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Bringing Practice In:
A Workshop for Faculty Seeking Ways to Improve
Anthropological Training for Applied and PracticeOriented Students
Riall W. Nolan
University of Cincinnati
November 2002
Different Kinds of Anthropology
Academic
Anthropologists
Applied
Anthropologists
UniversityBased
Practicing
Anthropologists
ExternallyBased
THE DISCIPLINE OF ANTHROPOLOGY
Nov 2002
2
The World of Practice
What Practitioners Do
Program Implementation
& Service Delivery
18%
Research
37%
Non-Profit
Sector 11%
Other
6%
AcademyBased 44%
Public
Sector
14%
Teaching
22%
Nov 2002
Where Practitioners Work
Administration &
Management
26%
Private Sector
25%
3
Main Practice Options (Bases)
Freelancer
Business Head
Main Practice
Options
Private - Sector Employee
Public - Sector Employee
Consultant
Non - Profit Employee
University Employee
Nov 2002
4
Technician or Manager?
• Technicians
– Highly skilled in very
specific areas
– Work in data collection
and analysis, area and
ethnic expertise,
languages
– Tend to be short-term
– Assignments are
sequential
Nov 2002
• Managers
– Hire and supervise the
technicians
– Involved in policy,
program and project
work
– Tend to be full-time
– Career arc involves
progressively
responsible
assignments
5
The Components of a Practitioner’s Job
Base:
Sector:
Function:
Government
Corporate
Non-Profit
Independent/freelance
Sole proprietorship
Small business
University
Social services
Public administration
Agriculture
Environment/nat. resources
International development
Manufacturing
Advertising
Public relations
Marketing
Planning
Management
Production/implementation
Design
Evaluation/impact assessment
Data collection/analysis
Needs assessment
Advocacy
Policy formulation
Nov 2002
6
Types of Practitioner Training Programs
• Programs which offer only the MA
• Programs offering the MA as a terminal
degree, but also the PhD
• Programs offering the PhD, with the MA as
a ‘consolation prize’
Nov 2002
7
MA or PhD? Factors in the Choice
• Time
– Average time to doctorate – 12.4 years
• Money
– Money spent on the degree
– Money earned with the degree
• Outlook
–
–
–
–
Nov 2002
research vs application
academic vs outside orientation
specialist vs generalist
pure anthropology vs multidisciplinary
8
Core Program Requirements
• NAPA Guidelines:
–
–
–
–
Program should be named
Program should have a specialty
Responsibility should be fixed with a PhD holder
There should be an integrated organized plan of
study
– Students should be identified as belonging to the
program
– Funding and support should be adequate
Nov 2002
9
Components of An Applied Curriculum
Advising/Mentoring
Thesis or Project Work
Career Guidance
Cognate Area
Courses
Elective
Courses
Core
Courses
Field
Experience
Nov 2002
Extracurricular
Activities
10
SWOT Analysis
• SWOT: Strengths, Weaknesses,
Opportunities, Threats
– The external environment presents you with
opportunities and threats
– The internal environment consists of your own
strengths and weaknesses
– You combine these to determine strategy
Nov 2002
11
The SWOT Matrix
INTERNAL
FACTORS
EXTERNAL
FACTORS
Nov 2002
STRENGTHS:
WEAKNESSES:
What are my major
internal strengths?
What are my major
internal weaknesses?
OPPORTUNITIES:
THREATS:
What are the major
external opportunities in
my field?
What are the major
external threats in my
field?
