2023 Best Anthropology Schools
Finding the Best Anthropology School for You
Anthropology is the #77 most popular major in the country with 11,415 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
The Best Anthropology Schools ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 396 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best programs for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Anthropology Schools in the United States
The following schools top our list of the Best Anthropology Colleges.
Top 25 Top Schools in Anthropology
Our analysis found Teachers College at Columbia University to be the best school for anthropology students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. Located in the large city of New York, Teachers College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend The Graduate Center, CUNY. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Anthropology Schools list. The Graduate Center is a medium-sized public school located in the city of New York.
Full Anthropology at The Graduate Center, CUNY Report
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Dartmouth College. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Anthropology Schools list. Dartmouth is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the town of Hanover.
On average, anthropology graduates from Dartmouth take out $12,740 in student loans while working on their degree.
Full Anthropology at Dartmouth College Report
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The excellent programs at Rice University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best anthropology schools in the United States. Rice is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Houston.
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The excellent programs at Williams College helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best anthropology schools in the United States. Located in the town of Williamstown, Williams is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
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With a ranking of #6, Duke University did quite well on this year’s best schools for anthropology students. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Durham.
Full Anthropology at Duke University Report
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Princeton University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Anthropology Schools list. Located in the small city of Princeton, Princeton is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
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Yale University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Anthropology Schools ranking. Yale is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of New Haven.
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Bowdoin College landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best anthropology programs. Bowdoin is a small private not-for-profit school located in the fringe town of Brunswick.
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With a ranking of #10, Amherst College did quite well on this year’s best schools for anthropology students. Located in the suburb of Amherst, Amherst is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
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Vanderbilt University landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best anthropology programs. Vanderbilt is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Nashville.
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With a ranking of #12, Stanford University did quite well on this year’s best schools for anthropology students. Located in the suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.
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Pomona College ranked #13 on this year’s Best Anthropology Schools list. Pomona is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Claremont.
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Northwestern University landed the #14 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best anthropology programs. Northwestern is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Evanston.
The average amount in student loans that anthropology majors at Northwestern take out is $14,951.
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Harvard University landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best anthropology programs. Harvard is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Cambridge.
Full Anthropology at Harvard University Report
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Johns Hopkins University ranked #16 on this year’s Best Anthropology Schools list. Located in the large city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
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University of Notre Dame came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Anthropology Schools ranking. Notre Dame is a large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Notre Dame.
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Cornell University came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Anthropology Schools ranking. Cornell is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Ithaca.
Full Anthropology at Cornell University Report
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University of Pennsylvania came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Anthropology Schools ranking. UPenn is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Philadelphia.
Full Anthropology at University of Pennsylvania Report
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Bates College landed the #20 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best anthropology programs. Located in the city of Lewiston, Bates is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
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University of Chicago landed the #21 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best anthropology programs. Located in the city of Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
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With a ranking of #22, Brown University did quite well on this year’s best schools for anthropology students. Located in the medium-sized city of Providence, Brown is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
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Wake Forest University came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Anthropology Schools ranking. Wake Forest University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Winston-Salem.
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With a ranking of #24, Barnard College did quite well on this year’s best schools for anthropology students. Located in the large city of New York, Barnard is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
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Augustana University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for anthropology students. It came in at #25 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Sioux Falls, Augustana Sioux Falls is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
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Additional Award Winners
This list shows the rest of the colleges awarded a Best Anthropology Schools badge. Showing in this list means the college was ranked in the top 15% of the 396 different United States anthropology schools we analyzed.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 51 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill, NC |
| 52 | Vassar College | Poughkeepsie, NY |
| 53 | The University of Texas at Austin | Austin, TX |
| 54 | Kenyon College | Gambier, OH |
| 55 | Hobart and William Smith Colleges | Geneva, NY |
| 56 | Wheaton College Illinois | Wheaton, IL |
| 57 | Oberlin College | Oberlin, OH |
| 58 | Swarthmore College | Swarthmore, PA |
| 59 | Saint Vincent College | Latrobe, PA |
Honorable Mentions
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Anthropology Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 60 | Marquette University | Milwaukee, WI |
| 61 | University of California - San Diego | La Jolla, CA |
| 62 | Texas Christian University | Fort Worth, TX |
| 63 | Binghamton University | Vestal, NY |
| 64 | University of Rochester | Rochester, NY |
| 65 | University of Georgia | Athens, GA |
| 66 | University of Louisville | Louisville, KY |
| 67 | Union College New York | Schenectady, NY |
| 68 | University of Southern California | Los Angeles, CA |
| 69 | Colby College | Waterville, ME |
| 70 | Minnesota State University - Moorhead | Moorhead, MN |
| 71 | Webster University | Saint Louis, MO |
| 72 | University of Richmond | University of Richmond, VA |
| 73 | The University of Tennessee - Knoxville | Knoxville, TN |
| 74 | University of Northern Iowa | Cedar Falls, IA |
| 75 | Hamline University | Saint Paul, MN |
| 76 | Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland, OH |
| 77 | Middlebury College | Middlebury, VT |
| 78 | Franklin and Marshall College | Lancaster, PA |
| 79 | Gettysburg College | Gettysburg, PA |
Anthropology by Region
View the Best Anthropology Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Anthropology Rankings
Rankings in Majors Related to Anthropology
Anthropology is one of 12 different types of programs to choose from.
Most Popular Majors Related to Anthropology
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Political Science & Government | 49,282 |
| Economics | 49,055 |
| Sociology | 38,475 |
| General Social Sciences | 18,997 |
| International Relations & National Security | 14,306 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Deror avi.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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