Overview
The Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology: Medical Anthropology & Global Health (MAGH) provides a comprehensive exploration into the multifaceted dimensions of health, cultural diversity, and global contexts. This program, part of the Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology, offers a unique pathway for students intrigued by the intersection of health sciences, cultural diversity, and global perspectives.
MAGH stands as one of five options within the Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology, inviting students into an intriguing journey encompassing medical anthropology and global health studies. Whether aspiring for a comprehensive overview of anthropology or aiming for specialized scientific insights, the MAGH option caters to diverse academic interests within anthropology. The choice between a Bachelor of Arts (BA) or a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Anthropology hinges on the preferred focus area. The BA provides a broader overview of anthropology's humanistic facets, while the BS delves deeper into specific scientific dimensions within anthropology. Both pathways offer versatile opportunities for graduate and professional school training, catering to various fields such as health sciences, law, social justice advocacy, and anthropology.
MAGH graduates are well-prepared to pursue postgraduate training and careers in diverse health-related domains like public health, epidemiology, nursing, medicine, and global health. The interdisciplinary framework offered by anthropology serves as an ideal foundation for careers in health-related fields, acknowledged for its comprehensive preparation. Embark on an academic journey that traverses the intricate intersections of health, culture, and global perspectives, shaping a foundation for a future at the nexus of diverse fields in health and anthropology.
BA Medical Anthropology & Global Health Requirements - 55 credits total
Note: not all courses are offered regularly. The Anthropology Curriculum Forecast tool provides tentative course offerings for ANTH, ARCHY and BIO A classses. Check the Time Schedule for all current course offerings.
Core Requirements (20 credits)
- 5 credits: BIO A 201 – Principles of Biological Anthropology
- 5 credits: Any 200-level ARCHY course
- 5 credits: Any 200-level ANTH course
- Statistics course chosen from:
- CS&SS / SOC / STAT 221 – Statistical Concepts and Methods for the Social Sciences (5 cr)
- STAT 220 – Statistical Reasoning (5 cr)
- STAT 311 – Elements of Statistical Methods (5 cr)
- Q SCI 381 – Introduction to Probability & Statistics (5 cr)
- BIOST 310 – Biostatistics for the Health Sciences (4 cr)
- EDPSY 490 – Basic Educational Statistics (3 cr)
- PSYCH 315 – Understanding Statistics in Psychology (5 cr)
- QMETH 201 – Introduction to Statistical Methods (4 cr)
- Occasionally other basic statistics courses may be accepted. Contact Advising for approved courses.
Upper Division Electives (20 credits)
Any 300–400 level ANTH, BIO A, and/or ARCHY courses. Certain AIS courses may apply (AIS 317, 330, 335, 340, or 443).
Additional Electives (15 credits)
Any 200-level or above ANTH, BIO A, and/or ARCHY courses. Certain AIS courses may apply (AIS 202, 203, 209, 210, 311, 330, 335, 340, 425, 443, or 480).
Medical Anthropology & Global Health Option Courses (20 credits)
- 5 credits of ANTH 215 Introduction to Medical Anthropology and Global Health (5 cr) OR 5 credits ANTH 302 Body & Soul: Introduction to Medical Anthropology & Global Health as Social Justice Praxis (5 cr)
- 15 credits from the department approved list:
- ANTH 215 Introduction to Medical Anthropology & Global Health (5 cr)
- ANTH 302 Body and Soul: Introduction to Medical Anthropology & Global Health as Social Justice Praxis (5 cr)
- ANTH 303 Technologies of Health (5 cr)
- ANTH 304 Anthropology of Beauty (5 cr)
- ANTH 305 Anthropology of the Body (5 cr)
- ANTH 308 Anthropology of Women's Health and Reproduction (5 cr)
- ANTH 311 The Cultural Politics of Diet and Nutrition (5 cr)
- ANTH 322 Comparative Study of Death (5 cr)
- ANTH 325 Indigenous Knowledge & Public Health in Mexican & Latinx Origin Communities (5 cr)
- ANTH 361 Anthropology of Food (5 cr)
- ANTH 369 Special Problems in Anthropology (3-5 cr)
- ANTH 373 Labor, Identity and Knowledge in Healthcare (5 cr)
- ANTH 375 Comparative Systems of Healing (5 cr)
- ANTH 376 Anthropology of Disability (5 cr)
- ANTH 377 Anthropology and International Health (5 cr)
- ANTH 394 Embodied Liberation Theory and Praxis (3 or 5 cr)
- ANTH 403 Qualitative Research Methods (5 cr)
- ANTH 408 Experiments in Southeast Asia (5 cr)
