Introduction
This guide is intended to provide graduate students of the University of Alaska
Fairbanks (UAF) with an understanding of the structure of the existing graduate
program in anthropology, and to assist students in completing their work as
expeditiously and as meaningfully as possible, while still complying with
general UAF regulations. Students
are to be guided by the rules in existence at the time they enter the M.A.
or Ph.D. program. When changes
in program rules or requirements occur, the student has the option of completing
the program under the new set of rules rather than remaining with the rules
of entry. In this case, the student
must obtain approval from 1) each member of the Advisory Committee, 2) the
Department Chair, 3) the Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, and these approvals
must be recorded with the Dean of the Graduate School.
To some extent, this guide replicates information for graduate students available in the most current General Catalog of the University of Alaska Fairbanks, which sets forth the official Board of Regents' Policies and University Regulations on admission procedures, completion of requirements, etc. Additional and specific information relevant to the Department of Anthropology is provided in this manual.
Students themselves are ultimately responsible for ensuring that they meet the requirements for their degree as set forth in this Graduate Student Manual, that the completion of each formal requirement is properly recorded, and that their departmental and Graduate School files are complete and up-to-date. Departmental faculty, however, are ready to assist whenever the student feels that there is some uncertainty or problem.
The objectives of this guide are to:
• delineate the department's expectations of students,
which in the judgment of the faculty assure high standards of anthropological/archaeological
training; and
• assure fairness in the treatment of students by applying common and
unambiguous standards to all.
Financial Assistance
The department offers a limited number of teaching assistantships, and occasional
research assistantships associated with faculty grants. Teaching assistant duties vary widely
and may involve assisting a faculty member in a course or lecturing in an
introductory course. Normally,
the Department endeavors to give four (4) semesters of support to those M.A.
and Ph.D. students who have, on admission, been awarded a teaching assistantship. Renewal of TAships is subject to their
remaining in good standing and making satisfactory progress toward their degree.
Renewal of funding is not automatic; students desiring a second year
of funding should apply to the Chair of the Department in the Spring semester.
The deadline for applications for departmental funding is February
15. Application forms are available
from the Administrative Assistant in the Department office.
Information on competitive scholarships open to all graduate students at UAF is available on the web at the Graduate School web page or through the Anthropology Department's Financial Aid links. Students are encouraged to apply for those scholarships and stipends, and should work closely with Advisory Committee members to develop proposals and applications.
All students, but especially those who are in the Ph.D. program, are encouraged to apply for funds outside UAF. Information on funding opportunities is posted on the departmental bulletin board, disseminated by e-mail, available from the UAF Proposal Office and through the department web site. Faculty will assist students in developing funding proposals. Ph.D. students are expected to apply to national funding agencies to fund their dissertation research. Obtaining such funding for the write-up phase is also encouraged.
Major Advisor
(Committee Chair)
Students will be assigned an interim advisor with whom they will meet during
the first semester. A permanent advisor should be chosen as soon as possible,
but no later than the end of the second semester. This person will serve as
the Chair of the Advisory Committee.
Advisory
Committee
Advisory Committees set requirements and guide students through their programs
of study and research. Students are responsible for arranging meetings and
consultations with their Advisory Chair and other committee members, and for
arranging periodic meetings of
the Advisory Committee The student
should set a meeting with the committee by the end of the second semester
at the latest. Students may wish to change
their Advisory Committee Chair or a member of their committee during the course
of their studies. To do so a
student must first notify his/her Chair and then file a Graduate Advisory
Committee form,
showing the change with required signatures (see UAF Graduate School Forms
Pamphlet).
Graduate Study Plan
The Advisory Committee must meet with the student during the first year to
develop a Graduate Study Plan. At
this time, the committee determines if any deficiencies exist and provides
direction to the student for carrying out remedial work. Later meetings are held to update the
study plan. The student must
file the Graduate Study Plan in the Graduate School (by the end of the first
academic year), with, at the same time, a copy placed in the student's file
in the Department of Anthropology. Students
should consult sections of the General Catalog on Graduate Advisory Committees
and Graduate Study Plans for further details.
