Archaeology
Image: Students inspect a grid at the College of Charleston at Stono Preserve as Kim Pyszka looks on (credit: Maureen Hays).
The mission of the Archaeology Program is to train students in the theory, methods, and applications of archaeology.
The College of Charleston is the only institutiion in the state and one of the few institutions in the country offers a major in Archaeology. It takes a fully interdisciplinary approach to its curriculum, integrating the fields of anthropology, art history, biology, chemistry, classics, data science, geology, historic preservation, history, and mathematics in the study of the material past.
Using the Carolina Lowcountry as a base, the wealth of is cultural resources allows for collaborations with state, local, and national agencies, private cultural resource management firms, and descendent, Gullah Geechee, and other communities. The local climate and archaeological wealth translate into internship programs year-round at no less than a half dozen archaeological sites and centers in the region, thus supporting the missions of SC state agencies and providing an educated workforce for the natural resources, historic preservation, and tourism sectors of the state economy
Beyond the strengths of the Lowcountry, Archaeology at the College is global. Faculty hold active research agendas in the Mediterranean (Greece, Turkey, Egypt, Lebanon, Tunisia, Italy, Morocco, Spain), France, and the Caribbean. Students engage in these projects and use the international networks of the faculty to engage in their own early career experiences in these spaces as well as countries in such places as central America, Scandinavia, western and central Europe, and the British Isles.
Generally, archaeologists find employment in a wide variety of work settings such as museums, colleges and universities, government agencies, public and private foundations, and consulting firms in a diverse array of roles including educator, researcher, administrator, and consultant.
Program alumni are successful, in and out of the field of archaeology. Within two years of graduation, 80% of alumni are employed in an industrial sector related to archaeology or are pursuing advanced study. Beyond archaeology, alumni are found in such sectors as the law, spatial technology, informatics, and energy.
What can I do with a major in archaeology?
Upcoming courses, fall 2023!