Best Graduate and Undergraduate Schools, Universities, and Colleges for Archaeology and Anthropology

Welcome to the archaeology and anthropology school page on Ancient Digger.

I have compiled several lists in order to help you determine the top colleges and universities with the best anthropology and archaeology undergraduate and graduate programs and schools.

You will all notice that rankings have been added for the best maritime/nautical archaeology programs, best linguistic anthropology programs, top schools for classical archaeology,  top programs for history, archives, and preservation, as well as comprehensive details pertaining to student outcomes and cost of your education.


The BIG Question

You need to understand and ask yourself what the "top archaeology or anthropology school" means to you. Does this mean lowest cost?  Job placement after graduation? Best faculty?

Virtually every school offering these programs has a something to offer students. As an undergraduate archaeology student at University of Central Florida, you may typically take the same required electives and core classes as a student attending University of Alabama. The biggest differences come when you begin your masters, and also your research as a PhD candidate.

The biggest advice I can give, and I can say with all honesty that it's the same I give my students now, is that you can't always look at the top 50 schools and think your mind is only set on those schools. We have USA Today to thank for that healthy ranking obsession. Think about what area of study interests you. What part of the world do you want to research. Have you thought about the climate you want to live it? Is there a Starbucks within walking distance?–– Hey, my students really ask about this *smile*. Are you applying to an Ivy League because it's an Ivy league? Do they even have your program? At Harvard, will I be trained to turn over a millimeter of top soil in two weeks like  Eddie Izzard mentioned in his comedy show,  just like someone from Arizona State?

Seems like a lot of odd questions, and I would never stop anyone was pursuing this field. Just think about what you want to accomplish. Do you know the reasons why you should be an archaeologist? If you don't immediately know the answer to this, I would do some self reflection.

Or, read about why others have chosen the profession. Here's one of my favorites posts on Ancient Digger from 2011 (one little snippet below to tickle your funny bone): Twitter Users Speak Out: Reasons Why You Became An Archaeologist

I love everything that's old: old friends, old times, old manners, old books, old wine." but mainly the wine ...~YorksArch

2018-2019 Rankings (Undergraduate)

Comprehensive list of all US Colleges offering Archaeology and Anthropology Undergraduate Programs

United States	Location	Status
Arizona Arizona State University	Tempe	Public
University of Arizona	Tuscan	Public
Northern Arizona University	Flagstaff	Public
California
Stanford University	Palo Alto	Private
University of California - Berkeley	Berkley	Public
University of California - Davis	Davis	Public
University of California - Irvine	Irvine	Public
University of California - Los Angeles	Los Angeles	Public
University of California - Riverside	Riverside	Public
University of California - San Diego	La Jolla	Public
University of California - Santa B.	Santa Barbara	Public
University of California - Santa Cruz	Santa Cruz	Public
University of Redlands	Redlands	Public
University of Southern California	Los Angeles	Private
Colorado
University of Colorado - Boulder	Boulder	Public
Connecticut
University of Connecticut	Storrs	Public
Yale University	New Haven	Private
Delaware		Public
University of Delaware	Newark	Public
Florida
Florida State University	Tallahassee	Public
University of Florida	Gainesville	Public
University of South Florida	Tampa	Public
University of Central Florida	Orlando	Public
Georgia
Emory University	Atlanta	Private
University of Georgia	Athens	Public
Hawaii
University of Hawaii - Manoa	Honolulu	Public
Illinois
University of Chicago	Chicago	Public
University of Illinois - Chicago	Chicago	Public
University of Illinois - Urbana	Urbana	Public
Indiana
Indiana University	Bloomington	Public
Purdue University	West Lafayette	Public
University of Notre Dame	Notre Dame	Private
Idaho
Boise State	Boise	Public
Iowa
University of Iowa	Iowa City	Public
Kansas
University of Kansas	Lawrence	Public
Kentucky
University of Kentucky	Lexington	Public
Louisiana
Louisiana State University	Baton Rouge	Public
Tulane University	New Orleans	Public
Massachusetts
Boston University	Boston	Private
Brandeis University	Waltham	Private
Harvard University #2	Cambridge	Private
Tufts University	Medford	Private
University of Massachusetts	Amherst	Public
Maryland
Johns Hopkins University	Baltimore	Private
University of Maryland	College Park	Public
Michigan
Grand Valley State University	Allendale	Public
Michigan State University	East Lansing	Public
University of Michigan - #1	Ann Arbor	Public
Minnesota
University of Minnesota - Twincities	Minneapolis	Public
Missouri
University of Missouri - Columbia	Columbia	Public
Nebraska
University of Nebraska - Lincoln	Lincoln	Public
New Jersey
Princeton University	Princeton	Public
Rutgers University	New Brunswick	Public
New Mexico
University of New Mexico	Albuquerque	Public
New York
Binghamton University	Binghamton	Public
Columbia University	New York	Private
Cornell University	Ithaca	Private
Fordham University	Bronx	Private
New York University		Private
Pace University		Public
Stony Brook University	Stony Brook	Public
Syracuse University	Syracuse	Private
The Graduate Center	New York	Public
University at Albany	Albany	Public
University at Buffalo	Buffalo	Public
University of Rochester	Rochester	Private
North Carolina
North Carolina State University	Raleigh	Public
University of North Carolina	Chapel Hill	Public
Ohio
Case Western Reserve University	Cleveland	Private
Miami University	Oxford	Public
University of Akron, The	Akron	Public
Oklahoma
University of Oklahoma	Norman	Public
Oregon
University of Oregon	Eugene	Public
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania State University	Univ. Park	Public
Temple University	Philadelphia	Public
University of Pennsylvania	Philadelphia	Private
University of Pittsburgh	Pittsburgh	Public
Rhode Island
Brown University	Providence	Private
South Carolina
University of South Carolina-Columbia	Columbia	Public
Tennessee
University of Tennessee-Knoxville	Knoxville	Public
Vanderbilt University	Nashville	Private
Texas
Rice University	Houston	Private
Texas A & M University	College station	Public
University of Texas - Austin	Austin	Public
Virginia
College of William & Mary	Williamsburg	Public
George Mason University	Fairfax	Public
University of Virginia	Charlottesville	Public
Utah
University of Utah	Salt Lake City	Public
Washington
American University	Washington	Private
George Washington University, The	Washington	Private
Georgetown University	Washington	Private
University of Washington	Seattle	Public
Washington State University	Pullman	Public