Student's
File
The UAF Graduate School website (http://www.uaf.edu/gradsch/students/current/forms.html)
contains the forms which constitute the body of official documents for the
student's file. Two copies of
the student's file are maintained, one in the office of the Dean of the Graduate
School and one in the Department of Anthropology office. The student is responsible for ensuring
that copies of all documents are provided in order to keep the file up-to-date.
The Graduate Studies Coordinator and the Chair of the Advisory Committee
will assist students in this matter.
According to federal law, students have a right to see any materials maintained in their file. The file may be examined and a copy made in the department office. Nothing may be removed from the file by the student.
Annual
Evaluation
Graduate School regulations require
that a student's performance be evaluated by the faculty at the end of each
academic year. Such evaluations
are completed by the Advisory Committee Chair in consultation with the faculty.
The evaluation (Annual Report of Graduate Advisory Committee) is signed
by all members of the Advisory Committee and by the student.
The original is filed with the Office of the Graduate School, with
a copy in the student's departmental file.
The evaluation is based on the student's overall performance in coursework,
research, and as a teaching or research assistant (when this consideration
applies). It may read "satisfactory,"
"conditional," or "unsatisfactory." It is the responsibility of the chair
of a student's Advisory Committee promptly to inform the student of the results
of this annual evaluation.
Upon receipt of the completed evaluation
form from the Advisory Committee Chair, the student must sign and return it
to the department office. If
a student receives a "conditional" evaluation, the Advisory Committee
will specify the conditions to be met and a timeline for completion. Failure to meet the specified conditions
will result in an unsatisfactory rating on the next evaluation. Two consecutive unsatisfactory reports
will result in dismissal from the program.
MASTER'S DEGREE PROGRAM
The M.A. degree in anthropology is an advanced degree that may either lead to further study in a Ph.D. program or to work in a professional career. The department expects that most applicants for the M.A. degree either hold a B.A. or B.S. degree in anthropology or have had an equivalent of at least fifteen semester credit hours in anthropology along with an undergraduate degree in another field. In the latter case, the normal expectation is that the applicant has successfully completed lower division courses in three of the four subfields of anthropology (archaeology, physical/biological anthropology, social/cultural anthropology, and linguistics), two of which are at an advanced undergraduate level.
Exceptions may be granted under certain circumstances. If the faculty are uncertain about the student's academic background, they may require the student to take several undergraduate courses without graduate credit or additional graduate courses beyond those normally required for the M.A. degree to remedy deficiencies in his/her background. The precise requirements will be developed by the student's Advisory Committee and recorded in the student's file. Whenever remedial work is indicated, the student should be prepared to spend an extra semester or two in earning the degree.
M.A.
Program Duration and Readmission Policy
Official degree requirements for the M.A. degree are stipulated in the University
General Catalog. The UAF Regulations state (see General Catalog) that
all requirements for the M.A. degree must be completed within a seven-year
time period. The faculty expect that, in the normal course of events, a student
with an adequate background in anthropology at the undergraduate level will
complete all the requirements for an M.A. degree in two to three academic
years. Readmission is possible only under
exceptional circumstances and only with the concurrence of the student's Advisory
Committee and the Dean of the College of Liberal Arts. All applications for extensions or readmission
must also be approved by the Dean of the Graduate School.
M.A.
Committee Composition
UAF Regulations specify that an M.A. student's Advisory Committee is to be
composed of a minimum of three members.
The Advisory Committee Chair must be a tenured or tenure-track member
of the UAF Department of Anthropology. The Advisory Committee of an M.A. student
must be composed of at least two members from the department. All three faculty members must be employed
primarily by the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Additionally, a fourth member may be appointed
from either within or without the University system.
M.A.
Course Work Requirements
M.A. students must complete a minimum of 30 credits as outlined in the General Catalog (24 credits
of course work – 21 credits at 600 level – and 6 credits of ANTH-699 Thesis). M.A. students who choose to produce a museum project in lieu
of a thesis must complete at least 36
credits (24 credits of regular course work and 6 credits of ANTH-698 Research).
