The Best Online Bachelor's Programs in Anthropology

Oregon State University's College of Liberal Arts offers an online Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science in Anthropology. Both programs require 180 total credits with tuition currently set at $288 per credit. There are four areas of focus for students to choose:

• Archaeology option
• Bio-cultural option
• Cultural/linguistic option
• General

Credit requirements are comprised of:

• 48 credits of the Baccalaureate core courses
• 15 credits Liberal Arts core
• 15-24 credits of B.A. or B.S. requirements
• 60 credits for the Anthropology major
• Electives as needed

Courses will cover a range of topics such as:

• Peoples of the world
• Cultures in conflict
• Wealth and poverty
• Forensic anthropology
• North America after the ice age

The online Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology program at Southern New Hampshire University emphasizes a multi-disciplinary curriculum. This program has a strong foundation in ethics, conservation, and archaeology.

Students have the opportunity to specialize in the areas of:

• Environmental Sustainability : Focuses on environmental and cultural challenges and adaptations connecting past events to current and future consequences. This specialization may lead to a career as an Environmental Solutions Manager or a Waste and Energy Management Specialist
• Geo-spatial Technologies: Uses tools to map and analyze human societies, cultural trends, and the movement of people groups. This may lead to careers in Cartography, Economic Development Analyzing, or Project Management.

The 120 total required credits consist of:

• 45 credits general education classes
• 45 credits degree courses
• 30 credits free electives

Class topics may include:

• Earth System Science
• Discovering the Past: Foundations in Archaeology
• Human Origins and Evolution: Biological Anthropology
• Anthropology in the Contemporary World

Colorado State offers an online Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology. This 120 credit degree emphasized a curriculum of cultural relativism integrating ideas from the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Students will enroll in classes such as:

• Human Ecology
• Gender and Anthropology
• Cultural Geography
• Human Origins and Variation

This Anthropology degree offers a unique opportunity for all of the enrolled students, that is, the option to attend a summer field school in person. (This is completely optional and not mandatory for online students). These field schools are:

• Paleontology Field School in Greybull, Wyoming
• Archaeology Field School in Northern Colorado
• Ethnographic Field School in the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation of South Dakota

At the University of Central Florida, the Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology program is offered through the College of Sciences and the Department of Anthropology. The curriculum is comprehensive in scope with all enrolled students being exposed to a variety of sub-fields including:

• Archaeology
• Cultural Anthropology
• Linguistics
• Physical Anthropology

A total of 120 credits are required for graduation. The University also offers an online undergraduate certificate program in Anthropology with a concentration in Native American studies.

Arizona State University offers an online Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology program through the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. This four year degree requires 120 total credits, or 39 classes, covering a variety of topics.

The curriculum emphasizes using statistics and the scientific method to gather and analyze qualitative and quantitative data. Some class examples include:

• Global History of Health
• Medical Anthropology: Culture and Health
• Bones, Stones, and Human Evolution
• Urban and Environmental Health

Apprenticeship programs are available across 40 different laboratories. Classes run for 7.5 weeks with a current tuition rate of $584 per credit. Students are expected to maintain a Major GPA and Cumulative GPA of 2.0.

The Steven J. Green School of International and Public Affairs at Florida International University offers a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology or Anthropology. 120 credits are required to complete the program.

The Anthropology track makes a detailed study of the influence of language, the creation and organization of government and other social structures, and how cultures create meaning. There are 15 credits of required core courses:

• World Ethnography
• Research Methods
• Anthropological Theories
• Social Theory
• One other adviser-approved research methods course

Additionally, students must take 30 credits of electives with a minimum of nine credits taken outside the major.

The Bachelor of Arts in Cultural Anthropology program at the University of Arizona, Global Campus requires a total of 120 credits for graduation.

Students may transfer in up to 90 credits from other approved institutions to help reduce tuition. Credit requirements consist of:

• 43 General education requirements
• 45 Major course requirements
• 35 elective credits

Students may be able to use three credits from the major to fulfill general education requirements. Classes cover a diversity of topic from gender studies to war and linguistics.

Classes include the following Anthropology subjects:

• Human Origin and Prehistory
• Material Culture: Archaeology and the Human Condition
• Anthropology of War
• Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Ritual
• Native American Anthropology

The Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology program at Northern Arizona University offers two areas of emphasis: Archaeology or Sociocultural Anthropology.

The curriculum focuses on a holistic cross-cultural approach to education with students participating in research, fieldwork, and service. For online students fieldwork is optional, but highly encouraged. The 120 total required credits include:

• 33-34 credits of major courses
• 16 credits of languages
• 18-21 credits in a minor or an emphasis area
• Elective courses as needed

Up to nine credits of major courses may be used towards general education requirements. Upon graduation students may be eligible for an entry level position in the job field or may continue their education with the Master of Arts in Anthropology, also offered at Northern Arizona University.

The Heavin School of Arts and Sciences at Thomas Edison State teaches the online Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from a liberal arts perspective. This comprehensive over-view of the subject requires a total of 120 credits for graduation comprised of:

• 60 credits general education classes
• 33 credits major courses
• 27 credits electives

There are seven required major courses in addition to a final capstone course. These include:

• Cultural Anthropology
• Physical Anthropology
• Social Organization
• Ethnographic courses

Other possible electives and topical courses are:

• Cultures of Mesoamerica and the Caribbean
• Aging and Death in Cross Cultural Perspective
• Medical Anthropology
• Peasant Societies
• Urban Anthropology

The Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology is offered through the College of Liberal Arts at the University of Florida. As such this degree has a broad-based liberal arts background exposing students to a variety of subjects including:

• Biology
• Zoology
• Political science
• Law
• History

The 120 total course credits required for this degree includes 34 credits of anthropology coursework. Students have the opportunity to specialize in one of four areas:

• Cultural Anthropology
• Archaeology
• Biological Anthropology
• Linguistics