Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology

The department seeks applicants to the PhD program with a defined research interest in sociocultural anthropology, an undergraduate background in anthropology is desirable, but not required. Entering students will devise a detailed first-year plan of study with provisional plans for succeeding years in consultation with a faculty advisory committee. The plan will emphasize broad training in the discipline before the eventual definition of a project for dissertation research. Upon completing the MA and PhD degrees in the field of Anthropology, students will have: Developed the skills to pursue successfully various professional endeavors, within and outside the academy. Obtained comprehensive understanding of the history of the discipline and anthropological theory and practice. Engaged with the key methodological, theoretical and critical analytical skills at the heart of the discipline with the capacity to become skilled producers of anthropological knowledge and to critique actively and reconfigure canonical anthropological knowledge. Applied research and analytical skills to original research questions and case studies to produce actively innovative approaches to anthropological knowledge and to intervene effectively in extant disciplinary discussions and debates.

COPIES OF TRANSCRIPT(S) must be uploaded electronically in the application system. If an applicant is accepted to the doctoral program, OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPTS must be submitted to the department in a sealed envelope, sent directly to the Department of Anthropology, at the following address: Rice University, Department of Anthropology-MS 20, PO Box 1892, Houston, TX 77005. Any degree that a student is currently pursuing (BA, BS, MPhil, MA, MS) must be conferred (completed) before submitting the transcript(s), the student will not be allowed to register for the second semester at Rice without official conferral of degree and official transcripts on file.
Applicants for academic year 2021/22 will NOT need to provide GRE (Graduate Record Examination) General Test scores. The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is still required of any student whose native language is not English. The Anthropology department will consider GRE scores if an applicant chooses to submit them, but applicants are not required to do so. The GRE and TOEFL scores should be sent to: Rice University, Department of Anthropology-MS 20, PO Box 1892, Houston TX 77005.
GRE: The scores must not be more than five years old, and an official copy must be sent to Rice University directly from the Educational Testing Service. Personal copies are not acceptable. The codes for the GRE test are: School code: 6609, Dept. code: 1701.
TOEFL: The score must not be more than two years old and an official copy must be sent to the Graduate School directly from ETS. The score must be at least 600 on the paper-based TOEFL or score at least 90 on the internet-based TOEFL. For students who choose to take the IELTS in lieu of TOEFL, the minimum score is 7. THE STATEMENT OF PROPOSED RESEARCH - THE STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION - A document of no more than 1,500 words describing any additional factors that you would like to have the admissions committee consider in evaluating your application (e.g. personal background, work experience, leadership roles, etc.)
LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION - Three letters of recommendation are required for the application and are to be submitted by the letter writer through Rice's application portal or through an online recommendation letter service (such as Interfolio). If possible, it is advisable that applicants solicit letters from current or previous professors with whom the applicant has taken classes.
WRITING SAMPLE - Please upload a writing sample that represents your past work and interests effectively, up to 8000 words (but fewer words is also adequate).