Required
Courses: All M.A.
students must successfully complete the following (included as part of the 24
credits):
• Anth
629 Structures of Anthropological Argument
• Anth
652 Research Design and Professional Development Seminar
Language or
Research Tool
M.A. students are required to demonstrate competency in one language relevant
to their academic interests, or in a research tool (such as statistics or
field methods). Each student
consults with his/her Advisory Committee Chair to determine how s/he will
satisfy this requirement. This
information forms part of the Graduate Study Plan (see above). Completion of this requirement should be registered with the
form "Report on Completion of Language or Research Tool Requirement"
(http://www.uaf.edu/gradsch/students/current/forms/LangResearchTool.pdf).
M.A.
Research Proposal, Defense and
Oral Comprehensive Examination
For advancement to candidacy, each student
will be expected to prepare a written research proposal in his/her subfield.
The research proposal should be a clear statement of the research problem
and its significance. In conjunction with this, the proposal
should include a literature review that addresses the general area of the
research problem. The student
should explain the methodology
or research strategy that will be employed in researching the topic,
and this should also be substantiated with reference to relevant literature.
The written proposal will be reviewed and approved by the student's
advisory committee. Students must make a public oral presentation
of the research proposal.
1) Three weeks before the planned proposal defense: the final proposal should be submitted to the committee for approval.
2) Once the proposal has been approved, the student may then schedule the defense, which is to be an oral public presentation (possibly as part of the colloquium series). Students are required post flyers to advertise the event. The student should see the department administrative assistant for available time slots for the defense and for help in producing the flyers.
3) At least one week before the planned defense:
A copy of the approved research proposal must be submitted to the department office.
The Defense Approval Form (available in Word doc or rtf format), with a project title and abstract of the research proposal must be submitted to the Department office. The title and abstract will be placed on the Department's web site.
4) Presentation day: Proposal presentations should be approximately one half hour in length. The oral presentation will conclude with the opportunity for the public to ask questions. At the end of this question/answer session, the public will be asked to leave. Departmental faculty will then have the opportunity to ask questions. Afterward, the student's advisory committee will continue with an hour-long oral examination, asking questions covering not only the research project, but the general area of the student's research. The questioning constitutes the student's comprehensive examination for the M.A. degree. The committee then determines the pass/fail status of the exam.
5) If, after the oral presentation has been given, it is determined that there is a problem with the student's research proposal, the student will correct the written proposal and submit the corrected version to his/her committee. The student's advisory committee will review the corrected written proposal and determine the pass/fail status of the proposal. There will be no need to give a second oral presentation.
6) A "Report on Examination" form will be signed by the student's advisory committee after the written research proposal and oral examination are approved (formats: word; pdf). Both the "Comprehensive Exam" box and the "Other" box should be checked. The blank for "Other" should be filled out as "Research Proposal Defense." After a passing Report on Examination has been submitted, the student will be eligible to apply for advancement to candidacy.
Advancement
to Candidacy
With advancement to candidacy, the department
certifies that the student's thesis topic has been approved, that the research
proposal has been successfully presented (Comprehensive Exam Passed), that
the language or research tool requirement has been completed, that all course
deficiencies have been remedied, and that all further course requirements
have been spelled out in the Graduate Study Plan. Each student must have completed
at least 9 UAF credit hours and be in good standing. The Application for Advancement to Candidacy form (formats:
word;
pdf)
must be completed and turned in no later than the semester before a student plans to graduate.
M.A.
Thesis and Defense
It is expected that by the end of his/her first year in the program the student
will have defined a thesis topic or a museum project The student will be guided
in completion of the thesis or museum project by his/her Advisory Committee,
with primary responsibility resting with the Advisory Committee Chair.
The thesis (or museum project), upon approval of the written draft by the committee, will be defended in a session open to the public. The UAF Regulations pertaining to defenses are set out in the UAF General Catalog.
1) Three weeks before the planned thesis defense: the final draft of the thesis should be submitted to the committee for approval.
