Applying to the Social and Cultural Anthropology PhD and MA Programs
This program offers both a MA degree and a PhD.
Master of Arts, Cultural Anthropology and Social Transformation
This program, with its emphasis in Gender, Ecology and Society, enables students to explore significant issues beyond the traditional boundaries of anthropology. Students examine contemporary social and ecological justice in the context of a multicultural, postcolonial world.
Admission to the Program
Prospective students should have a demonstrated capacity to learn and work both independently and collaboratively, and should be able to participate in research that requires rigorous self-reflection and meaningful engagement with members of a shared learning community.
Students are expected to interact creatively with difference, cultivate capacities to think in multiple perspectives, and form alliances in relation to shared concerns.
Applicants are asked to include a recent example of scholarly writing. The required autobiographical statement should describe significant events in the applicant's life that have led to the decision to pursue admission to this department. A goal statement reflecting areas of academic interest should be included.
Applicants to the Gender, Ecology, and Society emphasis need not have an undergraduate major in anthropology; however, it is necessary to have had at least three upper-division-level social science courses.
If lacking, these courses can usually be taken concurrently with graduate courses, although they will not be counted toward required degree units. The Gender, Ecology, and Society MA is a residential program.
Students fulfill social service practicums as part of their coursework throughout the program. Research projects take students into communities of practice, and a large number of master's candidates have received job offers before they graduate.
This degree prepares graduates for careers as scholars, teachers, researchers, consultants and leaders in such areas as international development, community organizing and social change.
Admission Requirements
Application for Admission
Non-refundable $65 Application Fee
Degree Requirement: An undergraduate degree (BA, BS, or the equivalent) from an accredited college or university.
Transcripts: Official transcripts from all accredited academic institutions attended within the United States. Transcripts must arrive in their official, sealed envelopes.
Résumé
Autobiographical Statement: A four-to-six page (typed, double-spaced) introspective autobiographical statement discussing your values, emotional and spiritual insights, aspirations, and life experiences that have led to your decision to apply.
Goal Statement: A one-page (typed, double-spaced) statement of your educational and professional objectives.
Two Letters of Recommendation: Recommenders should use standard business format and include full contact information-name, email, phone number, and mailing address.
Academic Writing Sample: A writing sample of eight-to-ten pages (typed, double-spaced) that demonstrates your capacity to think critically and reflectively and demonstrates graduate level writing abilities. A sample that uses outside sources must include proper citations. You may submit copies of previous work, such as a recent academic paper, article, or report that reflects scholarly abilities.
For International students there are additional requirements. Please see the International Student page for additional information.
Please visit Applying to CIIS for more information.
For questions about admissions please contact:
Allyson Werner
(415) 575-6155
awerner@ciis.edu
PhD in Social and Cultural Anthropology
The PhD Program in Social and Cultural Anthropology is unique in its crafting of postcolonial anthropology, requiring rigorous intellectual immersion and the collaborative formulation of a dissertation project in social justice with communities of practice.
Distinguished Visiting Scholars further develop our students' facility at critical social analysis, intercultural communication, and strategic thinking.
Entry into the PhD program in Social and Cultural Anthropology requires a master's degree. Students with an MA from another school or from another department at CIIS may require up to one additional year of coursework as part of their PhD program (see below).
Students with an MA in the Gender, Ecology, and Society emphasis in Cultural Anthropology and Social Transformation from CIIS do not require additional coursework.
Prospective students should have a demonstrated capacity to learn and work both independently and collaboratively, and be able to participate in research that requires rigorous self-reflection and meaningful engagement with members of a shared learning community. The Social and Cultural Anthropology PhD concentration is a residential program.
Students are expected to interact creatively with difference, cultivate capacities to think in multiple perspectives, and form alliances in relation to shared
concerns.
Applicants are asked to include a recent example of scholarly writing. The required autobiographical statement should describe significant events in the applicant's life that have led to the decision to pursue admission to this department. A goal statement that includes areas of academic interest should be included.
Admission to the PhD Program Without an MA in Anthropology From CIIS
Students entering the PhD without an MA in Cultural Anthropology and Social Transformation from CIIS are required to take an additional 12 to 15 units of MA-level coursework within the Cultural Anthropology and Social Transformation program. Students may require an additional year in which to complete these courses.
Once students are admitted, advisors will facilitate the drafting of a tailored curriculum contract that incorporates these additional courses and suggests a timeline.
These additional courses may include the following:
ANTH 5000: Building Alliances across Differences
ANTH 5100: Critical History of the Human Sciences
ANTH 5200: Language and Culture
ANTH 6700: Understanding Global Systems
ANTH 6850: Cross-Cultural Issues in Social and Environmental Justice
Our PhD candidates conduct field research throughout their course of study. Collaborating with communities of practice, these scholar-activists formulate dissertation projects in social justice.
In scholarship and praxis, students analyze the root structural and historical causes of social injustice by critically examining the intersections of race, class, gender, sexuality, and religion.
Admission Requirements
Application for Admission
Non-refundable $65 Application Fee
Degree Requirement: A master's degree (or the equivalent) from an accredited college or university.
Transcripts: Official transcripts from all accredited academic institutions attended within the United States. Transcripts must arrive in their official, sealed envelopes.
Résumé
Autobiographical Statement: A four-to-six page (typed, double-spaced) introspective autobiographical statement discussing your values, emotional and spiritual insights, aspirations, and life experiences that have led to your decision to apply.
Goal Statement. A one-page (typed, double-spaced) statement of your educational and professional objectives.
Two Letters of Recommendation: Recommenders should use standard business format and include full contact information-name, email, phone number, and mailing address.
Academic Writing Sample: A writing sample of eight to ten pages (typed, double-spaced) that demonstrates your capacity to think critically and reflectively and demonstrates graduate level writing abilities. A sample that uses outside sources must include proper citations. You may submit copies of previous work, such as a recent academic paper, article, or report that reflects scholarly abilities.
For International students there are additional requirements. Please see the International Student page for additional information.
Please visit Applying to CIIS for more information.
For questions about admissions please contact:
Allyson Werner
(415) 575-6155
awerner@ciis.edu
