Degrees and Interviews - Episode 70

ArcheoWebby

October 14, 2015

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On today's episode we turn two listener questions into toolbox features! The first question is about getting a degree in Anthropology and the second is about how to prepare for interviews. Stephen has a great discussion about the importance of having a good reference.

1st Question

I am a senior Business Management major at the University of Central Arkansas. Recently I've found a strong interest in Anthropology and want to carry it over into my career. I've been doing my research and from what I've learned from you and many other internet archeaologists my most practical job outlook is in the CRM field.

Here is my question: I've decided to finish my Business degree since I only have two semesters left; BUT, my school just recently created an anthro degree that only requires 33 course hours. Would it be to my advantage to stay one extra year and graduate with a double major in bus. management/anthro PRIOR to applying for a graduate anthropology program? My main interest is doing field work so I would think an anthro degree could be used if I ever wanted to keep quiet about having a masters and just do field work. Also since it would only take two semesters it really wouldn't be out of the way. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks for your videos and podcasts!I really enjoy them.

2nd Question

I've been listening to the show for a few months now and I have to say, you guys rock! I'm just getting started with CRM and every show, blog, and book of yours that I've read has been insanely helpful. Episode 63 in particular - I actually applied to the job that you mentioned, and I too was a bit thrown off by the posting but sent it off anyway since I live in Ohio and California winters don't sound so bad. Anyway, this afternoon I had a phone interview for said job and even though I've only had a few CRM "interviews" I caught a weird vibe and I wanted to check with you to see if this is the norm. We talked about the standard stuff - company overview, my resume and experience, etc. - then she basically gave me an oral archaeology exam. Some of the questions included (1) Tell me about debitage, and what are the three types of cortex? (2) How can you identify historic sites? (3) What are the differences between petroglyphs and pictographs? (4) Tell me about lithics (5) Other than extreme temperatures and wild life, what types of hazards can you expect to find in the field?

I don't mean to complain that I was given an actual job interview, but at the same time I was definitely thrown off seeing as it's a temporary, entry level, 4 week long field tech position with no per diem. I know this isn't standard, but quite honestly I choked on a few of the questions and am seriously doubting myself now. Would you consider doing a segment on interviews?