Archaeology is the study of the human past beyond the realms of history, which is reliant upon the written record. Archaeology uses human artefacts and remains, including buildings and monuments, to help us understand how our ancestors lived and worked. It helps us to see how humans have spread across the world, developing tools and technology, and allows us to interpret how human activity has changed both the environment and landscape.
Although the popular understanding of archaeology concentrates on earlier periods of human history, archaeological techniques, especially those relating to scientific excavation, can be applied to any historical period. Archaeologists are just as interested in more modern times, such as industrial culture, urban development and decline, as well as the origins of agriculture, such as the early cultures of Egypt and Rome, or the peoples of the Americas. Its practical techniques can also be used in contemporary investigations, such as forensic science.
For the prospective undergraduate student, archaeology offers an exciting and intellectually challenging discipline, in which there are opportunities for a very wide range of study and practice. As a very international subject, it offers the potential for travel, often to remote and interesting locations, for periods of exploration and excavation. It also allows a combination of work in the sciences and humanities, and consequently provides an excellent range of skills of value to many professions. Archaeologists are in demand, as they can apply a range of skills and understanding to problems in alternative discipline areas. There are, of course, also many careers in archaeology, in practical and field investigations throughout the world, in national organisations responsible for the care and preservation of our cultural history, in museums, and in landscape management within National Parks.
The United Kingdom offers one of the best locations in the world in which to study archaeology. The subject has its origins as a discipline in the pioneering investigations carried out in the UK during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and it has developed as an important subject of study in many Universities. The landscapes of the UK are exceptionally rich in archaeological remains of many types and periods, with monuments of global importance, such as Stonehenge. There are many opportunities to participate in important excavations, from prehistoric to modern industrial archaeology. The UK also has museum and library collections of the highest quality, easily accessible to undergraduates, and British archaeology carries on its work through its international outlook, with extensive programmes of research in many areas of the world.
The variety of undergraduate courses available provide a wide range of specialist study. While most courses include the opportunity for developing excavation skills, the approaches vary, from degrees based in the theoretical and documentary to those specialising in particular periods (e.g. Classical Archaeology or Egyptology), and yet others with a European bias. A number provide excellent scientific and professional education, as well as the possibility of combining archaeology with other subjects, or studying as part of a modular degree.
For those students who would like to prepare for a professional career in archaeology and the closely related fields of museums and collections management, or management of cultural and natural landscapes, undergraduate degrees can provide a secure foundation. The BSc (Hons) Archaeology meets the national professional requirements for Membership of the Institute of Field Archaeology, and provides a scientific and practical preparation for a lifelong career. As an alternative, the broader BSc (Hons) History, Heritage and Conservation allows the study of archaeology to be developed alongside a sound understanding of certain aspects of history in combination with professional museums and collections management skills, or national heritage management skills.
For those in search of a highly practical and professional course that provides the technical grounding for entry into the Archaeological profession, the main UK course is the Higher National Diploma in Practical Archaeology. Courses at HND level have a lower entry requirement than degrees, and successful candidates have the opportunity to join a fast track route to obtaining their degree in just three years.
Author
Professor Bryan J.H. Brown
Head of the School of
Conservation Sciences
Bournemouth University
