Academic regulations

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.

• SEE THE ACADEMIC REGULATIONS FOR ANTHROPOLOGY

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)
• General Anthropology (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.

Job functions for grads

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.

Competence profile

A Master’s degree in anthropology and ethnography provides you with the following competences:

• Cultural understanding: You acquire a thorough understanding of cultural differences and similarities and, in particular, ways to analyse complex cultural issues. This applies to foreign cultures as well as cultural differences in Denmark between companies, gender, generations, ethnic groups, etc.
• Communication: You become skilled at communicating both verbally and in writing, especially with a view to publishising knowledge about work and project results.
• Specialisation: You come to specialise in specific topics and regions, and acquire special skills in areas such as the environment, integration, China, etc.
• Analysis: Your knowledge of anthropological tools of analysis enables you to plan and implement large projects that involve complex analysis and evaluation procedures.

Job profile

Anthropologists have many different career paths, including teaching, project management, development projects, and consultancy and analysis work within the following areas:

1. The social sector: Many anthropologists are employed in private consultancy firms, municipalities or educational institutions within the social sector. Examples of these include project managers, job consultants in municipal job centres, labour market and integration consultants, researchers and teachers in education programmes for social workers.
2. Organisation and staff: Anthropologists who specialise in organisational and industrial anthropology can find work in human resources and organisational development departments in both private and public sector companies via recruitment agencies or as external consultants.
3. Development and aid to developing countries: Many anthropologists are involved in the planning, implementation and evaluation of development projects, where they can be based in Denmark or posted abroad working for NGOs, the Danish International Development Agency (Danida), consultancy firms, etc.
4. Analysis and evaluation: As an anthropologist, you become skilled at undertaking systematic analyses. Many graduates therefore find jobs in consultancy firms or public institutions, where they carry out evaluation and analysis work in different areas, such as psychiatry or the treatment of drug abusers.
5. Health: You have the opportunity to specialise in health anthropology and apply for jobs such as a project manager, intermediary, development consultant or project evaluator in the health sector.

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.