Master of Arts in Anthropology

Are you interested in cultures? Are there human traits that transcend cultural differences? What are the conditions under which societies change? How are traditions maintained? How do people engage with the challenges of the contemporary world in their daily life?

Social anthropologists research the human experience by observing and participating in people’s daily lives. The Anthropology MA program enables you to specialize in Social Anthropology and learn more about the human experience from a comparative perspective. The program provides a stimulating research environment where you can develop your own research project through a range of fieldwork-based practices that examines the relativity of world views, and the commonalities of social practices, and relate them to a broader global context.

The Anthropology program at Tallinn University offers two MA Pathways conducted in the English language. In one Pathway, MA students produce a 40,000-word dissertation that is based on eight weeks of ethnographic fieldwork.

MA students can also opt to follow the Audiovisual Ethnography Module, where they produce audiovisual materials as part of their final projects.

Graduates from our program have continued their careers in the following fields: academic research, business, cultural organizations, non-governmental organizations, development, and international aid, government, health, media and publishing, education, and tourism.

Why study with us?

• We are constantly looking for ways to make new connections between disciplines, vocabularies, and concepts that will allow us to render a sophisticated understanding of the faculties of contemporary social life.
• Our courses address issues like the cultures of capitalism, environmental anthropology, audiovisual ethnography, and anthropology of perception. We develop these strands of research through the detailed analysis of ethnographic texts, anthropological films, and open-ended discussions in a seminar setting.
• The academic staff of the Anthropology program has conducted fieldwork in Central Asia, India, North America, Europe, and the Caribbean.
• All MA students carry out their own anthropological study in close collaboration with a supervisor and their peers. For example, anthropology student Deborah Onorati did her fieldwork with Cape Verdeans in Lisbon, Portugal.
• Our international scope is complemented through the Erasmus program, where students are offered the opportunity to study for up to one year at another European university. We also work on including universities outside of Europe through the Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility program.
• Our graduates have found employment in the public and private sectors or continued on to postgraduate studies.
• Estonia is the home of many nations.

Study Support Facilities

• The Anthropology program is housed within the School of Humanities and utilizes all the facilities made available by Tallinn University. The Audiovisual Ethnography Module is a joint course with the Baltic Film, Media, and Arts School, which supplies the basic equipment required to carry out the exercises associated with the curriculum.
• The university campus houses a study library, the main university library situated within easy reach of the city center. The National Library of Estonia is also in the city center.
• Before applying to the program, one can learn more about Tallinn University while participating in Tallinn Summer School or Tallinn Winter School. These are 3-week programs running respectively in July and January, combining a wide range of courses with a rich, diverse cultural program and attracting participants from all over the world.