On a typical day in the field, archaeology graduate student Anne Austin would wake up at 4 a.m. and work outside until the early afternoon. The only time she would go indoors was to process the information and data she had recovered, or to go to classes. Then, it was an early bedtime so she could wake up the next morning to repeat the cycle.
Austin worked at a Greco-Roman site in Fayum, Egypt and surveyed a large cemetery in the town. As a specialist in bone archaeology and human skeletons, Austin tried to understand the age, health and gender of the population to get a better idea of the demographics.
“Realistically, you’re not finding treasure,” she said. “You usually find a pot shard and if you find an entire pot, that’s special. The things you see in Indiana Jones are not what really happens.”
UCLA students go abroad to complete their personal research projects and excavations. But before that, they begin their journey at the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, located below the Fowler Museum.
At the institute, students take core classes in the theory, history and methods of archaeology, as well as a seminar on research design, said Esmeralda Agolli, a doctoral candidate in the program who is currently doing research in her native Albania.
One of the most interesting classes Agolli took was a course on the archaeology of Anatolia, located in modern-day Turkey. Based on her area of interest in the Balkans, the class was relevant to her research.
Students are also expected to take a series of courses in another subject of interest, such as the humanities, social sciences or earth sciences.
This variety of classes is augmented by a teaching staff from nine different departments, said John Papadopoulos, a classics professor who teaches at the institute.
This interdisciplinary approach is an advantage for some students like Agolli, since she discovered new interests and had the opportunity to interact with a variety of professors.
While the institute introduces students to these technical skills, it also emphasizes fluency in foreign languages, since archaeological works may sometimes be in the country’s own language, Papadopoulos said.
During the five-year program, students also undertake their own research, often traveling across the globe to places such as Greece, Egypt or Iceland.
During this time, students sometimes gain new knowledge about themselves, giving them an opportunity to break down their own conceptions of culture, Austin said.
For Agolli, archaeology presents an opportunity to help her country arrive at a better understanding of the past. Agolli developed an interest in Roman archaeology during an undergraduate exchange program in England. When she finished college, she became involved in various research projects, including one with Papadopoulos and other UCLA graduate students.
Since the program was looking for talented international students, Papadopoulos said he encouraged her to consider UCLA, based on her promising abilities.
After winning a Fulbright scholarship, Agolli came to Westwood in 2007, her first visit to the U.S.
She completed her course requirements and returned to Albania to examine pottery from the northern and southern regions.
Since pottery has been an established art for almost 10 centuries and is part of everyday life, Agolli said she hopes to understand how and why communities produce such material.
In the past, Agolli said Albanian archaeology has been tainted by a nationalistic point of view and underlying political agendas. As a result, Agolli wants to examine the interaction between Albanian communities to further understand the country’s social organization.
Since Agolli is one of few international students at the institute, she and Papadopoulos emphasized the need for more global diversity in students.
“There’s a need for young people to get training and go back and help their home countries,” Agolli said.
With reports from Jenny Hong, Bruin contributor.