2) Once the thesis
has been approved, the student may then schedule the defense, which is to be an
oral public presentation (possibly as part of the colloquium series). Students are required to post flyers to
advertise the event. The student
should see the department administrative assistant for available time slots for
the defense and for help in producing the flyers.
3) At least one week
before the planned defense:
4) As specified in the General Catalog, the defense will consist of a presentation by the candidate. The length of the presentation will be determined by the Advisory Committee. Following the presentation there will be a question period. Normally, the Advisory Committee Chair will conduct the defense meeting and the Chair and members of the Advisory Committee (which may be augmented by other faculty members at the discretion of the Dean of the College, Dean of the Graduate School or both) will conduct the questioning. If the Chair cannot fulfill this duty, the Dean of the College or the Dean of the Graduate School will appoint a substitute. At the conclusion of the public portion of the defense, the Chair, as a rule, will open the questioning to the public.
5) Afterwards, the Advisory Committee will meet in closed session to pass or fail the student on the defense. The student may be advised on revisions the committee deems necessary. The student will then submit the revised thesis for the committee's final approval in accordance with UAF Regulations. These regulations are set out in the General Catalog, and a Thesis Format Workbook should be obtained from the Graduate School. Students must conform to thesis format requirements and to thesis submission deadlines as specified in the workbook. The format of a museum project is determined by the student's Advisory Committee. Students should also refer to the American Anthropological Association guidelines for formatting of publications (e.g., in the journals American Anthropologist, American Ethnologist, Current Anthropology, etc) in order to conform to disciplinary conventions.
Progress
With Good Standing
To remain in good standing in the department, the student must maintain a
3.0 GPA or better, must meet with the interim advisor at least once per
semester until the Advisory Committee Chair is designated, must designate
an Advisory Committee Chair no later than the end of the second semester,
and must assemble a full committee and select a research topic no later than
the end of the third semester. Receiving departmental funding (T.A., R.A.)
is contingent upon remaining in good standing. Students who fail to remain
in good standing will be placed on probation for one semester, and asked
to correct the problems. Students who do not correct the problems after one
semester will be dropped from the program.
1.
24 credits course work (21 credits at 600 level), including Anth 629 & Anth
652
2.
Six credits ANTH 699 thesis
3.
30 credits total
4.
One language or one research tool (statistics or field methods)
5.
Written thesis proposal with oral defense and oral comprehensive examination
6.
Advancement to M.A. Candidacy (at least semester before graduation)
7.
Written thesis or museum project with public public oral defense
8.
Maintain good standing with 3.0 GPA or better
9.
Time limit 7 years to degree
Ph.D. DEGREE PROGRAM
The Ph.D. degree in anthropology is a research degree, and the department offers highly individualized training in areas in which the graduate faculty specialize. The department expects applicants to the Ph.D. program to hold an M.A. or M.S. degree in anthropology (other disciplines are occasionally accepted), and to have chosen UAF because they are fully aware of the specializations offered by and the strength of the faculty. In some cases, an incoming student may be expected by his/her Advisory Committee to take specific courses to address weaknesses or to acquire further expertise in some area essential for dissertation research or career development.
Ph.D. Program Duration,
Leaves and Readmission
Official degree requirements for the Ph.D. are stipulated in the University General Catalog. UAF Regulations state
(see General Catalog) that all requirements for the Ph.D. degree must be completed
within a ten-year time period. Ph.D. programs vary widely in length of time
devoted to coursework, research and dissertation writing. However, students
are generally expected to complete their degrees many years before the Graduate
School's maximum time limit of 10 years. Extension and readmission are possible
only under exceptional circumstances and only with the concurrence of the
student's Advisory Committee and the Dean of the College of Liberal Arts.
All applications for extensions or readmission must also be approved
by the Dean of the Graduate School.
Ph.D.
Committee Composition
UAF Regulations specify that an Advisory Committee for Ph.D. students is to
be composed of a minimum of four
members, one of whom may be from outside the department (see below). The Advisory Committee Chair must be a
tenured or tenure-track member of the UAF Department of Anthropology.
