{"id":99,"date":"2015-01-12T13:40:47","date_gmt":"2015-01-12T19:40:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/anthropology\/?page_id=99"},"modified":"2026-01-21T16:36:44","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T22:36:44","slug":"application-instructions","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/anthropology\/students\/graduate\/application-instructions\/","title":{"rendered":"Application Q&amp;A"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading space\" id=\"h-general\">General<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion uwm-p-accordion--icon-left-circle\" data-accordion-prefix-classes=\"uwm\" data-accordion-cool-selectors=\"1\"><button class=\"uwm-p-accordion--toggle-button size-p-md\">Expand All<\/button>\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>When are application deadlines?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p id=\"block-eee1a962-5323-4e9d-aa79-97d03bd0d2a3\">The deadline for a fall admission is January 15th of the year admission is desired.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"block-763591ba-a6c0-4a35-95a7-e5b569320a1a\">The deadline for a spring admission is September 15th of the year prior to the admission date.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>What materials are required for admission?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>The following materials are required. All are uploaded to the <a href=\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/graduateschool\/students\/admission\/\">Graduate School Admission Form<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Transcripts.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A statement of purpose. The statement should indicate your main field of interest (archaeology, biological anthropology, or sociocultural anthropology). You should note if you are applying for the Museum Studies Certificate.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A writing sample. There is no required format. Most applicants submit terms papers.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Three letters of recommendation. These should be from individuals best able to evaluate your academic skills and your potential to succeed in Graduate School.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If you plan to pursue a Certificate in Museum Studies you must file a separate application.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>All materials for the Anthropology Department should be mailed to:<br>Chair, Graduate Admissions Committee<br>Department of Anthropology<br>P.O. Box 413<br>University of Wisconsin\u2013Milwaukee<br>Milwaukee, WI 53201<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-master-s-program\">Master&#8217;s Program<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion uwm-p-accordion--icon-left-circle\" data-accordion-prefix-classes=\"uwm\" data-accordion-cool-selectors=\"1\"><button class=\"uwm-p-accordion--toggle-button size-p-md\">Expand All<\/button>\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>What kinds of funding opportunities are there for Master&#8217;s students?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>The Department has far more graduate students than teaching assistantships, and PhD students are automatically sent to the head of the line of students who are hoping for TA positions. Out-of-state Masters applicants with excellent GPAs and GRE scores are potentially eligible for a Chancellor&#8217;s Award, which provides two years of TA support, but the Department only offers two awards each year (only to applicants for September admission) and typically the awards are used to recruit out-of-state PhD applicants. If you are an out-of-state Masters applicant who has been admitted to the program, you should contact the Graduate Program Representative to request an NRTR (Non-Resident Tuition Remission), which allows a student to register at the in-state rate for that year (possibly renewable for a second year). The reality is that most of our graduate students work part-time or full-time, not necessarily in an academic setting.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>Do I need to take the GRE?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>No. We no longer require GRE Scores for Admission.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>Can I earn my degree and still work full-time?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>Yes. All of the graduate courses required for the Anthropology Masters degree are offered at night in order to make it possible for students with full-time jobs to earn the degree. That said, elective courses are not always offered at night even though a certain number of them are required for the degree, so you might not always be able to take the electives you would prefer. This is also true of the Museum Studies Graduate Certificate courses, which are not required for the Masters degree and are only offered during the day.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>Do I have to write a Master&#8217;s thesis?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>Yes. All Anthropology Master&#8217;s candidates must complete a thesis.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-phd-program\">PhD Program<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion uwm-p-accordion--icon-left-circle\" data-accordion-prefix-classes=\"uwm\" data-accordion-cool-selectors=\"1\"><button class=\"uwm-p-accordion--toggle-button size-p-md\">Expand All<\/button>\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>Can I be admitted directly into the PhD program with only an undergraduate degree?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>Departmental policy is to admit only students who already have earned a Masters or equivalent graduate degree to the PhD program. Foreign students should contact the Graduate Program Representative for more information. Students who have earned an Anthropology Masters degree at 51ÁÔÆæ may apply to transition into the PhD program if they have successfully completed their Masters degree.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>Do I need to take the GRE?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>No. We no longer require GRE Scores for Admission.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>How long will it take me to earn my PhD degree?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>That depends on how many of the required courses you can waive, either because you have completed equivalent courses at another institution and have successfully petitioned for waivers, or because you have transitioned from the 51ÁÔÆæ Anthropology Masters degree program. Students who build on their Masters thesis research or have already generated or collected their data are obviously also at an advantage. In the best case scenario, three years is the minimum time required to complete the PhD; most students complete the degree within five years.