proficiency. Applicants can verify English proficiency by submitting official test scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). Once recommended for admission, international students also must complete several additional requirements.

For additional information, visit the Graduate Admissions Process page.

Comprehensive Examination

During the semester of the comprehensive exam, the student will prepare two comprehensive essays: one in the geographical area of specialization and the other in the primary topical area of specialization.  In some subfields and for some projects, a geographical area may not be relevant and the student will focus on two topical areas.  Each paper will address a question posed by the committee in consultation with the student.  The department recommends that each student and committee chair compile feedback from all committee members on proposed reading lists for each question, prior to the student beginning the writing process.

Comprehensive exam essays should combine factual knowledge and comprehension with analysis, evaluation, and synthesis.  In other words, they should: demonstrate control of a body of information (knowledge and comprehension), critique a major problem or debate (application and analysis), develop a position on an issue, and provide an explanation or theoretical justification for the position (evaluation and synthesis).  Essays therefore document the student’s ability not only to characterize key lines of academic inquiry in a given area, but also to identify points where new research questions might constructively enter into these conversations.

Dissertation

All doctoral candidates are required to conduct original anthropological research. Students typically conduct dissertation research after advancement to candidacy. Dissertations are usually based on ethnographic fieldwork, archaeological excavations, or laboratory analysis. Some are based on archival collections or other source materials.

NOTE :  Any research which involves "human subjects" must be reviewed by the University of Iowa  Institutional Review Board (IRB)  prior to the initiation of the project.  Proof of the determination/review process must also be submitted to the International Studies Program before the international experience proposal can be approved. For all questions contact the IRB at (319) 335-6465; or complete the  IRB Determination Form  to find out if your research meets the definition of human subjects research.

PhD in Anthropology (General Catalog)

NOTICE: The University of Iowa Center for Advancement is an operational name for the State University of Iowa Foundation, an independent, Iowa nonprofit corporation organized as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, publicly supported charitable entity working to advance the University of Iowa. Please review its full disclosure statement.