The Advisory Committee for a Ph.D. student must consist of a minimum of four faculty whose primary employment is with UAF. The Ph.D. students should carefully consult the General Catalog on regulations pertaining to the composition of their committees regarding faculty outside the department. (Note: this regulation does not preclude faculty other than those of UAF serving on a Ph.D. committee. Such members, however, serve in addition to the four members specified above.) Please note that any exceptions to the composition of the Advisory Committees as prescribed in the General Catalog must be explicitly approved by the Dean of the Graduate School. Exceptions are extremely rare and only occur on an individual basis."
Ph.D. Course Work Requirements
There are no general coursework requirements for the Ph.D.; all specific coursework
requirements are set by the student's committee. The Graduate School requires a minimum
of 18 graduate UAF credits and at least three full years of study, including
transfer credits.
Language(s)
and/or Research Tool
Ph.D. students are required to demonstrate competency in two languages relevant
to the student's work, or one language plus a
research tool (such as statistics or field methods). Specifics are to be determined by the student in consultation
with the Advisory Committee, but language proficiency should be the equivalent
of two academic years of study with a grade of "B" or better. Completion
of these requirements should be registered with the form "Report on Completion
of Language or Research Tool Requirement" (http://www.uaf.edu/gradsch/students/current/forms/LangResearchTool.pdf).
Language proficiency will be determined by an examination in a form agreed to by the Advisory Committee. Normally, a Ph.D. student is expected to translate an article in the language and area of specialization appropriate to his/her field. The student may choose, however, to take the language proficiency exam of the Educational Testing Service.
Synthesizing Papers (Comprehensive Examination)
To qualify for advancement to candidacy, Ph.D. students must write three
synthesizing papers (approximately 40 pages each), reviewing the state of
knowledge in a specified area of anthropological research. (These are sometimes referred to as "comp
papers" or "field statements"). The areas to be synthesized will be established in advance
by the student's Advisory Committee, and students will be responsible for
preparing an extensive bibliography of sources for each. The bibliography will be submitted
along with each paper. After
approval by the student's committee, a copy of each paper, signed by the
committee chair, should be submitted to the department office for the student's
file.
Ph.D.
Research Proposal (Prospectus)
Ph.D. students will present a written
research proposal (prospectus) prior to beginning their dissertation
research. The research proposal
should detail the research topic, with particular attention to the theoretical
framework, research methodology, relevant literature, and development of a
pertinent database. The written
research proposal must be approved by the Advisory Committee. Students must make a public oral presentation
and defense of the research proposal
Ph.D. Research Proposal (Prospectus) Timeline
1) Three weeks before the planned proposal defense: the final proposal should be submitted to the committee for approval.
2) Once the proposal has been approved, the student may then schedule the defense, which is to be an oral public presentation (possibly as part of the colloquium series). Students are required post flyers to advertise the event. The student should see the department administrative assistant for available time slots for the defense and for help in producing the flyers.
3) At least one week before the planned defense:
A copy of the approved research proposal must be submitted to the department office.
The Defense Approval Form, with a project title and abstract of the research proposal must be submitted to the Department office (available online in Word doc or rtf format). The title and abstract will be placed on the Department's web site.
4) Proposal presentations should be approximately
one half hour in length and will conclude with the opportunity for the public
to ask questions. At the end
of this question/answer session, the public will be asked to leave.
Departmental faculty will then have the opportunity to ask further
questions. The committee then determines the pass/fail status of the defense.
The Report on Examination form should be completed and the category
"Other" checked, filling in "Research Prospectus Defense."
Advancement
to Candidacy
With advancement to candidacy the department certifies
that the student has successfully completed the comprehensive examination
(synthesizing papers), that his/her dissertation topic has been approved,
that the research proposal has been successfully presented, that the language
research tool requirements have been completed, that all course deficiencies
have been remedied, and that all further course requirements have been spelled
out (in the Graduate Study Plan). The student must have completed at least 9 UAF credits and
be in good standing. The Application
for Advancement to Candidacy form (word,
pdf)
must be completed and turned in no later than the semester before a student
plans to graduate. It is expected
that Ph.D. students will advance to candidacy before beginning their primary
dissertation research.
