Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology

What is the experience of migrants in Amsterdam, and that of schoolchildren in a Lebanese village? What makes it so difficult for Brazilian gold diggers to integrate into society in Suriname? And why is plastic surgery among Belgian youth more popular than among Dutch youth?

The bachelor’s programme in Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology at VU is the best in the Netherlands. You will explore familiar and unfamiliar worlds, far away and close to home. You will study topics such as globalization, migration, emancipation and global and local inequality, and will discover the differences and similarities between groups and societies.

Looking further as an anthropologist
Anthropology is everywhere: from your own neighbourhood to Timbuktu. The whole world is your professional domain! In the course of the programme, we deal with various themes: from religion, migration and violence, to youth and international cooperation. Expert instructors teach you to look critically at social issues.

From the VU theme Connected World, you can enrich your studies with knowledge and courses from other social sciences such as sociology, political science and organizational sciences. By completing a minor in these subjects, it is possible to meet the admission requirements for the corresponding master’s programmes.

The bachelor’s programme lasts three years. You will follow lectures and participate in seminars and practicals. During the lectures, the instructors provide an explanation of the professional literature. In the seminars, you start working independently: you will create assignments involving the literature, write a paper, present your own research or review a book. During the practicals, you will learn to apply social science research methods. Every year, you will conduct your own anthropological research, often on behalf of or in consultation with a social organization. During the programme, a lot of attention is paid to career orientation: you will follow lectur

English