MACultural Anthropology
| Study location | Hungary, Budapest |
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| Type | Master, full degree studies |
| Nominal duration | 4 semesters (120 ECTS) |
| Study language | English |
| Awards | MA |
| Course code | Social Science |
| Entry qualification | Bachelor diploma (or higher) Applicants must have a BA/BBA degree in any of the following areas: Social Science, Communication and Media Science, International Studies, Political Studies, Social Work, Social Pedagogy, Sociology, Cultural Anthropology, Political Science, Community Coordination, Ethnography, Roma Studies. If the BA degree does not meet all the necessary requirements, the applicant may be required to complete additional credits in the relevant fields during their first year of study to fulfill these requirements upon acceptance. Documents to submit with application:
The entry qualification documents are accepted in English. If this is not the case, you will need official translations along with verified copies of the original. You must take the original entry qualification documents along with you when you finally go to the university. The entry qualification documents are accepted in the following languages: English. In most cases you can request a suitable transcript from your school. If this is not the case, you will need official translations along with verified copies of the original. You must take the original entry qualification documents along with you when you finally go to the university. |
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| Territory requirements | Applications are accepted from the following territories (based on citizenship): Albania, Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belize, Bolivia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Brazil, Burundi, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo - Kinshasa, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Rwanda, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, St Lucia, Sudan, Syria, São Tomé & Príncipe, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Türkiye, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen. |
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| Language requirements | English Certification of English knowledge (both written and oral): B2 • IELTS Score: 5.5 If the applicant is unable to prove their knowledge of English with any of the above certifications, their English knowledge will be assessed during the admission interview. Any letter of acceptance issued by the Faculty of Social Sciences is based on the verified fact that the applicant’s command of English has been assessed; therefore, they are considered eligible to pursue their studies at the institution. |
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| Other requirements | A motivation letter must be added to your application. Applicants must upload a motivation letter in English that introduces themselves and outlines their reasons for applying, including their motivations, interests, and goals related to the programme. The letter should be between 1,500 and 4,000 characters. The procedure of the entrance examination Applicants with a complete application package will be notified about the exact time and date of their online interviews after the nomination deadline. It is the applicant’s responsibility to have technically suitable conditions for the interview from their side. Applicants are expected to be prepared taking questions regarding the compulsory admission materials (see: Recommended Readings) from the side of admission committee composed of a professor, a lecturer and a student representative. A successful oral entrance exam is the perquisite of getting admitted. If the applicant fails the oral entrance exam, the application will be rejected. |
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| More information |
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Overview
The goal of this programme is to give relevant knowledge to students about the common universal human characteristics and values in their diverse and complex manifestations from the perspective of cultural anthropology.
Cultural anthropology is based on critical and interpretative thinking and uses the approaches and methodology of social sciences. Cultural anthropology has an applied perspective; methodologies include interpretation and field research. Critical anthropological thinking and fieldwork experiences help the students understand the differences and difficulties of social interactions, cultural and intercultural communication and their significances in a sensitive and interpretative way.
This programme is recommended to applicants who wish to acquire professional competencies, fieldwork experience, practicing anthropological skills, interpretive thinking, inter-cultural mediation. The students will be able to apply their knowledge and skills in decisions of the social and economic life, international relations and communication, as well as in their professional career.
This programme enables students to master:
- types and global characteristics of cultural diversity,
- theories and concepts related to complex and traditional cultures,
- history, theories and methods of cultural anthropology,
- basic professional anthropological directions,
- widely accepted, professional-specific problem-solving techniques for their independently designed and implemented research or scientific work,
- ethical norms of cultural anthropology.
Strength of programme
One of the main strength of the programme is the great variety of courses, covering several areas of cultural anthropology. Our graduates will have a broad knowledge in many areas of cultural anthropology. Besides offering introduction and basic foundation in many areas, some of the subjects lead to up-to-date research results.