To read a comprehensive description of the programs offered by these undergraduate institutions, either click on the link to visit the university website, or you may read about the programs on Ancient Digger: US Archaeology and Anthropology schools and their Disciplines

2018-2019 Rankings 

Top 25 US Universities, Schools, Programs, and Colleges for History (ranked nationwide)

1. Princeton University
2. Stanford University
3. Yale University
4. Harvard University
5. University of California-Berkeley
6. Columbia University
7. University of Chicago
8. University of Michigan
9. University of California-Los Angeles
10. University of Wisconsin-Madison
11. Cornell University
12. John's Hopkins
13. Northwestern University
14. University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
15. University of Pennsylvania
16. Brown University
17. University of Texas-Austin
18. Duke University
19. University of Virginia
20. Indiana University-Bloomington
21. Georgetown University
22. Rutgers University
23. New York University
24. University of Illinois-Urbana
25. University of Washington

2018-2019 Rankings 

Top US Universities, Schools, Programs, and Colleges for Archives and Preservation (ranked nationwide)

1. Simmons College (Tied for First)
2. University of Michigan-Ann Arbor (Tied for First)
3. University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill (Tied for First)
4. University of Texas-Austin
5. University of California-Los Angeles
6. University of Pittsburgh
7. University of Maryland-College Park
8. University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
9. University of Wisconsin-Madison
10. Pratt Institute
11. Drexel University

2018-2019 Rankings 

Top 25 US Universities, Schools, Programs, and Colleges for Linguistic Anthropology– Based on Student Outcome and Research Opportunities

1. Carnegie Mellon University
2. John's Hopkins University
3. San Diego State University
4. University of California-San Diego
5. University of Maryland-College Park
6. University of Massachusetts Amherst
7. Purdue University
8. University of California– Los Angeles
9. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
   
10. University of Pennsylvania
11. University of Southern California
12. University of California–Berkeley
13. University of California
14. University of Wisconsin– Madison
15. Indiana University-Bloomington
16. Michigan State University
17. University of Delaware
18. University of South Florida
19. Ohio State University
20. University of Arizona
21. Yale University
22. University of Chicago
23. Cornell University
24. Northwestern University
25. University of Illinois-Urbana

Read More: Best Graduate Schools for Linguistic Anthropology

2018-2019 Rankings 

Top Universities, Schools, and Programs for Classics (Classical Archaeology)-Global- Not in ranking order

1. Oxford University
2. University of Cambridge
3. University of London
4. University of Kent
5. University of Glasgow
6. Newcastle University
7. Birmingham University
8. Liverpool University
9. Cardiff University
10. Durham University
11. Exeter University
12. Warwick University
13. UCL University
14. St. Andrews University
15. Royal Holloway University
16. Bryn Mawr College
17. Cornell University
18. Princeton University
19. Harvard University
20. Stanford University
21. Duke University
22. University of Pennsylvania
23. University of California Berkeley
24. University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
25. University of Chicago
26. University of Michigan
27. University of Texas – Austin
28. University of California-Los Angeles

Read More: Top Universities, Schools, and Programs for Classics (Classical Archaeology)

The Archaeological Institute of America also has an extensive lost of graduate programs focusing on Classical/Mediterranean Studies.

