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There are several special programs that involve the Anthropology Department to greater or lesser degrees: African Studies Center, Ethnohistory Program, Program in Language, Culture and Society, Latin American Cultures Program, MD/PhD Program, Medical Anthropology Program, and the Urban Studies Program. For more informal interdisciplinary work, or other interdisciplinary programs such as Medieval Studies, Anthropology and Education, and Islamic Studies, students should contact their Advisor or the Graduate Group Chair.

Ethnohistory Program
The Committee on Ethnohistory oversees an interdisciplinary program of courses offered primarily through the departments of Anthropology and History, along with selected courses from other departments throughout the University. Qualified students are admitted to the graduate program representing the student's major field of concentration, which sets all requirements. The Ethnohistory Program aims to provide students with the concepts and tools necessary to study both literate and non-literate communities from a combined anthropological/historical perspective. Emphasis is placed on the evaluation and utilization of written, oral, and ethnographic data for the purpose of historical anthropology. The Committee on Ethnohistory also sponsors an interdepartmental workshop where faculty and students meet to discuss recent publications, current research, and relevant issues in ethnohistory and related fields. Ethnohistory Program faculty on the Anthropology GG include Profs. Barnes, Farriss (History), and Urban. For related courses in Anthropology and other SAS Departments, check with individual Ethnohistory Program faculty.

Program in Language, Culture and Society
The object of this interdisciplinary program is to help make the University's resources in faculty and course offerings, distributed over several departments and schools, more accessible to interested students. Graduate students pursue their degree in one of the participating disciplines (Anthropology, Education, Communications, Folklore and Folklife, Linguistics, Sociology) with the program providing resources for a major or minor concentration within that discipline. Several somewhat overlapping concentrations are possible: ethnolinguistics and the analysis of speech and literary styles; sociolinguistics; linguistic anthropology and ethnoscience; acquisition of language and culture; practical field linguistics; ethnography of communication. Language, Culture and Society faculty on the Anthropology GG include Profs. Agha, Sankoff (Linguistics), and Urban.

Latin American Cultures Program
The Program is a focal point for the study of Latin American cultures in all their diversity of expression - not only "high culture" but also folk and other forms, from pre-Columbian times to the present. Perspectives are drawn from fields which include history, archaeology, cultural anthropology, literature, linguistics, folklore, art, and ethnohistory. The Program encourages a multidisciplinary approach, in which relevant methods and viewpoints from different fields are integrated to yield new kinds of insight into Latin America.

MD/PhD Program
This is a parallel program in that students must be admitted to both the Anthropology program and the Medical School. All degree requirements in both departments must be fulfilled. For more information on the program and related courses contact Prof. Huss-Ashmore (Anthropology); Maggie Hall (Assoc. Director, Combined Degree Program, Penn Med School); or the Anthropology GG Chair.

Medical Anthropology Program
The Program in Medical Anthropology integrates biological and cultural approaches to the study of health, illness, and disease. It emphasizes the contribution of human biology and physical anthropology to the study of problems of human health and well-being. Practical research training is available locally in conjunction with the Penn Center For Community Partnerships or other programs as appropriate. Students working toward the doctoral degree carry out their own specialized programs while developing the breadth in general anthropology which characterizes the general objectives of the Graduate Program. Students working toward the MSc follow a more concentrated course of study and research in their selected area.

Medical Anthropology faculty include Profs. Huss-Ashmore, Kricun (Radiology), and Zimmerman. Areas of specialization include:

o anthropology and clinical research
o paleopathology
o the cultural basis of health, illness and disease
o nutritional anthropology
o human development

Urban Studies Graduate Certificate Program
The Urban Studies Program offers students an interdisciplinary context in which to explore urban issues while pursuing a graduate degree in one of the disciplines or professional schools in the university. It emphasizes melding urban theory with practice, and encourages independent research. While working toward a PhD in their department, participants in the Certificate program take a two-semester proseminar and four urban-related courses. During the school year, faculty and graduate students gather monthly at an interdisciplinary workshop on urban related themes. Students may apply to enter the certificate program when they enter the PhD program, or at the conclusion of their first year of study. Interests of Urban Studies faculty cover many regions of the world, and include economic development, poverty, education, community organization, ethnicity, urban design, and policy. Urban Studies faculty on the Anthropology GG include Profs. Barnes, F. Erickson (Grad Educ), Hall (Grad Educ), Johnston, Sanday, Sankoff (Linguistics), and Zettler. For related courses in Anthropology and other SAS Departments, check with Urban Studies faculty. For information on the application process, contact the co-directors.