| About the programme Language: Danish and English (See language requirements) | Place of study: Moesgård (Aarhus) | Commencement: August / September (no winter intake) |
In the degree programme, you work with cultures and societies around the world. You work with a comparative perspective and, through the study of social and cultural conditions, you seek to acquire an understanding of human conditions and the way they change. You gain insight into how people live and interact with each other and into the society's institutions, rules, traditions and technology. Anthropology deals with humans as social and cultural beings and with the way we interact with each other and society. These are important skills in an increasingly globalised world, and with a Master’s degree in Anthropology you are well equipped for the Danish as well as the international job market.
In the Master’s degree programme in anthropology at Aarhus University, you gain considerable practical experience. Independent anthropological fieldwork or fieldwork practicum in a Danish or foreign company or organisation provides you with an opportunity to use anthropological methods and theories in practice. You also strengthen your individual competence profile and specialise in specific topics through your choice of track and selection of topic for fieldwork and thesis. Many students draw on material and data from their fieldwork or practical training in the thesis.
Here you can find further information about the research and the events at Department of Culture and Society, Anthropology
The following degree programmes qualify the student for admission to the Master’s degree programme in anthropology:
Other qualifications can provide admission to the Master’s degree programme, provided the university assesses that their level, extent and content correspond to the degrees mentioned above. As a minimum, these must contain:
Students with a Bachelor's degree programme in Anthropology at Aarhus University have the right to be admitted to the Master's degree programme in Anthropology on the condition that application is made for admission to the Master’s degree programme no later than three years after completion of the Bachelor’s degree programme. The legal right of admission requires receipt of the application by Aarhus University within the appropriate period of time.
There is a limitation on intake. Thus, meeting the admission requirements are not a guarantee for admission. However, applicants with a legal right of admission still have a right to being admitted to the Master’s programme in Anthropology.
If there are more qualified applicants than available slots, the selection criteria below will brought into effect.
As the Master’s degree programmes in Anthropology (due to government legislation) only admits a limited number of students each year, meeting the admission requirements does not in itself guarantee admission to the programme.
In evaluating qualified applicants, the admissions committee assesses each applicant on the basis of the average mark (i.e. GPA) of the Bachelor’s degree at the time of application. Marks/grades obtained after the application deadline will not be included in the GPA.
The admissions committee assesses each applicant’s marks on the basis of the information provided by diplomas and transcripts.
If there are more qualified applicants than student places, the qualified applicants will be admitted based on a simple average of their grades. The simple average is calculated on the basis of the courses with graded assessment which have been passed on the degree programme on which admission is based at the time of application.
If there are more qualified applicants than student places, an academic assessment committee is set up to select applicants according to the following criteria:
1. Academic background (weighted 75%), based on the average grade on the Bachelor’s degree programme on which admission is based at the time of application.
2. Other relevant experience (weighted 25%), based on the CV and the relevance description (see below for more information about the required documentation).
The academic assessment committee assesses each applicant based on the enclosed documentation, which includes diploma/transcript of records, CV, relevance description and, if relevant, academic regulations.
In addition to the general requirements regarding documentation, you must also upload the following:
1) A CV describing any relevant education, work experience and other experience in a chronological order. This could be in fields such as media production (film, television, photography, exhibitions, multimedia, web-based formats, etc.), audiovisual or visual communication, artistic work or museum work as well as previous education or passed courses within these fields.
2) A relevance description (1-2 pages), which must be in English and provide details about:
The academic relevance of your Bachelor’s degree programme in relation to the visual anthropology programme
Which courses on your Bachelor’s degree programme you believe meet the academic admission requirements for the Master's degree programme in visual anthropology
Work experience, if relevant
3) If your qualifying Bachelor’s degree programme was not taken at Aarhus University, you must also upload or provide a link to the academic regulations for your Bachelor’s degree programme.
In addition to the above, the following language requirements apply for admission to the Master's degree programme in anthropology:
The following specialisations require Danish at upper secondary school "A" level or equivalent:
The following specialisations require English at upper secondary school "B" level or equivalent (Danish upper secondary school level):
From the summer admissions 2024, all applicants must document English B with an average grade of at least 3.0 at a Danish upper-secondary school or the equivalent.
As a student it is important to know the regulations for your chosen subject: what is the content, how is it structured and what does it require from you. You can find this information in the academic regulations.