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-museum-studies-graduate-certificate\">Museum Studies Graduate Certificate<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion uwm-p-accordion--icon-left-circle\" data-accordion-prefix-classes=\"uwm\" data-accordion-cool-selectors=\"1\"><button class=\"uwm-p-accordion--toggle-button size-p-md\">Expand All<\/button>\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>Can I earn the Museum Studies certificate online?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>No, the courses are taught in real time by museum professionals at the Milwaukee Public Museum. The hands-on aspect of the program and the fact that the courses are taught on site at the MPM are part of the reason the program has been so successful for such a long time.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>I already have a Masters degree. Can I just take the courses required for the certificate?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>No. The program is extremely popular and on occasion we have had problems accommodating all of the 51ÁÔÆæ graduate students interested in earning the certificate. The maximum number of students in any given cohort is 20. Each class is kept small in order to meet the pedagogical goals of the program.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>I am a graduate student at UW-Madison. Can I enroll in the program?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>Unfortunately we cannot accommodate students enrolled in graduate programs at other UW System institutions (see FAQ #2).<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>Do I have to be a 51ÁÔÆæ Anthropology graduate student to complete the certificate?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>No, any student enrolled in a 51ÁÔÆæ graduate program is eligible. However, you must contact the Museum Studies coordinators at 51ÁÔÆæ and the MPM via e-mail to notify them of your interest and if you are not enrolled in the Anthropology or History graduate degree programs, you must also notify your Graduate Program Representative of your interest.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>Can I work full-time and complete the certificate?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>Yes. However, the required courses are taught at the Milwaukee Public Museum during the museum&#8217;s regular opening hours and typically meet on Tuesday or Thursday afternoons beginning at 1:00pm. You must be able to negotiate an agreement with your employer allowing you to take one half day off per week for the two years that you are taking certificate courses (not including the summer months).<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>Will the certificate appear on my transcript?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>Yes. If you complete your graduate degree successfully, the Museum Studies certificate will appear on your official transcript when you graduate. You will also receive a paper copy of the certificate.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--header\"><strong>If I do not complete my graduate degree but I do complete the certificate courses, will the certificate appear on my transcript?<\/strong><\/div><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel\"><div class=\"uwm-p-accordion--panel-inner uwm-u-clear\">\n<p>No. You will not receive the paper copy of the certificate and your transcript will not show the certificate as having been completed if you do not complete the requirements for your graduate degree. The certificate is tied to your graduate degree.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>General Master&#8217;s Program PhD Program Museum Studies Graduate Certificate<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":8613,"parent":7444,"menu_order":1,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","uwm_wg_additional_authors":[]},"class_list":["post-99","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.3 (Yoast SEO v27.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Anthropology<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/anthropology\/students\/graduate\/application-instructions\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Application Q&amp;A\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"General Master&#8217;s Program PhD Program Museum Studies Graduate Certificate\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/anthropology\/students\/graduate\/application-instructions\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Anthropology\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-01-21T22:36:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/anthropology\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/204\/2025\/08\/FAQ_hero_1500x400.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1500\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/anthropology\\\/students\\\/graduate\\\/application-instructions\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/anthropology\\\/students\\\/graduate\\\/application-instructions\\\/\",\"name\":\"Application Q&amp;A - Anthropology\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/anthropology\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/anthropology\\\/students\\\/graduate\\\/application-instructions\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/anthropology\\\/students\\\/graduate\\\/application-instructions\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/anthropology\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/204\\\/2025\\\/08\\\/FAQ_hero_1500x400.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-01-12T19:40:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-01-21T22:36:44+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/anthropology\\\/students\\\/graduate\\\/application-instructions\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/anthropology\\\/students\\\/graduate\\\/application-instructions\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/anthropology\\\/students\\\/graduate\\\/application-instructions\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/anthropology\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/204\\\/2025\\\/08\\\/FAQ_hero_1500x400.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/anthropology\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/204\\\/2025\\\/08\\\/FAQ_hero_1500x400.webp\",\"width\":1500,\"height\":400,\"caption\":\"FAQ concept; 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