The programme aims to provide undergraduate students with a solid grounding in Anthropology, a field of study that is concerned with what it means to be human. The programme will familiarize learners with the breadth of anthropological knowledge, theories, and methods as well as teach them how these are applicable to the world beyond the classroom. As the first Bhutanese programme in Anthropology, it will also seek to demonstrate the value and relevance of the discipline within the context of Bhutan, which has always recognized the value of its rich cultural heritage. Hence, this programme will focus mainly on cultural anthropology, which is a core sub-discipline of Anthropology. However, the programme will also seek to introduce learners to the other major sub-disciplines, namely linguistic anthropology, biological/physical anthropology, and archaeological anthropology.
Anthropology as a discipline offers learners both the tools to record and preserve culture (in all its various forms) as well as the theoretical frameworks to understand, discuss, predict, and manage cultural change. Learners will also acquire training in anthropological research methods. The skills and knowledge gained will open career pathways in government, civil society, business, and academia. Graduates will also be well prepared for higher degree studies in Anthropology.
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| Yr | Sem | Modules | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | I | AFD101 Introduction to Anthropology | AFD102 Introduction to Biological Anthropology: human evolution | AFD103 Introduction to Archaeology | AID101 Kinship and Family | EAP101 Intermediate English for Academic Purposes [English comm. Gen. Ed.] |
| II | AFD104 Language and Culture | AFD105 Heritage Studies | AFD106 Human variation and adaptation | IPS101 IT and Basic Problem Solving [IT Skills Gen. Ed] | EAP102 Upper-Intermediate English for Academic Purposes [English comm. Gen. Ed.] | |
| 2 | I | ETY201 Ethnographic Monographs | UGR202 Anthropological Research Methods | ATH201 Medical Anthropology | ATH202 Political Anthropology | DZG101 རྫོང་ཁ་བརྡ་དོན་སྤྲོད་ལེན། [Dzongkha comm. Gen. Ed.] |
| II | ASC201 Anthropology of Globalization | ATH203 History and Theory of Anthropology | ATH204 Ecological Anthropology | QRE101 Quantitative Reasoning [Numeracy Gen. Ed.] | GSE101 Analytical Skills [Analytical Skills Gen. Ed.] | |
| 3 | I | AID302 Anthropology of Identity | ETY302 Writing Ethnography | ETY303 Visual Anthropology | AAS301 Anthropology of the Himalayas | STS101 Introduction to Statistics |
| II | UGR303 Proposal Writing | ASC302 Anthropology of Development | ASC303 Anthropology of Technology | AAS302 Ethnography of Bhutan [Bhutan Studies Gen. Ed.] | AID303 Anthropology of Gender | |
| 4 | I | UGR407 Undergraduate Ethnographic Research | ATH405 Anthropology of Religion and Rituals | AAS403 Anthropology of South East Asia | [Business / Financial Literacy Gen. Ed. Elective] | [Open Gen. Ed. Elective] |
| II | ASC404 Applied Anthropology | ASC405 Contemporary issues in Anthropology | ETH405 Contemporary Buddhist Ethics [Ethics/ Values Orientation Gen. Ed.] | [Open Gen. Ed. Elective] | ||
Graduates of this programme are expected to acquire not only a grounding within the field of anthropological knowledge (subject-specific skills) but will also gain competency in the following skill areas: critical thinking skills, application skills, and transferable skills. Specific learning outcomes based on these four different skill sets are the foundation of this programme, along with appropriately aligned teaching, learning, and assessment tools.
A degree in anthropology opens doors to a number of career paths including 1) academic careers in teaching and research; 2) corporate and business careers (as many businesses look explicitly for anthropologists, recognizing the utility of their knowledge and training to, for instance, work in a culturally diverse corporate team, to examine consumer preference patterns, market research, and to operate effectively in transnational endeavors); 3) government careers (as state and local governmental organizations often employ anthropologists in planning, research, and managerial capacities); 4) Non-profit and community-based careers (as these non-governmental organizations employ anthropologists to help design and implement a wide variety of programmes, and are also frequently involved in social impacts assessments, project evaluations, and consulting).
Graduates of this programme would be valuable to organizations and agencies such as: The Royal Government of Bhutan (particularly in the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Department of Culture, the National Statistics Bureau, and The Center for Bhutan Studies); Local CSOs such as Tararyana, Shejun, and Music of Bhutan Research Center; As well as the tourism industry more generally, museums and heritage sites such as the Royal Textile Academy, National Museum Paro, and Royal Heritage Museum in Trongsa; International organizations with offices in Bhutan such as SNV, UNICEF, Helvetas, and the World Bank.