The design of the Anthropology Honours degree enables a clear progression. The Level 1 course Introduction to Anthropology provides an introduction to the main topics and central concerns of anthropology. The course focuses on a number of areas of cross-cultural interest and provides comparative perspectives on social life and social institutions. Also in Level 1 intending Honours students are required to take the second half-session course Introduction to Sociology, which examines the character of modern society by considering family, work, gender, inequality, social change, development, nationalism, youth culture and the media. The Level 2 courses focus on the anthropology of complex social systems, provide historical and contemporary perspectives on social identity and social interaction, explore the relationship between self and society and culture and nature, introduce the principal methods used by anthropologists, and consider the politics and ethics of anthropological research in a changing world.
Students also develop analytical and critical skills in the reading of ethnography.
At Level 3 students take courses on Anthropological Theory and Ethnographic Methods, and take a substantive course, such as an ethnographic area. Students gain insight into the practice, politic and ethics of doing and writing ethnography, learn qualitative and quantitative methods, and are trained in data analysis. Students also pursue their own research topic and write up an independent dissertation under the supervision of a member of staff. Anthropology provides insight into the complexity of social life and social processes and the diversity of cultures and social institutions. While not a directly career-oriented subject, anthropology challenges students to think critically, gives them a training in how to understand society from many different perspectives, and equips them with practical skills in working with people in a variety of cultural contexts.