Best Anthropology Programs in Washington for 2027

Anthropology is an open major at the University of Washington, and the Bachelor of Arts runs 55 credits. You open with Principles of Biological Anthropology, a 200-level archaeology course, a 200-level anthropology course, and a statistics course from an approved list. Then come 20 credits of upper-division electives and 15 more credits at the 200 level or above, and certain American Indian Studies courses can count. You can follow the standard plan or add one of five options, including Medical Anthropology and Global Health or Indigenous Archaeology, and a completed option appears on your transcript.

Core Requirements

20 credits, including one statistics course

Options

Five optional tracks, noted on the transcript

Residency

At least 15 upper-division credits completed at UW

Program Sources: Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology | Department of Anthropology | University of Washington

Western Washington offers its anthropology BA through four concentrations: Cultural, Archaeology, Linguistics and Biocultural. The department trains students in four sub-disciplines and describes each plainly, from archaeology’s field and laboratory work on material remains to linguistic anthropology’s focus on unwritten languages and nonverbal communication. Anthropologists here draw their data mainly from field research and cross-cultural comparison, and applied anthropology takes those methods to current social, economic and technological problems. With 44 degrees awarded in 2023–24, it is one of the larger options on the Washington page.

Concentrations

Cultural, Archaeology, Linguistics and Biocultural

Sub-Disciplines

Cultural anthropology, archaeology, biocultural anthropology and linguistic anthropology

Applied Focus

Methods used on current social, economic and technological problems

Program Sources: Anthropology Majors and Concentrations | Western Washington University

Washington State expects anthropology majors to build background in four subfields: archaeology, cultural, linguistic and physical anthropology. Courses cover human evolution, linguistics, the prehistoric development of culture and culture theory. You can certify the major after 24 semester hours, a 2.0 GPA and a meeting with an advisor. Field experience is strongly encouraged, and you can get it through approved summer field schools, study abroad, ANTH 300 Field Methods, or a faculty-coordinated project in ANTH 499. The Pullman campus also hosts the Beta of Washington chapter of Lambda Alpha, the national anthropology honors society.

Four Subfields

Archaeology, cultural, linguistic and physical anthropology

Field Experience

Field schools, study abroad, ANTH 300 or ANTH 499 projects

Honors Society

Lambda Alpha, Beta of Washington chapter

Program Sources: Undergraduate Studies | Department of Anthropology | Washington State University

Central Washington’s BA in Anthropology is a 62-credit plan that opens with five-credit courses in biological anthropology, archaeology, cultural worlds, and language and culture, plus a two-credit principles and assessment course. You then take 300-level courses from at least three subfields, a department-approved 400-level seminar and a four-credit Senior Comprehensive Survey. A 45-credit option exists by permission for students pairing anthropology with a related major, and a separate 75-credit BS is aimed at graduate work. The BA also requires a year of college study or two years of high school study of one world language.

Core Courses

Four five-credit introductions plus Principles and Assessment

Upper Division

300-level courses in three subfields and a 400-level seminar

Final Requirement

ANTH 458, Senior Comprehensive Survey

Program Sources: Degrees and Courses | Central Washington University

Whitman’s anthropology major ends with a senior seminar where you write a capstone research project proposal, followed by a one-hour oral thesis defense in front of a panel of three faculty. There are no written exams or pre-thesis orals. The department’s learning goals expect familiarity with all four subdisciplines, an understanding of how anthropological theory has developed over time, and the ability to organize in-depth research from field data or literature searches. You are also expected to analyze themes such as kinship, gender, ritual and religion, exchange and language across cultures. Honors are open to eligible students.

Senior Seminar

Write a capstone research project proposal

Oral Defense

One-hour thesis defense before three faculty

Honors

Available to eligible students

Program Sources: Senior Assessment | Whitman College AnthropologySenior Assessment | Whitman College Anthropology

Eastern Washington’s BA in Anthropology teaches all four fields through required courses in human evolution, archaeological science, cultural anthropology and linguistic anthropology. You then add Anthropology Research Methods, Anthropological Theory and at least 25 upper-division elective credits, and finish with a Senior Capstone, for 60 credits in all. You can go deeper into one field or keep working across all four. A world language is required, either two years of high school or one year of college study, and the major does not require a minor. Graduates go into cultural resource management, public health and community outreach.

Foundation Courses

Human Evolution, Archaeological Science, Cultural and Linguistic Anthropology

Methods and Theory

ANTR 401 research methods and ANTR 408 theory

Capstone

ANTR 490, Senior Capstone Anthropology

Program Sources: Anthropology Major, Bachelor of Arts (BA) | Eastern Washington University

Seattle University combines the two disciplines in one Anthropology and Sociology BA, so you build research skills from both and learn to use them with community partners. The department puts race, gender, sexuality, economy and environment at the center. Courses cover social change and inequality, including community organizing, gentrification and food justice, as well as Asian studies, Native American studies, evolution and climate change. The curriculum is framed around intersectional justice, and faculty mentors support students along the way. University Honors students can earn course credit discounts in the department.

Combined Major

Anthropology and Sociology taught together

Course Themes

Social change and inequality, Asian studies, Native American studies, evolution

Honors Credit

Course credit discounts for University Honors students

Program Sources: Anthropology & Sociology, BA | Seattle University

At Saint Martin’s the anthropology route is a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Cultural Anthropology, so you study both fields together. The lower division includes Modern Society and Culture, American Social Problems, Introduction to Cultural Anthropology and Research Methods. Upper-division work runs through History of Sociology and Anthropology, Social Psychology, Social Theory, Advanced Research for the Social Sciences and a Sociology Seminar. Training includes archival research, interviewing, participant observation and the classics of global ethnography, and internships can place you in museums, public agencies or non-profits. Three degrees were awarded in 2023–24.

Methods Sequence

Research Methods, then Advanced Research for the Social Sciences

Upper-Division Core

Social Theory, Social Psychology and Sociology Seminar

Internships

Internship and directed study with museums, public agencies or non-profits

Program Sources: Sociology and Cultural Anthropology | Saint Martin's University

Washington State University organizes anthropology graduate work around archaeology, cultural anthropology, and evolutionary anthropology. Archaeology emphasizes the Americas and offers laboratory training in methods such as ceramics, lithics, paleoenvironmental analysis, and modeling. Cultural anthropology focuses on medical and psychological anthropology, family and gender, and ecology, with original field-based research central to training. The evolutionary program connects human behavior, biology, and cultural transmission through field and laboratory work. An applicant can therefore compare three genuinely different methods communities inside one department rather than assuming a uniform doctoral curriculum.

Graduate Areas

Archaeology, cultural, evolutionary

Research Settings

Field and laboratory work varies by area

Program Sources: WSU Anthropology Graduate StudiesWSU Evolutionary Anthropology Program

UW offers its anthropology doctorate through three tracks: Archaeology, Biological Anthropology and Sociocultural Anthropology. The archaeology program trains you in method, theory, scientific analysis of site materials and ethical engagement. The biological program studies human biological adaptation and its evolutionary basis. The sociocultural program prepares anthropologists for academic and non-academic work, with faculty interests ranging from global health to Indigenous archaeology. A concurrent MPH/PhD, developed with Epidemiology, Global Health and Health Services, lets you earn a Master of Public Health alongside a PhD in biological or sociocultural anthropology.

Doctoral Tracks

Archaeology, Biological Anthropology, Sociocultural Anthropology

Joint Degree

MPH/PhD with public health departments

Related Master’s

MA in Archaeological Heritage for cultural resource management careers

Program Sources: Graduate Programs | Department of Anthropology | University of Washington