Graduate Certificate in Hunter-Gatherer Archaeology and Anthropology (online)
Graduate Certificate Hunter-Gatherer Archaeology and Anthropology (online)
The Graduate Certificate in Hunter-Gatherer Archaeology and Anthropology is for students interested in the fascinating and remarkable world of hunter-gatherers. It is often claimed that humans have spent 90-99% of their existence as hunter-gatherers. Understanding these ways of life provides vital perspectives on human identity and the challenges and opportunities societies face today. Anthropology provides information about recent hunter-gatherers, but archaeology is the only discipline that can understand our hunter-gatherer past, and hunter-gatherer archaeology therefore has a particular significance.
Our programme will introduce students to key themes in the archaeology of past hunter gatherers, the relationship between past and present hunting and gathering communities, and the contemporary context of knowledge production about hunter-gatherers. Our primary focus is the archaeology of Homo sapiens hunter-gatherers: we will include some discussion of non-Homo sapiens, but this is not a course on human evolution.
You will develop skills in project design and independent research, data analysis and interpretation, communicating the past to different stakeholders, as well as how to develop different perspectives on the past. You will be part of a dynamic, friendly and international postgraduate community in a School with a 160-year history of exceptional archaeological research and you will form part of the UCD Hunter Gatherer Research Group.
The programme is structured as a one-year part-time online programme with three modules – one per trimester. The first two modules are thematic reviews of aspects of hunter-gatherer archaeology and anthropology, with the final, Summer Trimester, module, being a research project.
Applications for 2025/2026 are currently open.
Closing Date for 2025/2026 applications is 30th May 2025.
Late applications may be considered. For more information, please contact (opens in a new window)(opens in a new window)masters.archaeology@ucd.ie
More information about the programme and applications can be found here:
Programme coordinator: Professor Graeme Warren 
Email: (opens in a new window)graeme.warren@ucd.ie
Phone: +353 1 7168613
Professor Warren has been working with the School of Archaeology, University College Dublin since 2002. A specialist in the Archaeology of Hunter-Gatherers, Prof Warren is the current President of the International Society for Hunter-Gatherer Research, and a member of the Royal Irish Academy. Please see full (opens in a new window)profile here.
Related programmes:
