Why I Want To Study Anthropology

I have always wondered why I was put on Earth. What do I bring to the table that this world needs? But with anthropology, I think I have found my calling. I never knew what my purpose was until I took a humanitarian trip to Malawi, a little country on the eastern side of Africa. During my time there I realized what I wanted to do with my life; I want to help people. I believe I can do this through anthropology. Anthropology is the study of humans and cultures, and through this field, I can fulfill my purpose of helping people. The definition of culture given by my textbook, Psychology in Your Life, is the beliefs, values, rules, and customs that exists within a group of people who share a common language and environment and that are transmitted …show more content…
There are many different career paths that can be taken based on what I want to do. The first decision that needs to be made when entering the many fields of anthropology is you need to decide on what area of expertise you want to focus on. It can be archaeology, linguistics, cultural, forensics, or medical. I already have decided I want to focus on cultural anthropology. Based on what my narrowed area is, Nielsen explained that I need to aim to solely focus on that and make sure I choose classes and a school that can help me achieve my goal. Another piece of advice she gave me was to take my career into my own hands. Do not let anyone deter me from my end goal, and always strive to improve my knowledge and understanding of my career. People are going to stand in my way in this field and she told me not to let that get to me but let it drive me. I need to motivate and push myself if I want to get anywhere. This advice sparked something in me. It made me feel as if I can do it. I can push myself, I can motivate myself. And I need to do this if a career in this field is what I truly …show more content…
The first thing is that there is a lot of competition within this field. I do not think this is necessarily a downfall though. Competition will create motivation and hard work. People in this field cannot afford to slack off and be lazy otherwise someone will take their place. I think this will ultimately make me work harder. Another thing Glenna told me was that you can get a formal education in one of the subfields of anthropology and that’s great, but once you are out and working, you can always apprentice and learn about any of the other subfields and be recognized as having knowledge of both or all of the subfields that you have studied. Dr. Nielsen-Grimm also had post-professional training in Middle-Eastern archaeology which I thought was an amazing part of being in this field. The fact that formal education as well as post-professional training are both valid is an incredible thing. The thought of being able to learn and become educated on more than one subfield and not being required to have a formal education in all of them to be recognized was a very neat and comforting thing to find out. I will always be able to push myself and learn new things which will only benefit my career. Doctor Nielsen-Grimm also let me know that this career will probably never make me rich.