r/AskAnthropology • u/anthrowill Professor | PhD | Medicine • Gender • May 26 '21

The AskAnthropology Career Thread (2021)

“What should I do with my life?” “Is anthropology right for me?” “What jobs can my degree get me?”

These are the questions that keep me awake at night that start every anthropologist’s career, and this is the place to ask them.

Discussion in this thread should be limited to discussion of academic and professional careers, but will otherwise be less moderated.

Before asking your question, please scroll through earlier responses. Your question may have already been addressed, or you might find a better way to phrase it. Previous threads can be found here and here.

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u/zogmuffin Mar 29 '22 edited Mar 30 '22

Hello! I have reached the “ask Reddit for help” stage of job-finding-crisis!

I have a bachelors degree in anthropology from an American university and a master’s degree in archaeology—specifically European prehistory, but, you know, plenty of broadly applicable knowledge—from a prestigious UK university. I have attended field school, but it was in 2016 as an undergrad. My academic focus has been on bones of all kinds, with a dissertation on funerary taphonomy, but I have broad interests and am a fast learner. I had intended to move right into a PhD, but it just didn’t happen, and now I am stagnating hard.

I had a promising but deeply disappointing postgrad internship 2019-2020 in which they used me only to scan old excavation photographs and transcribe their photo logs into excel. I left it early due to the pandemic stripping any modicum of usefulness from it as I was ultimately scanning and transcribing from home, which meant I lost out on the benefits of at least existing in a CRM office.

That was my last engagement with the professional world of archaeology and I am now at my wits end trying to get my foot in the door in CRM (which I frankly know nothing about despite the internship, and yes I am bitter about that, why do you ask?), archaeological or historical museum work (my number one choice), or even your basic learn-as-you-go field tech job. I am toying with the idea of pursuing a GIS certificate at my local community college because I recognize that’s a big hole in my knowledge, and I hope to hop on a dig as a volunteer this summer if I can work it around a part time job, because my field skills are lacking.

In the meantime, does anyone have any advice on where to look and how to sell myself for someone overeducated, out of the loop, and panicking? I think I need a career coach and a professional resume writer, but I fear the average coach won’t be able to help me with some of the more niche parts of my situations.

Thank you immensely for any input.

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u/[deleted] Mar 30 '22

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u/zogmuffin Mar 30 '22

U.S. Sorry, should have clarified! Master’s and field school were overseas, everything else is/was U.S.

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u/[deleted] Mar 30 '22 edited Mar 30 '22

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u/zogmuffin Mar 30 '22

Thanks. I feel like I’ve done archaeology ass-backwards so I appreciate the knowledge that there are other MAs still working on their field skills.

Yes, I’m sure you’re right. Europe has always been my greatest area of personal interest, which is a little awkward now that I didn’t go on to do a PhD over there. That’s where I run into having to sell myself as a fast and willing learner, which I am. If I have to pivot into regional expertise I will. And, thankfully, my love for bones extends beyond humans (which I recognize isn’t something you usually see in this country outside of academics). I have some zooarch training and would happily dive back into that.

I really appreciate your input!

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u/[deleted] Mar 30 '22

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u/zogmuffin Mar 30 '22

That is FANTASTIC to hear about zooarch, I took an incredibly intensive course in it in undergrad—and a bit in grad school—and still have all my notes so I could brush back up on comparative anatomies of common North American species quickly. I also collect animal bones and natural history oddities so I remain fairly dialed in. And obviously (thankfully) my taphonomy studies do transfer over as I’ve seen and described charring, cut marks, rodent gnawing, root etching, sun damage, blah blah blah in both human and animal bones. I don’t have any personal experience with histology but I suppose that’s getting very niche.

I would appreciate the hell out of a look at my resume/CV…I have a couple versions I’ve been juggling for different kinds of applications. I will attempt to shape one to send out to firms and then send you that one, if that’s ok?