World of Work Blog

As a graduate in Cultural Anthropology and a current Social Media Intern with the Anthropology Career Readiness Network (ACRN), I have come to realize how deeply anthropology continues to connect people, even beyond academia. This year, my work with ACRN introduced me to Willing Observers, LLC, a firm founded by anthropologists Dr. Luzilda (Lucy) Arciniega and Dr. Melissa (Missy) Maceyko. Its mission is to train individuals and organizations to notice inequities, ask better questions, and become effective change-agents in workplace culture. Through Willing Observers, I discovered the Culture and Belonging Strategies Network (CBSN), a collaborative hub of professionals committed to improving [...]

“What will you do with a PhD in anthropology?” “Why do you want a PhD anyway?” If you’ve done a PhD in anthropology, you know these types of questions—particularly if you do not plan to become a professor. When I was eight, I read Margaret Mead’s biography and fell in love with anthropology. From that day, I wanted to be an anthropologist. I was drawn to the exoticness of it, the curiosity behind it, and the ability to interact with people different from myself. I thought I would travel to remote places to learn about people different from myself. However, my [...]

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 we eat, where and how we eat—is never just about food. These choices reflect our identities, social roles, and even aspirations. In anthropology, that makes food an ideal entry point to observe how people live and express themselves. But beyond research, learning to read food spaces can also prepare students for careers in media, branding, and more. I experienced this firsthand in Rio Paranaíba, a small town in Minas Gerais, Brazil. For my own research, I came to study cozinha mineira, the region’s traditional cuisine. I imagined family-run cafés, recipes passed down through generations, and hearty dishes like feijão tropeiro [...]

Over the past six months, I have conducted focus groups with anthropology students for my research as an Anthropology Career Readiness Network (ACRN) intern to find the most effective ways to increase anthropology's visibility on campus. The feedback was clear: anthropology departments have put too little effort into incorporating career readiness into their programs. Early in college, I had no idea what career I wanted. I was passionate about understanding and helping others, so I took courses in psychology and sociology. Then, I found cultural anthropology and realized it was the perfect fit for my vision of seeing and existing in the world. I knew that anthropology’s holistic approach to understanding people and cultures was something I would not find elsewhere. When I transferred to a university, [...]

Searching for your path during your undergraduate studies is daunting. Finding your footing can be your biggest obstacle, but you have more time than you think. I was able to work three other jobs, take 15 credits, and still pursue and secure an internship. Many questions arose when entering my internship as an undergraduate student a year and a half into my degree: Where do I begin? What should I be doing? Am I smart enough for this internship? The objective of an internship is to gain real-world experience inside and outside your field. You are not going to know everything [...]

I have never had “Anthropologist” as a job title, but anthropology has been part of everything I have done, even before I could name it. I am still at the beginning of my career, but my journey so far has been full of discoveries. It has been a kind of domino effect, where one curiosity led to the next. I was born and raised in Bulgaria, and for my Bachelor’s degree I studied Portuguese Philology at Sofia University because I wanted to learn a new language and explore another culture. I have always been fascinated by how people communicate. When little, [...]

In June 2014, I left my tenure-track position in anthropology to maintain my passion for applied anthropology and to harness my knowledge to serve the public. Academia had provided benefits and promotion to associate professor, allowing me to enhance my scholarship. Even so, I still felt unfulfilled and wanted to use my skills to interact with the “real world.” I started over with temporary jobs, teaching online, and volunteering for community and heritage organizations in my hometown of West Palm Beach, FL. I offered my assistance to local heritage groups by consulting on preservation methods for archival collections, museum fundraising, promoting [...]

It is time to rethink what it means to be an anthropologist. While academic teaching is still the assumed goal for PhD anthropologists, the vast majority of us will not follow this traditional path. Despite the changing landscape, misinformation abounds about alternative career paths. This ambiguity around what it’s really like to work outside of academia puts students and potential career changers at a disadvantage, as they often struggle to gain a clear understanding of their options. I think about these topics a lot, as an anthropologist who has built a career as a writer and researcher in the tech sector. [...]

My attraction to anthropology began early. Photographs in National Geographic stimulated my interest in other cultures, especially since I was growing up in a homogeneous community. My undergraduate major at William and Mary acquainted me with anthropology, and the four-field approach, learned as a graduate student at Cornell, convinced me that I could study anything through the anthropological lens. This holistic interdisciplinary perspective has enabled me to maintain my identity as an anthropologist. It has provided me with the conceptual and methodological tools to utilize in a wide variety of applied projects for Fortune 500 companies, state and federal organizations, and [...]