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Combining Environmental Conditions
EXTERNAL FACTORS
INTERNAL
FACTORS
Opportunities
Threats
Strengths
Comparative
Advantage
Mobilization
Weaknesses
Investment/Divestment
Damage Control
Nov 2002
13
Qualifications, Skills and Competencies
• Qualifications: basic parts to
your background
• Skills: things you know how
to do
• Competencies: collections of
skills focused on specific
areas
Nov 2002
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Threshold Qualifications
• Academic Training:
– a Master’s degree in anthropology
• Language Proficiency:
– at least one world language
• Field Experience:
– oriented toward practice
• Workplace Competencies:
– self-management skills
– functional skills
– technical skills
Nov 2002
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Competencies for Anthropological
Practice
•
•
•
•
•
•
Nov 2002
Finding Out Things
Analyzing and Learning Things
Communicating Things
Planning and Designing Things
Managing Things
Judging Things
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Site Visits
•Looking at the
School
•Looking at the
Program
•Looking at the
Department
–size & location
–applied emphasis
–faculty
–reputation and
ranking
–international and
cross-cultural emphasis
–students
–tuition/cost of
living
–record in career
development
–facilities and
programs
–practitioner
involvement
–student body
–outside links
Nov 2002
–externally-based
performance criteria
–climate
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How Advisors Help Students
•
•
•
•
•
•
Nov 2002
Orientation to school and program
Cultural key informant
Role model for performance standards
Provide wisdom, insight, perspective
Help them make crucial choices
Connect them with others
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The Ideal Advisor
•
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•
•
•
Nov 2002
Should know useful things
Should be willing to share these
Should be honest with advisees
Should challenge them
Should have a compatible workstyle
Should be mature, tenured, stable
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Managing the Advisor-Advisee
Relationship
• It is reciprocal
• Avoid the “black halo” effect
• Beware of Pygmalion or Svengalitype relationships
• Discuss the needs of both sides
openly and honestly
• Learn to negotiate and
compromise
Nov 2002
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Key Aspects of Field Experience
• Work in Organizations
• Work on a Project
• Cross-Cultural Contexts
Nov 2002
• Using what you’ve
learned
• Learning new things
• Training in application
• Career and job
information
• Working with others
• Network-building
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Experiential Learning in the Field
Experiencing
(The “Activity” Phase)
Applying
(Deciding How to Use
Learning)
Generalizing
(Developing Principles)
Nov 2002
Publishing
(Sharing Reactions and
Observations)
Processing
(Discussing Patterns and
Dynamics)
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Customizing Learning with Learning
Contracts
•
•
•
•
Objectives: What do you want to learn and why?
Strategies: How will you learn these things?
Products: What will the results look like?
Outcomes: How will the results be judged?
Learning Objectives
Nov 2002
Strategies, Resources
and Activities
Products to
be Assessed
Assessment Procedures and Criteria
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Considerations in Designing Field
Experiences
•
•
•
•
•
Nov 2002
Timing
Type of assignment
Supervision and evaluation
Academic credit
Documentation and outcomes
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Cross-Cultural Field Experience
• Can include:
–
–
–
–
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–
–
–
–
Nov 2002
A new or different frame of reference
An unfamiliar or uncertain environment
People of a different background
Different value systems
Intersecting value systems
Scarce resources
Ambiguity or uncertainly
Flexibility
Performance under pressure
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Learning Outside the Program
• Career Counseling
• Professional Conferences
• Consulting and Research
Opportunities
• Grant-writing
• Language Learning
Nov 2002
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The Non-Academic Job Market
•
•
•
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Relatively unstructured
No master list of jobs
Opportunities are often hidden
Interview and negotiation skills
are key
• The range of jobs is enormous
• No job lasts forever
Nov 2002
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The Job Search Strategy
1. Get on the List
•Visioning
•Networking
•Info. Interviewing
2. Stay on the List
•SWOT Analysis
•Portfolio Prep.
•More Networking
•More Info. Interviewing
3. Get Chosen
•Interviewing
•Negotiating
Nov 2002
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A Graduate’s Career Vision
Your Values
•What things do you feel strongly
about?
•How do you strive to live?
•What do you respect in others?
Your Interests
•What do you like to do?
•What do you already know a lot
about?
•What would you like to know more
about?
Sector
What general area is this: health,
education, industry, etc?
Setting
Where is this job: public, private,
or non-profit sector; domestic,
international, etc?
Functions
What does the job involve: data
collection, management, planning,
policymaking, etc?
Level
of Effort
Is the job clerical, managerial or
technical? Full-time or part-time?
Permanent or temporary?
Your Skills
•What can you do that is useful in
several different areas?
•What things do you think you’re
particularly good at doing?
Filters
What qualifications do you need? PhD?
Language? Citizenship? Gender? Age?
Ethnicity? Politics?
Salary? Title? Rank? Mobility?
Perks
and Lurks Connections? Visibility? Security?
Power? Fringe Benefits?
