CHRM MS Concentrations

The MS program has two concentrations: Natural Sciences and Technology, and Social Sciences and Interpretation. One concentration must be selected when applying to the program. All students will take the same core courses, but each concentration has a unique list of supporting courses. These courses derive from multiple departments to provide students with the background and specialized training in additional areas relevant to their research focus, and to prepare them for the increasingly interdisciplinary nature of CHRM. While all students can choose from the same internship/practica options, they should select topics that fit within the scope of their concentration to complement their supporting courses. All three options for the Culminating Experience ( traditional thesis, journal-ready thesis, or project with explanatory report) are available to students regardless of their concentration.

Natural Sciences and Technology concentration

Students in the Natural Sciences and Technology concentration will be trained to employ technologies and methods from the natural and social sciences that focus on documenting and managing natural and cultural resources (e.g., conservation biology, GIS and remote sensing, human remains analysis). The following list represents updates that are in progress and will be finalized for the 2027-28 course catalog.

Prerequisite for Admission

Introductory Statistics (grade of C or higher)

Supporting Courses

Complete two or more of the following courses (ranging from 2-4 units each):

BIOL 328: Vertebrate Evolutionary Morphology
BIOL 349: Animal Physiology
BIOL 329: Plant Biology
BIOL 330: Plant Taxonomy
BIOL 348: Plant Physiology
BIOL 350: Plant Physiological Ecology
BIOL 502: Science Communication
BIOL 585: Biometry
BIOL 586: Communicating Biology with R
GEP 319: Native Plants in Restoration
GEP 333: Natural Resource Planning
GEP 340: Applied Ecology
GEP 345: Lab Methods in Physical Geography
GEP 347: Conservation Biology
GEP 350: Geomorphology
GEP 352: Soil Science
GEP 380: Environmental Remote Sensing
GEP 387: Introduction to Geographic Information Systems
GEP 388: Environmental Geographic Information Systems
GEP 446: Restoration Ecology
GEP 456: Global Climate Change: Past, Present, and Future
GEP 486: Environmental Data Analysis
GEP 489: Advanced Geographic Information Systems
GEOL 310: Geophysics
GEOL 311: Sedimentary Geology
HDAA 325: Embodied Identities in the Past
HDAA 355WIC: Health and Disease in the Past
HDAA 360: Human Behavioral Ecology
HDAA 400: New Technologies in Archaeology and Cultural Heritage
HDAA 401: Human Osteology
HDAA 403: Forensic Anthropology Methods
HDAA 590: Special Topics in Cultural Heritage and Resources Management (depending on topic)
HDAA 595: Special Studies (depending on topic)

Internship/Practica Options

HDAA 587: Internship in Information Management
HDAA 588: Practicum: Archaeological Survey & Site Recording
HDAA 589: Practicum: CHRM Project Management
HDAA 591: Practicum at the Anthropological Studies Center
- GIS Applications in CHRM
- Technology in CHRM
HDAA 592: Practicum: Evaluating the Built Environment
HDAA 596: Internship
HDAA 597: Internship at the Anthropological Studies Center
- Archaeobotany
- Archaeozoology

Social Sciences and Interpretation

Students in the Social Sciences and Interpretation will be trained to employ theories and methods from the social sciences and humanities that focus on interpreting and managing heritage for the public and in collaboration with stakeholders (e.g., museum studies, public history, public policy, ethnography). The following list represents updates that are in progress and will be finalized for the 2027-28 course catalog.

Prerequisite for Admission

None

Supporting Courses

Complete two or more of the following courses (ranging from 2-4 units each):

GEP 321: Parks and Protected Areas
GEP 323: Natural Resources & Development
GEP 324: Climate Change and Society
GEP 362: Environmental Impact Assessment
GEP 422: Political Ecology
HDAA 324: Archaeology and the Bible
HDAA 326: Nature, Culture, and Power
HDAA 327: Archaeology of Contact and Colonization
HDAA 328: Climate Change and the Life Course
HDAA 352: Global Consumption
HDAA 357: Language Change
HDAA 358: Language in Sociopolitical Context
HDAA 361: Historical Archaeology
HDAA 375: Unequal Childhoods in the United States
HDAA 379: Culture and Language of Biomedicine
HDAA 402: Applied Ethnographic Methods
HDAA 405: Studies in Language Use
HDAA 590: Special Topics in Cultural Heritage and Resources Management (depending on topic)
HDAA 595: Special Studies (depending on topic)
HIST 339: Ancient and Colonial Latin America
HIST 342: Modern Latin America
HIST 360: Public History and Museum Studies
HIST 433: History of Mexico
HIST 449: Gender and Sexuality in Latin America
HIST 458: Modern America since World War II
HIST 472: California History I¹
HIST 473: California History II
HIST 500: Historical Methods¹
HIST 510: Historiography¹
HIST 571: California and the West¹
POLS 314: Environmental Political Theory
POLS 421: Federal and Intergovernmental Relations
SOCI 328: Sociology of the Environment
SOCI 380: Political Sociology
SOCI 383: Science, Technology, and Society
SOCI 482: Environmental Justice and Policy

¹ If not used to satisfy first-year History requirement

Internship/Practica Options

HDAA 587: Internship in Information Management
HDAA 588: Practicum: Archaeological Survey & Site Recording
HDAA 589: Practicum: CHRM Project Management
HDAA 591: Practicum at the Anthropological Studies Center
- Interpretation
- Oral History
HDAA 592: Practicum: Evaluating the Built Environment
HDAA 596: Internship
HDAA 597: Internship at the Anthropological Studies Center
- Collections Management