The archaeology program at Trent is one of the largest in Canada, with twelve permanent faculty offering a wide range of courses across the breadth of the discipline. The Archaeology program offers different degree choices: a single-major Honours Archaeology program, and a joint-major Honours program, consisting of Archaeology and another program that Trent offers. Depending on options taken, you will receive a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) or a Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.). More information about the degrees is available in the Academic Calendar. The analytical, reasoning and practical skills that students gain in the classroom, field, and lab provide a solid foundation for a variety of career choices.
Our students take courses in archaeological field methods and laboratory techniques, the archaeology of the different regions of the world, and comparative archaeological studies on topics such as state formation, warfare, and more. The department regularly offers archaeological field schools in Belize, Ontario and Greece. In addition to these sub-disciplines of the field, we are also committed to training archaeologists to be conscious of their legal and ethical roles as stewards and ambassadors of cultural heritage.
Preparation for the future
- Our goal is to develop students who have a well-rounded foundation in archaeology and a highly-adaptable skill set that can lead in many directions.
- Directly after graduation, many of our students gain employment in fields such as contract archaeology or archaeotourism, while others choose to pursue graduate or professional training in order to access further career opportunities in cultural heritage management, museums, universities, and other related sectors.
The Experience
Archaeology is by its nature interdisciplinary, and at Trent we use and build on knowledge and methods from other disciplines such as economics, material science, biology, geography, and environmental science.
Program
We offer two undergraduate degrees in archaeology, a B.A. and a B.Sc. All archaeology students take certain courses in common, in order to attain a well-rounded basis in archaeology; they are also welcome to take courses from either degree.