Welcome to Anthropology 406: Special Topics in Anthropology. This course offers you the opportunity, as an advanced student in anthropology (in other words, someone who has completed at least four courses in the discipline), to pursue an extended research project on some topic or issue from an anthropological perspective.

This is a very flexible course. In conjunction with the course professor, you in effect design your own course content objectives, and carry out tasks that enable you to accomplish those objectives, guided and supported by the materials that are provided with the course package, the course professor, and, where appropriate, the staff in the Athabasca University Library and other libraries to which you have access. By the time you have completed this course, you will have designed and carried out a program of research on the topic you have chosen, and in most cases completed a major paper of approximately 10,000 words (50 pages, typed and double-spaced).