Graduate Program

Graduate study in anthropology at McMaster is based on the closely matched interests of faculty supervisors and students.  In consultation with faculty, students develop their own individual programs of course work and research.  Course options include regular graduate seminar offerings on a variety of topics, relevant course offerings from other departments, and individually tailored reading courses that match the interests of the students with the knowledge and expertise of particular faculty members.  Professional development and collegiality are further enhanced through participation in the graduate workshop.

At McMaster, faculty, post-doctoral fellows, research assistants, and graduate students think and act as a community of scholars.  We encourage every graduate student to engage in all aspects of the work in conference presentations and publications.  To facilitate research and timely completion of graduate study, student funding (including TA-ships and scholarships) is guaranteed - two years for MA students and four years for PhD students.  Many PhD students receive University support for fieldwork expenses. Our students also consistently maintain a very high success rate in obtaining external funding.

We welcome applications from students whose interests match the research orientation of our program.  Students considering McMaster for graduate study are encouraged to communicate with potential supervisors and graduate students in the program before making their decisions to apply.  For information about the City of Hamilton click here, for a photo gallery of Hamilton click here.

The department has a complement of 17 full-time faculty, along with a number of adjunct and associated members from different departments (such as Religious Studies).  The main fields of inquiry of faculty include: applied anthropology, symbolic and interpretive anthropology, medical anthropology, death studies, public policy, indigenous studies, complex societies, material culture and ancient technology, hunter-gatherer archaeology, historical ecology, osteology, palaeogenetics, nutrition, disease, and demography. There are usually a total of 10-15 MA and 20-25 PhD students in the graduate program at any one time. While the MA program is intended to be holistic in scope, students normally focus their program of study on archaeological, physical or sociocultural anthropology, or the new Anthropology of Health program.  The Department's historical areas of specialization were the Canadian North and the Pacific Islands, but faculty and graduate student research encompasses the world, including North America, Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Europe has emerged as a particular regional focus of faculty and graduate research.

Further inquiries can be directed to:

Janis Weir
Administrative Assistant,
Graduate Program
CNH-524
Tel: 905-525-9140 ext. 24424
weirjan@mcmaster.ca