Priscilla Rachun Linn, Author at The Anthropology Career Readiness Network

Will using ACRN’s new book for instructors inspire the teaching of career readiness and help advance the future of anthropology?

Word on the street is that anthropology faces major challenges today. Departments are closing. Student enrollments are down, especially for undergraduates. Even the very value of the subject is scorned in some circles. Now there is a new positive force for anthropology. The workbook, Teaching Tools for Anthropology Careers: Resources for Instructors and Departments, has arrived. Produced by the Anthropology Career Readiness Network (ACRN) with multiple editors, it is the companion for Career Tools for Anthropology, a workbook for students and mid-career anthropologists to guide them into successful work outside academia. The student workbook focuses on why study anthropology and how [...]

Would you like to write a blogpost for the World of Work Blog?

Have you ever met an anthropologist who did not want to share a story, an idea, or an insight with you? Maybe you have—but not I—and I have almost 50 years in the field. Each of us has some truth to tell. No matter our employment status, we constantly observe, evaluate, and weigh conclusions in our surroundings. For that reason, I believe that each of us has a blogpost for the World of Work Blog on the Anthropology Career Readiness Network (ACRN) website. “Who are you,” you might ask, “to request a blog from me?” Full transparency here: for the past [...]

What can museum anthropologists do to protect their programs despite cuts in government grants?

I am opening here without a museum reference, but please bear with me. In May 2025, I attended a launch ceremony for graduating seniors of the Arlington, Virginia, Affordable Homes and Communities (AHC) non-profit organization. Through AHC advocacy, these students from difficult backgrounds were attending university, often the first in their families. Fortunately, AHC relies mostly on nonfederal funding sources, so their essential mission to provide fair housing and promote education, will remain intact. But what if your museum was hoping for, or had received a grant that evaporated by executive order? Having worked with the challenges of grants and funding [...]

What can the new workbook, Career Tools for Anthropology, do for me?

You love anthropology. You feel committed to how it expands understanding and awareness. You want meaningful work in the field. But, if you are getting a Doctorate, you discover there are precious few jobs in Academia and often those barely help make ends meet. And if you are getting an Associate’s, Bachelor’s, or Master’s degree, there are few listings for “anthropologist.” Plus, you are still explaining why anthropology is so important to you. You want your parents and others invested in your future to understand something important to you. Significant for your career is how your desire to incorporate the wisdom and knowledge you have worked so hard to accrue shapes your vision of your workplace. Now [...]

Are there helpful rules for working in a hierarchical environment?

Hierarchies are everywhere. Government, corporations, and academia all rely on structures that enable managers to allocate duties and evaluate employee performance. Employees know their responsibilities and the compensation they can expect based on the work they do. In writing this blog post, I am thinking about my experience and those of my practicing anthropology colleagues whose careers began at or transitioned into immense hierarchies. As a novice in the U.S. Department of State, a federal bureau, I had to generate my own unspoken “rules” to survive the challenges within this overwhelming behemoth. Fortunately, earlier in my life, I had begun forming [...]

How do you create a results-oriented resume?

Hopefully you know that a resume reveals who you are, what you can offer, and what you hope to get out of your professional life, now and in the future. A resume is a roadmap to finding work. When I created my first resume, I wrote it in the “I did this,” or a task-oriented format, which was standard back then. But things have changed, and now, stating information in results-oriented language has become essential. If you review your resume, you can ensure your writing captures your contributions in the workplace. So, what is results-oriented language and why is it [...]