In the following graphical presentation of the subject you can see the different modules and courses that, in addition, link to the course catalogue where you can read the course descriptions.
There are two different tracks in the Master’s degree in anthropology, one is taught in English, and one is taught in Danish.
Visual Anthropology (English)
The overall aim of this track is to qualify students of anthropology to take on the task of audiovisual research, consultancy and communication in a world that is increasingly being mediated through images, sound, and online media. Public institutions, private organizations, companies and academia are increasingly demanding audiovisual methods that can facilitate cross-cultural analysis, dialogue and imagination. The track provides students with practical and theoretical skills to work anthropologically within a visual framework. Through hands-on workshops in the production of ethnographic film, students learn to design audiovisual projects, apply audiovisual media as a participatory research method and as a means of analytic investigation and expression.
The aim is to develop practical and conceptual sensibilities that allow students to explore and experiment with the interfaces and dialectics of human perception, emotion and imagination beyond what can be contained in words. The Visual Anthropology track culminates in the production of a thesis, where you have the option to combind a written part and a visual anthropological product (film, photography, museum installation, or multimedia).
General Anthropology (Danish)
The track builds on a classical anthropological approach to the study of human relations. The structure of this track allows you to specialise in topics that interest you. This could be a specific topic, for example migration, material culture, religion and politics or change processes, or you can specialise in the cultural issues relating to a specific area such as East Africa, North America or South Asia.
You acquire a basic cultural understanding that enables you to analyse complex social and societal issues in a globalised world, cutting across genders, generations, ethnical groups and other divides.
The Department of Anthropology is based at Moesgaard – an old manor house located just south of Aarhus. Here you have access to a library, a common room, the Moesgaard Museum and beautiful countryside.
You also have plenty of opportunity to take an active part in student life. The following services are available at the Department of Anthropology:
The Student Committee is where you, as a student, can discuss the academic content of your degree programme and contribute to its further development.
The Danish Ethnographic Association is available for all people interested in anthropology and ethnography. The association publishes the journal Jordens Folk (People in the World) and holds meetings in Aarhus and Copenhagen.
BarBaren (Student bar)
Barbaren is the name of the Anthropological Friday bar, where students are invited for drinks and an open dance floor every other Friday.
Kaiko
Kaiko is the name of the Tsembaga people’s pig festival but also the Anthropological party committee.
Socialiteten
Socialiteten arranges several social events each semester.
In addition, there are many other events for students at the Faculty of Humanities and the University of Aarhus – e.g. lectures, intro days, career days, seminars, celebrations and sports days.
Campus Moesgaard is a unique place. It includes the Moesgård Library, which is a joint library for the anthropology and archaeology programmes as well as Moesgård Museum. The library primarily serves students and staff members at Moesgård. You will find study space in the library, including study spaces reserved for students writing their theses. You will also have the opportunity to see many changing exhibits at the Moesgård Museum during your time here. As a student at Moesgård, you can access the museum for free by showing your valid student card.
MoCa Mates connects new international students and senior Master’s students, with the purpose of sharing experiences of studying at Moesgård and living in Aarhus as a foreign student. The Mates meet up on a weekly basis (at least during the first few weeks), and function as an informal and social forum for student-to-student discussions. Furthermore, the MoCa Mates programme closely collaborates with the student counsellors, to whom the Mates can address certain issues if necessary.
As the second-largest city in Denmark, Aarhus is a young and dynamic place with plenty of opportunities. The 40,000 students at the university make up 17.5% of the city’s population, which leaves its mark on city life. An attractive feature of Aarhus is that there are beaches and woods a short bike-ride away, as well as cultural events taking place throughout the year, including the Aarhus Festival in September. The theatres in the city and the ARoS international art museum offer many events that enable you to experience the Danish culture.
Why choose Aarhus? See studyguide.au.dk and get all practical information about being an international student.
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The chart shows the five most common types of work for graduates 1-2 years after finishing their degree. The data is derived from a survey made by Epinion for the Ministry of Higher Education and Science and Aarhus University in 2020.
A Master’s degree in anthropology and ethnography provides you with the following competences:
Anthropologists have many different career paths, including teaching, project management, development projects, and consultancy and analysis work within the following areas:
You can choose to work in research by studying for a PhD, either at the university or in collaboration with a private company. Click on for more information about PhD degree programmes at the Faculty of Arts.
You can read more about the career services that are available from Arts Karriere who provide information about employment opportunities as well as arranging various events and workshops.
