Program Overview

Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and Sociology

Overview

Webster's undergraduate degree in Anthropology and Sociology gives students the skills to examine and explain diverse social and cultural systems in order to address critical global social challenges in the world today.

Program Details

• Average Time to Complete Degree: 4 years
• Locations: Webster Groves, Missouri campus
• Curriculum: The program teaches skills in cultural competence, problem solving, interpersonal communication, and research and analysis that help students become effective leaders in business and marketing, technology, diversity and inclusion work, and health and medicine.

Work With Expert Faculty

• Webster's Anthropology and Sociology faculty are experts in their fields across a wide range of topics including race and ethnicity, urban anthropology, humanitarian and development work, health and medicine, gender and sexuality, criminal and social justice, and social welfare.
• Students have the opportunity to supplement their coursework with one-on-one studies with faculty in their fields of expertise and work as research assistants on faculty projects.

Community Engagement

• Students are encouraged to apply their classroom learning to building collaborations with the community.
• Opportunities are provided for students to work with community organizations that work on issues ranging from social and racial justice to cultural and historical preservation.
• These engagements allow students to expand their professional networks and gain valuable skills that prepare students whether they are seeking careers in business, social service, teaching, nonprofit organizational settings or pursuing post-graduate education.

Undergraduate Research

• BA in Anthropology and Sociology students have the unique opportunity to conduct research under the guidance of a faculty mentor.
• By doing research, students will establish extensive relationships with the faculty, enrich their academic experience, enhance marketable career skills, and prepare themselves for competitive graduate and professional schools.
• Student research project examples include:
  • Cultural appropriation in a globalized world: K-pop, hip hop and cultural identity.
  • Preserving cultural meanings at Cahokia Mounds.
  • The contemporary construction of girlhood: an analysis of gendered identity performance in online and offline spaces.
  • The social and cultural evolution of death and dying in the United States.
  • The (in)visibility of disability as a lived experience.

Acquire Real-World Learning and Real-World Perspective

• Immerse yourself in a truly global learning experience by adding a Study Abroad experience to your collegiate experience.
• Take archaeology courses or earn an Archaeology minor at our Athens, Greece campus.

Career Opportunities

• Most anthropologists and sociologists do not work in the academy.
• Many are in government, including international development, law and criminal justice, and natural and cultural resource management.
• They are also in the private sector, including large corporations such as Intel, Microsoft, Boeing and Walt Disney.
• And many are driven to solve local and global social problems and find employment in nonprofit and non-governmental organizations, including the World Health Organization, Amnesty International, United Nations and philanthropic foundations.
• Alumni of the ANSO program have pursued careers in these industries:
  • Banking and Finance
  • Parks and Preservation (Cultural Heritage)
  • Nonprofit and Social Justice Activism
  • International Development
  • Nursing
  • Biomedical Researcher
  • Teaching and Education

Salaries for Anthropology and Sociology Majors

• The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics states the annual median salary for anthropologists and sociologists ranges from $63,800 to $101,770.
• The BLS also states that salaries for related fields are Archivists, Curators and Museum Workers at $57,120, Social Workers at $58,380, Urban and Regional Planners at $81,800, and Postsecondary Teachers at $84,380.
• Some of the positions in this field may require additional education beyond the undergraduate level.

Related Degree Programs

• Global Studies (BA)
• Language and Transcultural Studies (BA)

Minors

• Anthropology: Archaeology Focus (Minor)
• Cultural Anthropology (Minor)
• Sociology (Minor)