Forensic Anthropology at the University of Florida
The Department of Anthropology at the University of Florida offers graduate study in Biological or Physical Anthropology. Within biological anthropology at Florida there are several sub-specialties that students can pursue, including paleoanthropology, primate behavior and ecology, skeletal biology, bone chemistry, functional morphology, forensic anthropology, human genetic variation and biomedical studies.
The forensic anthropology course of study includes coursework in biostatistics, zooarchaeology, water and soil sciences, human gross and functional anatomy, biomechanics, radiology, osteology, as well as human evolution and genetic variation. Most importantly, however, we emphasize the hands-on approach to forensic anthropology. The department has two working forensic anthropology laboratories, the C.A. Pound Human Identification Laboratory and the Human Identification Laboratories at Turlington.
Service to the State of Florida and outside agencies continues to be the major focus of the laboratories, however, coordination of graduate student education with members of the teaching faculty has increased dramatically. Graduate students work closely with Dr. Michael W. Warren (mwarren@ufl.edu) in all aspects of casework including the search and recovery of human remains at clandestine sites, trauma analysis, and video superimposition techniques. Collaboration between the laboratories and the Departments of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, Water and Soil Sciences, Entomology, and the College of Health and Human Performance maximizes graduate student research opportunities. Graduate students also participate in death investigation through internships at the District 8 Medical Examiner’s Offices in Gainesville.
Students interested in pursuing the MA or Ph.D. in physical anthropology with an emphasis in forensic methodology must first apply to the graduate program in Anthropology. Graduate Applications may be found here. For the Department’s graduate application instructions go here. If you have questions about the application process, contact the Graduate Program Assistant. A letter of intent is required of all applicants and should include a specific interest in physical or biological anthropology with an emphasis on applied skeletal biology or forensic anthropology. The applicant must meet the minimum admissions criteria established by the Anthropology Department and the Graduate School, and successful candidates demonstrate excellence through their grade point averages (>3.5 on average), GRE scores (1320 on average), publications, and/or presentations at regional or national meetings. The forensic concentration is highly competitive with 5% or fewer applicants receiving offers of admission. Successful applicants usually have a BA or MA in anthropology with a concentration in physical anthropology, although previous students have come from backgrounds in the forensic sciences, zoology, and biology. Prospective students are encouraged to visit the University of Florida prior to the admission deadline and should arrange their trip with Dr. Warren directly. Additional information about the University of Florida and graduate studies in anthropology can be obtained at www.ufl.edu and http://web.anthro.ufl.edu/.
