Anthropology Department

Below is the information for our summer 2021 programs. We are offering our flagship 8-week Advanced Methods course, our 3-week Methods Practicum, and an online course that is 8-weeks, called FieldCraft. 

In this email, I'll highlight our new online course first. The information for our other courses is also below. 

SUMMER 2021

FIELDCRAFT: ENVISIONING THE PROCESS, PRACTICE, AND PHILOSOPHY OF ETHNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH

8-week online course
APPLICATION DEADLINE MAY 20
$1500 USD PER STUDENT

 JUNE 5 - JULY 30

This online/remote course covers most of the material that is learned in our Advanced Methods summer session but is designed for those who are either planning projects (like undergraduate Senior thesis, Masters thesis, or Ph.D. dissertations) who are in the middle of projects and are seeking some research therapy to help get them on track. All of the theories, ethics, and methods that are discussed in our on-the-ground summer session will be covered.

Students can also conduct their own research during this on-line training session, just as we do here on the island, but at their home locations, within the Covid protocols of their community, or on-line. Students who plan on conducting research projects my apply by May 5th so that we have some time to work on their research proposal prior to the start date. We use the Wenner Gren Foundation format for our student proposals.

Summer 2021 Remote Students will not only learn about the process and methods of professional ethnographic research but also how anthropology can be used in various ways -- from applied anthropology to the collection of ethnographic records that can assist in creating insight into the lives and struggles faced by people in various communities as this pandemic unfolds. There are many issues and angles to be addressed and we hope our summer 2021 students will join us in this valuable research effort.

 Tuition for the program will be $1,500 USD per student.

All reading materials will be provided. Lectures will be daily for the first week and then fall into a Monday – Wednesday – Friday format for the remaining 7 weeks, with one-on-one zoom meetings happening throughout as the need arises per student/project. Class discussions will be determined based on the best for the group given the various time zones that they are in. Last year, even with students all across the globe, the best time was 1pm EST.

Students who intend to publish their research reports can rely on the faculty to work closely with them well beyond this 8-week session for guidance to help them succeed in publishing their research reports. Our 2020 remote session had a wonderful academic journal article produced and we expect more for this summer.

Students must become familiar with the Zoom application prior to the start of the program. All discussions are recorded and downloadable by students so that if they want to review a discussion or if they miss one, it is there for them.

We encourage students at all levels of training and from any discipline to apply, as well as those who may be not connected with a program, but who want to learn more about ethnographic research, anthropological and sociological methods, theory, and practice.

Please email Dr. Todd Pierce, the Director of the program directly if you are interested in joining this summer's research team at Info@anthrofieldschool.com

We are also enrolling students in our 3-week Methods Practicum session (June 12-July 3). The Practicum embeds the students within a current research project where they will learn various methods, the theories behind them, and get to put those methods to practice, along with various other ethnographic data collection tasks, fieldnotes, and analysis.

We already have a nice class forming up for our Summer 2021 Advanced Methods session. We encourage students to apply very early so that we can start creating their research proposals as soon as possible. The better the proposal, the better their time spent on the island doing research.

We are also working on launching an online program for the summer as well. All of the information will be on our website. 

An overview: Our students not only learn how to create a professional academic research proposal (which must be completed, with our guidance, before their arrival), receive training on the theory, ethics, and methods of ethnographic research, experience cultural and linguistic immersion, conduct the proposed research (that is participatory, community-based and service-learning informed) and present their data in a conference, but are also guided to publish their research results in peer-reviewed academic journals. And many succeed in doing so. 

The Isla Mujeres Ethnographic Field School specializes in community-based projects and trains students on how to conduct ethnographic research. Located on a small Mexican Caribbean island, much of the student research is focused on community needs per their request. We also encourage students to have their research align with the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. This allows for the students to not only consider their research within the context of theory and previous research or how it can impact the local community, but also how it can be of service in a much larger global effort and context. 

Some of our current areas of interest: Culture & Environment, Latin America & Caribbean, Medical Anthropology, Gender & Identity, History, Space & Meaning, and Economic Development. There is a wide variety of subjects for research. In the past, some students have conducted research on diabetes, body image and health, GLBT identity, teenage pregnancy, HIV and Dengue Fever prevention, Economic Development and Tourism, Sea Turtle, reef, and Whale Shark conservation. 

For more information, please see our website: http://www.AnthroFieldSchool.com

The Isla Mujeres Ethnographic Field School (I.F.S.) is dedicated to the professionalization of ethnographic research and the training of students on how to conduct ethical, meaningful, and professional research. Our mission is to train ethnographers that we are confident in and that we know can get the job done. Be it future graduate school research or projects for employers. Our trained ethnographers can tackle a research project from beginning to end with confidence, experience, and know-how.

Students will participate in formal lectures, informal presentations, service learning, government meetings and briefings, and ethnographic research that serves to assist the people of Isla Mujeres either through applied anthropological techniques or through creating a more full ethnographic record that illuminates the island's past, present, and possible future. Students will be immersed in the culture of the island and will conduct collaborative research with its residents. Students will learn the value of teamwork by helping each other on projects, talking through field research problems, and supporting each other in their professional development.

We train both undergraduate and graduate students. We also have post-docs who attend the Field School for further training and career development. Our program gives students the cutting edge needed to get into good graduate school programs, develop graduate school dissertation research (which will help in securing research funding for dissertations), and will help them land the job they want in the discipline. Some undergraduates have used their experience and data for senior thesis projects, while graduate students use it for pilot research to develop their Master's thesis or doctoral dissertations. 

Sincerely,
Todd G. Pierce, Ph.D.

Director

The Isla Mujeres Ethnographic Field School

Info@AnthroFieldSchool.com

Admissions@AnthroFieldSchool.com 

202-241-5325 (USA)

998-139-7122 (MX)
http://www.AnthroFieldSchool.com