2018-2019 Rankings 

Top Universities, Schools, and Programs for Maritime and Nautical Archaeology

United States

• East Carolina University
• Texas A & M
• Florida State University
• University of Florida
• University of Georgia
• University of Connecticut
• Minnesota State University
• Indiana University
• Flinder's University
• University of Rhode Island
• University of West Florida
• Michigan State University

Outside United States

• University of Southern Denmark – Denmark
• Bournemouth MSc Maritime Archaeology
  
• Bristol MA Maritime Archaeology and History
  
• Nottingham MA in Underwater Archaeology
  
• Southampton MA/MSc Maritime Archaeology
  
• Ulster MSc Maritime Archaeology – Ireland
  
• Edinburgh MSc/Dip Underwater Archaeology – Scotland
• Norwegian Institute of Science and Technology MA Maritime Archaeology – Norway

Read More: Top Universities, Schools, and Programs for Maritime and Nautical Archaeology

2018-2019 Rankings (Graduate)

25 Best Anthropology Ph.D Programs: Student Outcome

1. University of California-Berkeley
2. University of California-San Francisco
3. Duke University
4. University of Utah
5. Harvard University
6. John's Hopkins University
7. Stanford University
8. University of Tennessee
9. Washington University
10. Cornell University
11. Princeton University
12. Penn State University
13. University of Oregon
14. Stanford University
15. Stony Brook University
16. University of Illinois–Urbana
17. Emory University
18. University of Colorado–Boulder
19. University of Oklahoma
20. University of Pennsylvania
21. Northwestern University
22. The University of Texas at Austin
23. Brown University
24. Rice University
25. University of Virginia

100% First Year Support– Anthropology Ph.D In US  (Not ranked)

1. University of Oklahoma Norman Campus, Norman, OK
2. University of Nevada, Reno, NV
3. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
4. University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA
5. University of Alaska, Fairbanks
6. University of California, Davis
7. University of California, Los Angeles
8. University of California, San Francisco
9. University of California, Berkeley
10. Rice University
11. Cornell University
12. New York University
13. Yale University
14. Emory University
15. Harvard University
16. Columbia University
17. Princeton University
18. University of California, Santa Cruz
19. University of Colorado, Boulder
20. University of Kentucky
21. Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY
22. University of Illinois, Chicago
23. University of Illinois, Urbana
24. University of Virginia
25. University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
26. University of  Oregon
27. Wayne State University 
28. Pennsylvania State University 
29. University of Pittsburgh
30. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
31. University of Pennsylvania

Best Anthropology Schools in the UK-Ranked

1. Cambridge 
2. Oxford 
3. LSE 
4. University College London 
5. St Andrews 
6. Sussex 
7. Edinburgh 
8. Manchester 
9. Durham 
10. Goldsmiths College 
11. SOAS 
12. Aberdeen Oxford Brookes 
13. Kent 
14. Queens, Belfast 
15. East London 
16. Roehampton 
17. Lampeter 
18. Hull 
19. Teesside

Best Archaeology Schools in the UK-Ranked

1. Cambridge 
2. Oxford 
3. Durham 
4. University College London 
5. Sheffield 
6. Leicester 
7. Bristol 
8. Glasgow 
9. Nottingham 
10. Reading 
11. Southampton 
12. Manchester 
13. Edinburgh 
14. Exeter 
15. Queens, Belfast
16. Cardiff 
17. Bradford 
18. Liverpool 
19. York 
20. Lampeter

Best Research Universities for Archaeology Outside US

1. Cambridge
2. Oxford
3. University College London 
4. University of Birmingham
5. University of Sheffield 

More Guides on the Ancient Digger

• Best Schools for Biological and Evolutionary Anthropology and Archaeology
• Best Graduate Schools for Linguistics
• Best Graduate Schools for Classical Archaeology
• Archaeology and Anthropology Graduate School 101
• Beginner's Guide To A Career in Anthropology and Archeology
• Letter of Intent to the Top Archaeology Schools of Your Choice

Sources

1. US News and World Report
2. PHDS.org

-----List Updated May 2018-----