BA Anthropology: University of Sussex

About the programme

This degree provides you with an excellent understanding of contemporary anthropology. It develops your intellectual and practical skills in the analysis and interpretation of ethnographic data and your grasp of anthropological theory.

By the end of the degree you will understand the major contemporary debates in anthropology and the history of the discipline. You learn about a wide range of ethnographic data and the ways in which theory can be used to understand this material. You also develop an appreciation of the ethical issues involved in research and analysis.

Core courses for Anthropology

Year 1
You take: Anthropology in Theory; Ethnographic Film; Ethnographic Methods; Reading Anthropology; and The Anthropological Imagination.

Year 2
You take: Culture and Representation; Issues in Contemporary Anthropology; Material Cultures; Politics, Power and Legitimacy; and Reproduction, Self and Society.

Year 3
You take: Anthropology of Economic Processes; and Religion and Ritual.

You also take one or two advanced topics in anthropology including: Anthropology of Africa; Anthropology of Development; Anthropology of Europe; Anthropology of South Asia; Anthropology of the Body; Human Rights; Landscape/Memory/ Identity; Medicine and Culture; Reproduction and Health; The Anthropology of Africa; The Anthropology of Development; The Anthropology of Europe; and The Anthropology of South Asia.

Career opportunity

Anthropology tends to attract students with creative minds. Given this, and the central interests of anthropologists in cultural diversity in a changing world, anthropology degrees lead to a wide range of career opportunities. These include:

• development work in agencies such as the Department for International Development (DFID) or UN organisations; international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) such as Oxfam or Amnesty International; and charities
• Civil Service, including local government, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and the Environment Agency
• community development work in the UK and overseas
• British Council, journalism and the world of business.

Entry requirments

• Typical A level offer: AAB-BBB
• International Baccalaureate: 32 to 36 points overall.

English language requirements

• IELTS 6.5 overall and not less than 6.0 in both the Listening and Writing sections.
• Internet-based TOEFL with 90 overall, including at least 24 in Speaking and 25 in Writing.
• The University also accepts a range of other qualifications:
  • GCSE or IGCSE English as a first language: grade C.
  • GCSE English or IGCSE as a second language: grade B.
  • Cambridge Advanced Certificate in English (CAE): grade B. 
  • Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE): grade C.
  • Cambridge English Language 1119: between grades 1 and 6.