Topic ID #7063 - posted 2/23/2010 9:45 PM

Zooarchaeology? Is it a viable option?



csh0430

I was wondering if anyone knew what schools specialized in Zooarchaeology in the United States? Is this a viable career option or a dead end?
Thanks!


Post ID#17406 - replied 2/25/2010 5:46 PM



faunalguy


UC-Santa-Cruz, CSU-Chico, UNLV, Georgia, Florida and Alaska-Anchorage to name a few. I can personally recommend the University of Arizona.

As far as being a viable career option, that depends on the type of archaeology (and education) that you are interested in pursuing. I would say zooarchaeology is still an up and coming field, in general. With that said, it tends to be overlooked within contract archaeology. In my experience, it is rare for most companies to keep a zooarchaeologist on staff, as it is easier in most places to subcontract to universities and museums (or to simply ignore it). Some companies use human osteologists or biologists to do faunal analysis. However, I was hired (with just a BA) as a faunal analyst, so it is not impossible to find these positions. In contract work you will have to be willing to branch out and do a little of everything to keep employed. Personally, I would say I spend roughly 10% of my year doing anything remotely related to zooarchaeology. Academic and museum jobs are essentially a crapshoot, no matter the specialty, and nearly always require a Ph.D. And I have yet to see a federal job posting that lists faunal experience as a pre-req or a potential job-duty.

I would say Zooarchaeology is viable overall, but keep your options open and diversify your skills as much as possible. Good luck

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