Nov 2002
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Anthropological Skills in the Job Hunt
• You can define the shape of the world of work and
locate significant nodes and actors within it
• You can quickly research the relevant literature and
extract significance from it
• You can learn the “local language” of the workplace
• You can analyze and operate within work cultures
• You are skilled at asking good questions
• You are comfortable with ambiguity
• You can modify your frameworks as you learn
Nov 2002
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Networking
• Creates a web of
professional relationships
• Provides information,
insight, advice, and access
• Connects you with role
models and mentors
• Is a form of reality testing
• Lasts throughout your
professional lifetime
• Can be a source of support
and feedback
Nov 2002
• Connects you with
“insiders”
• Through insiders, you
connect to many others
• Industries rely on peer
judgments
• Industry networks
communicate constantly
about people and events
• Professionals in your
network are highly mobile
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The Goals of Informational Interviewing
• What does this organization do and how
does it do it?
• What are working conditions like here?
• What qualifications do you need to work
here?
• How do they make hiring decisions?
Nov 2002
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A Graduate’s Professional Portfolio
•
•
•
•
A resume of no more than 1-2 pages
A 1-2 page career summary
A list of people who can provide references
An inventory of professional work
Nov 2002
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Resumes
• A resume is not a CV
• It is a brief account of one’s skills
and accomplishments
• It has only one purpose: to get
someone an interview
• It is not about you: it is about you
in relation to them and their needs
Nov 2002
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Components of the Resume
•
•
•
•
•
Nov 2002
Your personal data
Your education
Your job history
Your outside activities
Any special honors,
skills, interests or
qualifications you may
have
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Creating Your Resume
• The best predictor of future
performance is past performance
• Stress therefore what you have
accomplished, not just what you know
• Of particular value:
–
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–
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–
Nov 2002
Presentation and communication skills
Project and team management experience
Creative leadership and problem-solving
A range of research skills
The ability to “get things done”
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“Getting Things Done”
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Solving problems
Producing results
Getting along with people
Helping them to get along with
each other
• Generating and using resources
efficiently
• Finding new ways to do things
Nov 2002
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Preparing Your Accomplishments
• Pick 3-6 of your best examples. Include difficult
or “challenging” situations.
• For each:
–
–
–
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State the problem, tasks, issues or opportunities
Describe your strategy or approach
State the skills and abilities you used
Describe the outcomes you achieved
• Your actions are central to the story.
• Connect to your listeners’ specific needs.
• Stress your fit with, and enthusiasm for, the job.
Nov 2002
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Selling Them on Anthropology
• We understand the centrality of culture.
• We develop understanding inductively.
• We are holistic in our outlook.
• We search for comparisons and contrasts.
• We are highly interactive.
BUT:
• Don’t propose research as the answer to
everything.
Nov 2002
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Common Stereotypes of “Academics”
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•
Nov 2002
Lack common sense
Can’t meet deadlines
Don’t take direction well
Can’t write clearly
Aren’t practical
Aren’t team players
Aren’t results-oriented
Aren’t loyal to the organization
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A Hierarchy of Professional
Development
4. PROFESSIONAL EFFECTIVENESS:
Managing others
Dealing with stress and failure
Retraining and re-skilling
Making your work count
Changing jobs or careers
3. MASTERING BASIC TASKS:
Working with projects
Working with consultants
Decision-making
Communication
Proposal and report-writing
2. CONNECTING TO OTHERS:
1. BASIC SURVIVAL:
Analyzing the organization
Understanding your job
Performing
Nov 2002
Dealing with your boss
Dealing with counterparts
Managing conflict
Working in teams
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Your First Year at Work
Use These Competencies:
•Interaction:
–Dealing tactfully and
persuasively with co-workers
•Coordination:
–Aligning your efforts to the
overall needs of the organization
•Responsiveness:
–Assessing your boss’s needs and
providing satisfactory
performance
•Conflict Management:
–Getting difficulties and disputes
ironed out
•Communication:
–Exchanging information in
positive and productive ways
Nov 2002
To Do These Things:
•Perform
–Sufficient solutions, not
optimal ones
–Seek opportunities, not
problems
•Connect
–Develop relationships
–Build acceptance, reputation,
and respect
•Learn
–Optimal ignorance
–Appropriate imprecision
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