Most of the teachers of the programme have international teaching experience and they regularly give classes also at foreign universities. Young anthropologists, bringing in freshness and new momentum, are also involved in the programme. Our instructors all have scientific degrees and good research record. Examples show that graduating from our programme is a very good starting point for doctoral or (at a later stage) postdoctoral studies.
The programme has a special friendly atmosphere. The students and professors have free and fraternal professional relationship. The cooperation between students and professors is very strong.
Leading professor of the programme:
Csaba PRÓNAI, Habil. Associate Professor
Entry requirements:
Applicants must have a BA/BBA degree in any of the following areas: Social Science, Communication and Media Science, International Studies, Political Studies, Social Work, Social Pedagogy, Sociology, Cultural Anthropology, Political Science, Community Coordination, Ethnography, Roma Studies.
In case of other bachelor degrees: individual consideration.
If the BA degree does not meet all the necessary requirements, the applicant may be required to complete additional credits in the relevant fields during their first year of study to fulfill these requirements upon acceptance.
Documents to submit with application:
- Bachelor-level degree
- Transcript of records
- Motivation letter
- Copy of the main pages of the passport (needs to be valid)
- Language certificate (if the applicant has one)
The procedure of the entrance examination:
Applicants with a complete application package will be notified after the application deadline about the exact time and date of their online interviews. It is the applicant’s responsibility to have technically suitable conditions for the interview from their side.
Applicants are expected to be prepared taking questions regarding the compulsory admission materials (see: Recommended Readings) from the side of admission committee composed of a professor, a lecturer and a student representative.
A successful oral entrance exam is the perquisite of getting admitted. If the applicant fails the oral entrance exam, the application will be rejected.
Entrance exam:
Yes
Type of entrance exam:
Oral
Entrance exam location:
Online
Entrance exam description:
The online application interview will include a discussion on the following topics:
The applicant should choose one of the well-known figures from the history of anthropology – Clifford Geertz, Edmund Leach, Bronislaw Malinowski, Margaret Mead – and review his/her works and achievements in the fields of anthropology.
Recommended Readings:
- Edmund Leach: Social anthropology (Oxford University Press, 1982)
- Margaret Mead: Coming of Age in Samoa (1928) or Sex and Temperament in Three Primitive Societies (1935)
- Bronislaw Malinowski: Argonauts of the Western Pacific: An account of native enterprise and adventure in the Archipelagoes of Melanesian New Guinea (London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1922) or Baloma; the Spirits of the Dead in the Trobriand Islands (1916)
- Clifford Geertz: The Interpretation of Cultures: Selected Essays (Basic Books, 1973) or Local Knowledge: Further Essays in Interpretive Anthropology (Basic Books, 1983)
(Applicants are also allowed to choose a different reading from the authors.)
Preparatory year available:
No
Specialisation year available:
No
Link:
studyinhungary.hu/institution/eotvos-lorand-university-66.html
Contact person:
International Office, Eszter Borbála Bagi
E-mail: international@tatk.elte.hu
Programme structure
Click here to find out more information about the structure of the programme.
Career opportunities
Our former students have been working as academic researchers at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and the Museum of Ethnography. Many of them are professors in different universities: Eötvös Loránd University, Corvinus University, Pázmány Péter Catholic University, Dharma Gate Buddhist College, and Bhaktivedanta College.
Besides, cultural anthropologists are applied in non-governmental organizations (Artemisszió Foundation, Menedék – the Hungarian Association for Migrants). Some of them have also found job possibilities in market research and multinational companies. Others work as social workers, social politicians, or members of social development and Roma programmes.
More and more international companies look for anthropologist employees who have skills of working in multicultural environments and cooperation with colleagues from different cultural backgrounds. Several former students of us work recently in communication fields, they can be found in communication companies, communication departments, and media.
More students have become journalists, reporters, and editors of online and offline newspapers, television channels, and radio programmes.
Job examples:
- Academic researcher
- Market researcher
- International aid/development worker
- Social researcher
Also work in the public and not-for-profit sectors, branches of the Civil Service, local government, charities, central government bodies, universities, international organizations, museums, and voluntary organizations.