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Course Catalog 2024-2025
Archaeological Studies Major
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The major consists of a minimum of 9 full courses (or the equivalent) and 1 field or laboratory experience.
Note: Students must earn minimum grades of C- or P for all courses that apply toward the major.
 View the catalog page for the archaeological studies program.
As an interdisciplinary major, archaeological studies sits at the nexus of science and culture, exploring human society through its material remains. The scope of the discipline is broad, unifying methods drawn from anthropology, art history, classics, material culture studies, and history, as well as scientific disciplines such as geology and computer science. Archaeology is grounded in the recognition that, as in contemporary society, material culture, architecture, and space play important roles in the lives of individuals in the past. Indeed, the study of archaeological data and their related ethical issues can complement and complicate our understanding of the historic and prehistoric periods.
The Curricular Committee on Archaeological Studies oversees the major in archaeological studies.
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Goals of the Major
The major has four primary learning goals.
- Students, regardless of their specific interests, will become acquainted with a range of different archaeological research perspectives and cultural areas among those represented in the college curriculum.
- Students will explore the interrelations between archaeology and the historical, humanistic, and scientific modes of inquiry consistent with current trends in both study and research.
- Students will understand that the material record of the past is formed in diverse ways and is subject to multiple interpretations.
- Students will become familiar with a variety of analytical tools that are required for the investigation of the archaeological and material record.
Transfer of Credit Toward the Major
A maximum of two full courses may be transferred to count toward the major.
Course of Study
The program’s core curriculum consists of a selection of courses drawn from the regular offerings in anthropology, art, classics, and religion. This is supplemented by appropriate courses in related disciplines such as biology, chemistry, computer science, environmental studies, geosciences, mathematics, physics, and statistics. In particular, GEOS 120 and a course in statistics or computer science (especially CSCI 150 ) are strongly recommended; students are advised to take these as early in the major as possible. Majors may also find GEOS 335 useful.
Through this coursework in a variety of departments and disciplines, students majoring in archaeological studies will gain the tools to interpret objects and spaces as they relate to past cultures. Majors design their own course of study in close consultation with a major advisor according to the specific area of concentration within the discipline, the culmination of which is an independent project that uses archaeological tools to analyze a data set.
Honors in Archaeological Studies
Participation in the Honors Program in Archaeological Studies is by invitation of the Curricular Committee on Archaeological Studies; such participation would replace the senior project requirement (ACHS 300 ). For further information, consult the program chair.
Detailed Major Requirements
Archaeological Studies Major Course Lists
Field or Laboratory Experience Requirement
Return to the summary of requirements.
Students may fulfill this requirement through participation in an archaeological field school or a research experience associated with a museum, an archaeological excavation, archaeological laboratory (e.g., ANTH 382 ), or another project overseen by a professional archaeologist or curator. It is not necessary to receive college credit (from Oberlin or another institution) for the experience to fulfill this requirement. Students who have undertaken this requirement should provide evidence of successful completion, such as a letter from a field director or the project supervisor, to the chair of the archaeological studies program.
Note: ANTH 382 may fulfill the distribution requirement or the field or laboratory experience requirement, but it may not fulfill both.
Senior Project Requirement
ACHS 300 - Senior Project is an independent study (capstone) that investigates or analyzes an archaeological dataset. The senior project is typically undertaken during the Winter Term and spring semester of a student’s senior year. Students submit a proposal during the semester before the Senior Project begins.
Alternatively, the senior project can be undertaken as a research project on material culture within a course with an archaeological focus.
Research projects are often undertaken in the following areas:
- Analysis and investigation of individual archaeological artifacts, such as objects in a museum or from an archaeological site
- Investigation of archaeological data derived from fieldwork, including both excavation and survey, such as an ongoing excavation
- A museum exhibition, either real or virtual, that incorporates archaeological material
- Testing and analysis of archaeological methods or techniques, such as LIDAR or Resistivity, or Experimental archaeology, which seeks to test the ability of ancient peoples to undertake some task or create an object
- The application of digital technologies, such as Geographic Information Systems, to archaeological data from a current or legacy archaeological project
- A project related to cultural heritage preservation, such as the analysis of destruction through war or the repatriation of cultural property
- A project related to a field, laboratory, or museum experience undertaken during a previous Winter Term or summer
The results of the senior research experience will be presented publicly to the members of the Curricular Committee on Archaeological Studies and interested members of the Oberlin College community. A final paper or written report, detailing the goals and findings of the project, will be due at the end of the semester.
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