The mission of the Department of Anthropology is to promote the value of human diversity and contribute to understandings of how humans have navigated complex social and physical environments across space and time. The department’s goals are to:

• Train undergraduate majors in methods and critical thinking that will allow them to succeed in a variety of careers and future paths of study such as law, medicine, diplomacy, business, education, anthropology and many more.
   
• Guide graduate students in conducting research and applying anthropological theory and methods for the benefit of various communities and stakeholders.
   
• Empower faculty to produce original knowledge and ideas in cultural anthropology, biological anthropology, and archaeology.
   
• Serve the Commonwealth and beyond by lending expertise to governmental and non-governmental agencies and applying our skills to questions and topics (such as disaster preparedness, repatriation, oral history, heritage preservation, and more) for the benefit of a variety of communities.

In addition to these goals, members of the department strive to follow our Community Values.

The department focuses on three sub-disciplines of anthropology: cultural anthropology, archaeology, and biological anthropology. Members of the department share interests in a variety of topics. We investigate environmental and social justice and the origins and changes in inequalities across time and space. We research human evolution and transformations in health disparities, cultural practices, and power dynamics. We explore cultural heritage, meaning, and the intersection of multiple forms of identity. Faculty, students, and the museum of anthropology engage directly with various communities across the Commonwealth and beyond. We apply anthropology in a way that incorporates theory and practice to understand and address persistent and urgent problems. Our faculty work in the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, South America, Africa, Southwest Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Europe.