Dissertation
and Defense
It is expected that by the end of his/her first year in the program the student
will have defined a dissertation topic. The student will be guided in
completion of the dissertation by his/her Advisory Committee, with primary
responsibility resting with the Advisory Committee Chair.
The dissertation, upon approval of the written draft by the committee, will be defended in a session open to the public. UAF Regulations pertaining to defenses are set out in the UAF General Catalog.
1)
The final dissertation draft should be submitted to the committee for approval
at least three weeks in advance of the planned proposal defense.
2)
A copy of the approved dissertation must be submitted to the
department office one week before the dissertation
defense.
3) At the same time, at least one week before the defense, the student must submit the Defense Approval Form (available online in Word doc or rtf format), with a project title and abstract of the dissertation. The title and abstract will be placed on the Department's web site.
4) The date of the defense is set by the student and the Advisory Committee (along with an alternate date). The student will need to arrange a room for the defense. Since this is a public defense, the student will be required to post notices specifying the date, hour, place and event. When the date for the defense is confirmed, the student can contact the department secretary about producing a flyer for this purpose.
5) It is the responsibility of the Ph.D. student to request that the Office of the Graduate School assign an outside examiner for their defense (see http://www.uaf.edu/gradsch/forms.html for the necessary form). The request must be made a minimum of two weeks in advance of the defense, and the students must supply a copy of the dissertation to the examiner at least one week prior to the defense. There is an online form for requesting the outside examiner at http://www.uaf.edu/gradsch/facstaff/OutsideExamForm.html.
6) As specified in the General Catalog, the defense will consist of a presentation by the candidate. The length of the presentation will be determined by the Advisory Committee. Following the presentation there will be a question period. Normally, the Advisory Committee Chair will conduct the defense meeting and the Chair and members of the Advisory Committee (which may be augmented by other faculty members at the discretion of the Dean of the College, Dean of the Graduate School or both) will conduct the questioning. If the Chair cannot fulfill this duty, the Dean of the College or the Dean of the Graduate School will appoint a substitute. At the conclusion of the public portion of the defense, the Chair, as a rule, will open the questioning to the public.
7) Afterwards, the Advisory Committee will meet in closed session to pass or fail the student on the defense. The student may be advised on revisions the committee deems necessary. The student will then submit the revised dissertation for the committee's final approval in accordance with UAF Regulations. These regulations are set out in the General Catalog, and a Thesis Format Workbook should be obtained from the Graduate School. Students must conform to thesis format requirements and to thesis submission deadlines as specified in the workbook. Students should also refer to the American Anthropological Association guidelines for formatting publications (e.g., in the journals American Anthropologist, American Ethnologist, Current Anthropology, etc) in order to conform to disciplinary conventions.
Progress
With Good Standing
To remain in good standing in the department, the student must maintain a
3.0 GPA or better, must meet with the interim advisor at least twice per semester
until the Advisory Committee Chair is designated, must designate an Advisory
Committee Chair no later than the end of the second semester, and must assemble
a full committee and select a research topic no later than the end of the
third semester. Receiving departmental
funding (T.A., R.A.) is contingent upon remaining in good standing. Students
who fail to remain in good standing will be placed on probation for one semester,
and asked to correct the problems. Students who do not correct the problems
after one semester will be dropped from the program.
Ph.D.
