12 Fully Funded PhD Programs in Cultural Anthropology

Oct 08, 2024
Beautiful Hmong traditional handmade colorful clothes and souvenir of minority ethnic. These traditional items would potentially be studied in fully funded PhD Programs in Cultural Anthropology.
The University of Oregon offers a fully funded PhD in Cultural Anthropology with various approaches to studying culture and society.

As part of our series How to Fully Fund Your PhD, here is a list of universities that offer fully funded PhD programs in cultural anthropology. Also known as social or sociocultural anthropology, cultural anthropology is a subfield of anthropology that focuses on research topics such as cultural variation, social dynamics, cross-cultural comparison, comparative human development, cultural expression, human geography, and many other related subjects, often using ethnographic methods such as participant observation and qualitative social science. A PhD in cultural anthropology can lead to a variety of exciting careers, including in academia, social research, NGOs and nonprofits, government, media, and other paths.

“Full funding” is a financial aid package for full-time students that includes full tuition remission as well as an annual stipend or salary during the entire program, which is usually 3-6 years. Funding usually comes with the expectation that students will teach or complete research in their field of study. Not all universities fully fund their doctoral students, which is why researching the financial aid offerings of many different programs, including small and lesser-known schools both in the U.S. and abroad, is essential.

The ProFellow database for graduate and doctoral study also spotlights external funding opportunities for graduate school, including dissertation research, fieldwork, language study, and summer work experiences.

Duke University Fully Funded PhD in Cultural Anthropology

In Durham, North Carolina, Duke University offers a fully-funded PhD program in Cultural Anthropology. This program is designed to focus on core debates and themes within the history of sociocultural anthropology and related fields. The research methods in this program emphasize ethnographic methods, grant writing, and literature review. The graduate fellowships provide tuition and a five-year living stipend, subject to appropriate progress toward the PhD degree. Stipends and fellowships require service in the form of teaching assistance. Additionally, other university awards are given to outstanding students based on a competitive basis.

University of Gothenburg Fully Funded PhD in Social Anthropology

The University of Gothenburg, situated in Sweden, offers a fully funded PhD program in Social Anthropology. This program aims to provide students with the skills to understand the diverse perspectives of people from different regions and how they organize and comprehend the world around them, both locally and globally. The main objective of this program is to develop independent and professional research skills and contribute to the research field through a doctoral dissertation. Students accepted for doctoral education are employed by the department for a maximum of five years. Salaries for doctoral students are determined based on local agreements.

New York University Fully Funded PhD in Cultural Anthropology

New York University offers a fully-funded PhD program in Cultural Anthropology, which provides rigorous training in general social and cultural theory, including contemporary writings and the classics of anthropology and sociology. The Annette B. Weiner Fellowship in Cultural Anthropology is available to support ethnographic fieldwork by graduate students in the Department of Anthropology. All students admitted into the PhD program receive funding through the Henry Mitchell MacCracken Program, which covers full tuition and fee remission, a living stipend, and NYU health insurance for five years.

University of Oregon Fully Funded PhD in Cultural Anthropology

The University of Oregon, located in Eugene, OR, provides a fully funded PhD program in Cultural Anthropology. The Department of Cultural Anthropology at UO offers various approaches to studying culture and society. The faculty members of the department conduct research in various regions, including South Asia, the Middle East, Europe, West Africa, North America, Latin America, and the Caribbean. All graduate program applicants are eligible for graduate employee positions, which include a full tuition waiver, health insurance, and a monthly stipend. Students who make good progress in the program typically receive departmental support for up to four years.

Washington University in St. Louis Fully Funded PhD in Sociocultural Anthropology

Washington University in St. Louis offers a PhD program in Sociocultural Anthropology. This fully funded program is designed to help students progress efficiently from classroom training to conducting original ethnographic research. The faculty and doctoral students are engaged in cutting-edge scholarship across many disciplinary subfields. Students are generally provided with tuition remission and a living stipend for 4-6 years, given that they make satisfactory progress towards their degree. Additionally, students are eligible for summer dissertation research travel support, typically for around $1000 per student.

University of Colorado Boulder Fully Funded PhD in Cultural Anthropology

The University of Colorado Boulder, located in Boulder, CO, offers a fully-funded PhD program in Cultural Anthropology. The faculty’s research interests include culture and power, post-colonialism, racial constructs, religion, and ritual. Students admitted into this doctoral program will receive five years of guaranteed funding and will be supported through research and teaching assistantships.

Harvard University Fully Funded PhD in Archaeology and Social Anthropology

Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, offers a fully funded PhD program in Archaeology and Social Anthropology. The Department of Anthropology provides specialized coursework and training in two primary fields of study—archaeology and social anthropology. Each field has its own research and examination procedures. Students enrolled in the PhD program in Anthropology are guaranteed funding for the first five years. Additionally, various funding options and fellowships are available for other students.

Yale University Fully Funded PhD Sociocultural and Linguistic Anthropology

Yale University in New Haven, CT, provides a fully-funded PhD program in Sociocultural and Linguistic Anthropology. The program aims to offer students training in a wide range of topics and areas that intersect with ethnography and contemporary social and cultural theory. Upon acceptance into Yale’s PhD program, students receive an official offer letter from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, a contractual document outlining the funding package for their PhD studies. The students are guaranteed funding for two years, which includes University Fellowships, Teaching Assistantships, and Dissertation Fellowship (UDF) for their dissertation research.

City University of New York Fully Funded PhD in Anthropology

The City University of New York, New York, NY, offers a fully funded PhD in Anthropology. The Anthropology Program at the Graduate Center provides a wide range of anthropological knowledge through more than 50 full-time faculty members who specialize in the discipline’s four subfields. All applicants to the Graduate Center’s doctoral programs will automatically be considered for five-year institutional funding packages. This financial aid, which includes fellowships, tuition awards, and assistantships, is solely based on merit.

Northwestern University Fully Funded PhD in Anthropology 

Northwestern University, located in Evanston, Illinois, provides a fully funded PhD in Anthropology. The graduate program in Anthropology at Northwestern encourages diversity within the discipline by promoting an intellectual exchange between different humanistic and scientific approaches. The program emphasizes the integration of major anthropological subfields in both research and graduate training. Full-time PhD students receive full funding, including a stipend and tuition remission.

University of Minnesota Fully Funded PhD in Anthropology

The University of Minnesota, located in Minneapolis, MN, provides a fully funded PhD program in Anthropology. This program is designed to equip students with the necessary skills to succeed as a researcher or teacher at the college or university level or in an advanced non-academic research position. Upon admission to the PhD program, students are offered a five-year funding package, subject to satisfactory progress toward their degree. This funding package includes tuition payment for up to 14 credits per semester, partial health insurance premium payment, and a stipend.

University of California Fully Funded PhD in Anthropology

The University of California – San Diego, located in San Diego, CA, provides a fully-funded PhD program in Anthropology. The graduate students enrolled in this program receive financial support for up to five years. During the program’s first four years, students receive full payment of tuition fees and a stipend and salary, and the first year of non-resident tuition is fully covered. In the fifth year, students receive a one-year Research Stipend for a research fellowship.

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