- ANTH 410 Discourse and Health (5 cr)
- ANTH 411 The Culture and Politics of Food: Study Abroad in Italy (8-12 cr)
- ANTH 417 Surfacing the Stories of Hanford: Local and Global Health Disparities (5 cr)
- ANTH 422 Visuality and Medicine (3 or 5 cr)
- ANTH 425 Anthropology of the Post-Soviet States (5 cr)
- ANTH 452 Explorations in Biopower (5 cr)
- ANTH 453 Culture, Controversy and Change: The Case of Female Circumcision (5 cr)
- ANTH 458 Ethnobiology: Plants, Animals, and People (5 cr)
- ANTH 468 Anthropology of Care (5 cr)
- ANTH 472 Case Studies in Medical Anthropology & Global Health (5 cr)
- ANTH 474 Social Difference and Medical Knowledge (5 cr)
- ANTH 476 Culture, Medicine, and the Body (5 cr)
- ANTH 477 Medicine in America: Conflicts and Contradictions (3 cr)
- ANTH 478 Introduction to the Anthropology of Institutions (5 cr)
- ANTH 479 Advanced Topics in Medical Anthropology (3-5 cr)
- ANTH 483 Africa Living with HIV/AIDS (5 cr)
- ANTH 490 Healthcare and Aging (5 cr)
- ANTH 494 Feminist Performance Ethnography (5 cr)
- ANTH 496 Alter/Native Power: Exploring Alternative Strategies from Inside Anthropology Out (5 cr)
- ANTH 574 Culture, Society, and Genomics (3 cr)
- ARCHY 369 Special Problems in Archaeology (3-6 cr)
- BIO A 206 Plagues and Peoples (5 cr)
- BIO A 270 Human and Comparative Anatomy (5 cr)
- BIO A 300 Evolutionary Biology of Women (5 cr)
- BIO A 348 Evolutionary Biology and Human Diversity (5 cr)
- BIO A 350 Men's Health Across the Lifespan (5 cr)
- BIO A 351 Principles of Evolutionary Medicine (5 cr) OR BIO A 355 Evolutionary Medicine (3 cr)
- BIO A 382 Human Population Biology (3 cr)
- BIO A 387 Ecological Perspectives on Environmental Stress, Adaptation, and Health (5 cr)
- BIO A 409 Human Sexual Selection (5 cr)
- BIO A 413 Human Primate Interface: Implications for Disease, Risk, and Conservation (5 cr)
- BIO A 420 Anthropological Research on Health Disparities (5 cr)
- BIO A 423 Social Networks and Health (5 cr)
- BIO A 450 Biodemography Seminar (5 cr)
- BIO A 454 Hormones & Behavior (5 cr) & BIO A 455 Laboratory Methods in Hormones & Behavior (3 cr)
- BIO A 459 Laboratory Methods in Anthropological Genetics (5 cr)
- BIO A 465 Nutritional Anthropology (3 cr)
- BIO A 468 Human Reproductive Ecology (5 cr)
- BIO A 469 Special Topics in Biological Anthropology (3-5 cr)
- BIO A 471 Biocultural Perspectives of Childcare and Development (5 cr)
- BIO A 473 Biological Adaptability of Human Populations (5 cr)
- BIO A 476 Sociocultural Ecology and Health (3 cr)
- BIO A 482 Human Population Genetics (5 cr)
- BIO A 483 Human Genetics, Disease, and Culture (5 cr)
- BIO A 484 Applied Human Growth & Development (5 cr)
- BIO A 487 Human and Comparative Osteology (5 cr)
- BIO A 495 Growth and Development: Infancy (5 cr)
- BIO A 496 Growth and Development: Adolescence and Reproductive Maturity (5 cr)
- BIO A 568 Human Reproductive Ecology (5 cr)
- Students may take any of the AIS courses listed below to fulfill any remaining credit requirements:
- AIS 202 Introduction to American Indian Contemporary & Social Issues (5 cr)
- AIS 203 Introduction to American Indian & Indigenous Literature (5 cr)
- AIS 209 The Unsettling of The Red Continent: American Indian History To 1815 (5 cr)
- AIS 210 Inconvenient Indians & The 'American Problem': American Indian History Since 1815 (5 cr)
- AIS 311 The Indigenous History & Environment of The Salish Sea (5 cr)
- AIS 330 United States-Indian Relations (5 cr)
- AIS 335 American Indians & The Law (5 cr)
- AIS 340 Indian Children & Families (5 cr)
- AIS 425 Indians in Western Washington History (5 cr)
- AIS 443 Indigenous Films, Sovereign Visions (5 cr)
- AIS 480 Indigenous Resistance & Resurgence Movements in The United States, Canada, & Mexico (5 cr)
How the Medical Anthropology & Global Health option courses appears in DARS
Medical Anthropology & Global Health option courses appear in a separate option block in DARS. Many of these courses also apply toward Upper Division and Additional Elective requirements. This overlap is intentional and allows students to complete the option within the 55-credit BA total with careful planning.
Additional Requirements for the Major
- At least 25 credits in the major must be completed with a minimum grade of 2.5 in each course
- At least 15 credits of upper-division (300–400 level) ANTH, ARCHY, or BIO A coursework must be completed in residence at UW
- Minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 in courses applied to the major
- Note: a limited number of Independent Study credits may be applied to the major - up to 12 credits of ANTH 499, ARCHY 499, and/or BIO A 499; up to 18 credits for departmental Honors courses