Program Quick Reference Sheet
1. 18 credits minimum total
2. Three years of full-time study
3. Two languages, or one language and one research tool (statistics of field methods)
4. Three Synthesizing Papers
5. Written dissertation proposal with public oral defense
6. Advancement to Ph.D. Candidacy
7. Written dissertation with public oral defense
8. Maintain good standing with 3.0 GPA or better
9. Time limit 10 years to degree
GENERAL POLICIES
Grievance
Procedures
Students may feel, as individuals or as a group, that they have a grievance against
another student, a faculty member, the department, or the school. If such circumstances arise, it is
suggested that the matter be openly and frankly discussed in consultations with
faculty members, the Graduate Student Representative, and the Department
Head. Depending on the nature of
the problem, one or the other may be able to mediate the matter and resolve the
grievance. If the matter is not
resolved, the student has a right to bring up the matter officially in a
faculty meeting, before the faculty as a whole. Students may also request a meeting with individual faculty
members, or faculty members and other students. If departmental policy is implicated, the faculty as a whole
may need to arrive at a decision.
If a grievance is not satisfactorily resolved within the department,
students are referred to the Office of the Graduate School.
Student-Faculty
Interaction
In our department, faculty work closely with graduate students and most faculty
members maintain an "open door" policy. From time to time students request individual faculty members
to write recommendations either for study elsewhere or in applying for a job,
research or training grant, summer institute, language school, and so on.
Normally the faculty respond promptly to such requests.
However, to facilitate the process, it is desirable that the student
provide the faculty member with curriculum vitae, a stamped and addressed
envelope, information about the institution or job for which the recommendation
is needed, and any required forms well in advance of deadlines. Faculty who provide students with recommendations
would appreciate hearing the results of the student's applications.
Copies of letters of recommendation are placed in the student's departmental
file.
Ethics
in Research
Students are encouraged to conduct field research. It is especially important for anthropology students to remember
that research on human subjects is regulated by federal law and agency regulations,
and is subject to review by the UAF Institutional Review Board (http://www.uaf.edu/irb/index.html). All proposals, including those for summer research, are reviewed
by the faculty with this in mind. IRB Approval in all cases must be secured before research commences.
This applies to even seemingly innocuous situations.
A statement on the use of human subjects is required in which potential
harm is discussed, as well as means to avoid or minimize any such potential
harm. This statement must be signed by the proposed
investigator. The student should
specify the proposed methods, such as participant observation, questionnaire,
interview schedules, and so forth. A consent form for study participants is also typically required.
Informal consultations with the faculty on this aspect of anthropological
research are encouraged.
Students must adhere to professional ethics guidelines (copies of the guidelines are appended to this manual.) Students are also responsible for obtaining the appropriate permits and permissions from communities, agencies and others who may be involved in or affected by their research.
Graduate
Student Office Space
Office space in the department is limited, and
priority is given to teaching assistants and Ph.D. students. Space will be allocated on a year-by-year
basis with no automatic renewals. Students must see the department administrative assistant for
a space assignment. Library carrels are also available and can be applied
for at the Rasmuson Library Circulation Desk. Students who are not in residence on campus should not expect
to be assigned space in the department.
Graduate
Student Organization
UAF abides by the Students' Rights Document of 1967. On a more formal level, graduate students elect a Graduate
Student Representative who reports to the faculty, usually through the
Department Head and/or in faculty meetings, the students' concerns, plans and
interests. From time to time, a
departmental student/faculty meeting may be called by the Department Head to
address common concerns.
The Graduate Student Representative is also responsible for calling meetings of the graduate students to organize educational or social activities. There are opportunities to invite guest speakers (periodically funded by the Graduate School) and to hold special events (such as a film screening, a holiday potluck, or a joint graduate/undergraduate social gathering). Graduate students also typically assist with the Alaska Anthropological Association Meetings, which are hosted in Fairbanks on a rotating basis.
Forms
There are numerous forms that students are required to submit or that need
to be submitted on their behalf during the course of their studies. The most common and important forms are
available on the Graduate
School web page. You can also see a list of the most important ones for students
in Anthropology in the department's Table
of Forms. Hard copies of most forms can be obtained from the Administrative
Assistant in the Anthropology Main Office.
Additional
Information
More information about the UAF Department of Anthropology can be found online
at http://www.uaf.edu/anthro. This website includes links to other
UAF online sources, including the General Catalog, Admissions, and Financial
Aid.
The UAF Graduate School forms and Thesis Format Workbook can be found online at http://www.uaf.edu/gradsch/forms.html.
