Courses

Required Courses

Handbooks are created specifically for each cohort and students must reference the appropriate Handbook based on the year they entered the program. The 2024-25 cohort Handbook is in progress and will be available in the Summer. In the meantime, you may reference the 2023-24 cohort Handbook [no changes to the requirements are anticipated, just edits to any links or resource pages].

Available below is a list of required courses to take in your first Fall Quarter. For subsequent quarters, please refer to the Handbook for the courses you will need to complete.

Course Schedule

The Schedule of Classes is available on both the Registrar's page and MyUCLA. The Schedule of recent quarters are available for view. Please refer to the calendar on this portal's homepage to review the release dates of Fall Quarter courses.

Anthropology graduate-level courses are typically taught once a week in 3 hour blocks (for a 4 unit course), and are scheduled to start anywhere between 8AM and 5PM. The number of days per week a student will be taking courses is dependent on the courses they enroll in and when those courses are scheduled. Anthropology graduate-level courses do not have discussion sections. Most graduate-level classes taught at UCLA do not have discussion sections.

Tentative Anthropology Course Offerings

A table of tentative course offerings for the 2024-25 academic year will be available at a later time.

Course offerings are subject to change. Please consult the Schedule of Classes by the listed availability date for actual course offerings as some courses may be added, moved, or cancelled before enrollment begins.

Anthropology Course Descriptions

Course descriptions are available on the Registrar's page.

Fall Quarter Required Courses for New Students

The Department requires to students to be enrolled in at least 12 units every quarter. For students returning to school after a number of years or those who have not experienced the quarter system, it is recommended to enroll in no more than 12 units for the Fall Quarter. 

The following are required for Fall Quarter.

• ANTHRO 200 (required for all students, regardless of subfield)

• Your subfield's graduate core seminar:

  • Archaeology: ANTHRO M201A

  • Biological: ANTHRO 202A

  • Linguistic: ANTHRO 204A

  • Sociocultural, including Psychocultural/Medical students: ANTHRO 203A

• Your subfield's interest group (only required if listed below):

  • Biological: ANTHRO 221

  • Sociocultural (not including Psychocultural/Medical students): ANTHRO 241

Please consult your cohort's handbook for course requirements. You are responsible for ensuring that you are enrolled in your required subfield courses in subsequent quarters.

Other Courses to Consider

• Courses required for the degree (ex: core seminar in another subfield, methods course, elective)

• Are your faculty advisors offering a course?   

• Do your advisors know of a course(s) that they feel is important for you to take?     

• Unless stated as required, students are strongly recommended to enroll each quarter that they are in residence for the interest group that most closely aligns with their area of specialization. These are:

  • Archaeology: No course. The Archaeology Program typically hosts guest lectures on Wednesday afternoons.

  • Biological: 

    • Anthro 221 (Behavior Evolution and Culture) - Enrollment is required from all Biological Anthro subfield students every quarter in residence at UCLA.

    • Anthro 223 (Experimental Biological Anthropology)

  • Linguistic: Anthro 254 (Discourse Lab)

  • Sociocultural (including Psychocultural/Medical emphasis): 

    • Anthro 234 (Mind, Medicine, & Culture) - Enrollment is expected from all students in Psychocultural/Medical Anthropology each quarter they are in residence at UCLA, including their first year.

    • Anthro 241 (Culture, Power, and Social Change) - Enrollment is required from all students in Sociocultural Anthropology during their first year, and enrollment is expected each quarter they are in residence at UCLA.

• Courses outside of Anthropology

• Language classes. If you want or need to take a language class, enroll early and check to see if a placement exam is required. The M.A. degree requirements do not require a foreign language, but the PhD requirements do.

Course Search

When searching for courses on MyUCLA, you will need to look through the specific subject area/department offering the course.

Course Numbering

Course numbers indicates the course's level and type:

• 0-99 are lower division undergraduate courses can be taken, but cannot be used towards the unit minimum requirement for the M.A.

• 100-199 are upper division undergraduate courses. If completing the M.A, only a maximum of 16 units of upper-division undergraduate courses may be applied.

• 200-299 are graduate courses

• 300-399 are teacher-training courses typically only used for students who are hired as Teaching Assistants. These courses do not count towards the unit minimum requirement for any degree program.

• 400-499 are designed for professional programs

• 500-599 are independent study courses

• Courses with an M preceding the number indicates a cross-listed course. This course is offered jointly by more than one department.

• Courses with a C preceding the number indicates it is a concurrent undergraduate and graduate course. For the graduate coursework, students should search for the appropriate 200-299 number.

Non-Degree Required Courses

While each degree program has specific course requirements that every student must fulfill, as a UCLA student you are welcome to enroll in courses offered by any department on-campus for your own learning/not intended to count towards your degree program. Please keep in mind that some courses have enforced prerequisites or enrollment restrictions that may prevent you from enrolling.