PHD Anthropology Statement of Purpose Examples

PHD Anthropology Statement of Purpose Editor

I hope to be remembered as an Anthropology professor with a deep passion for medicinal plants, dedicated to understanding and protecting both these plants and the forest communities for whom they hold medicinal value. As a doctoral candidate in Social and Cultural Anthropology, I am seeking an immersive experience to build a strong foundation for lifelong research in ethnobotany and ethnomedicines worldwide, focusing particularly on the Guianas in South America. I aspire to be part of the next generation of ethnobotanical researchers documenting medicinal plants, especially those at risk of extinction, preserving ancient natural medicine now under threat. The University of ____ is my preferred choice for pursuing a PhD, as my research interests align closely with your program.

My doctoral field research will primarily focus on studying the Wayana people and their plant deities, especially in relation to the feminine. I plan to map the transmission and use of traditional plant knowledge among Wayana women and explore its cosmological implications, particularly concerning plant biodiversity conservation. My introduction to Wayana cosmology and its connection to plants occurred during the Ethnography of Forest Peoples lectures at University College London, where I completed my master's degree in Anthropology. My master's dissertation, titled 'Man Face,' examined gender and beauty construction among female strength trainers in Brazil, involving fieldwork with female bodybuilders in urban Brazil. I also spent a semester studying gender, feminist, and women’s studies literature, which will help address gender bias and its implications for an ethnography of Wayana women and their plant relationships.

At UCL, I chose Documentary Filmmaking as one of my three elective courses, taught by filmmaker Dieter Deswarte. My final project was a 10-minute documentary about a Brazilian woman’s journey to heal family emotional rifts through Family Constellations, a therapy theater form inspired by Zulu family attitudes, which has recently gained popularity in urban Brazil. I am eager to create ethnographic films in the Guianas, using this storytelling medium to promote awareness about plant knowledge conservation and biodiversity. I am particularly inspired by Viveiros de Castro’s Perspectivism as I consider methods for engaging with and studying the Wayana people. Upon acceptance into your doctoral program, I will begin learning the Wayana language to prepare for my research. This summer, 2020, I will attend the Middlebury Language Institute for an intensive 7-week course to enhance my French reading skills, allowing me to engage fully with the extensive literature on the Wayana people written in French.

Originally from Romania and now a naturalized citizen, I moved to America with my parents as a young child, escaping the political turmoil of our country nearing the end of Communism. I aim to earn a PhD in Social and Cultural Anthropology at the University of Chicago to establish myself as a creative, well-published anthropologist, and to become an accomplished writer and filmmaker. In 2014, I traveled across Europe and Asia, from Thailand to Romania, through Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe, meticulously documenting my encounters with local communities in a 350-page travel blog. Awarded a Rise DAAD Physics Fellowship through CERN, I studied in Dortmund, Germany, earning my undergraduate degree and spending a semester studying Engineering Physics in Sweden. I am also grateful for the experiences of teaching English for a year in Taiwan and spending six months in Malaysia. My master's degree in Anthropology from University College London complemented my travels, interests, and career goals, providing a solid foundation for doctoral study at the University of ____.

It would be a great honor to study under several faculty members. Dr. ____, for instance, and his work on Afro-Caribbean cultures and Afro-Cuban religious formations in relation to broader historical patterns in the Atlantic world: “systems of slavery and unfree labor, constructions of race and ethnicity” and “embodiment and moral personhood, medical anthropology, and the anthropology of food and cuisine.” Human-plant relationships in the Guianas are closely tied to religious practice and cosmology.

Dr. ____’s research on critical studies of Caribbean cultures is particularly relevant to my research since the Guianas are considered part of the Caribbean. I had the profound privilege of meeting Dr. Francois Richard in person and discussing at length our shared interest in French Guiana and French Colonial History.

The University of ____ also hosts the Center for Latin American Studies, offering a certificate program parallel to the PhD in related fields. This center would be a valuable resource as I seek grounding in Indigenous language learning, with the Wayana language being central to my PhD research with the Wayana people. I also value the presence of the Center for Race, Politics, and Culture. Chicago itself offers abundant resources for research, particularly with its collections of herbaria. Chicago’s museums house many South American plants, including palms from the Guianas and other rare specimens.

The particularly rigorous Anthropology Program at the University of Chicago will inspire me, enhancing my creativity as a thinker and writer, and improving my research competence and agility. I aim to contribute to making anthropology more accessible to the public, blending fiction with science, particularly regarding the knowledge of forest peoples, developing a unique style, and raising awareness of the plight of indigenous people and their medicine in South America, facing genocide and ecocide, and the threat of extinction. We all risk losing centuries of accumulated wisdom about plants. Recently, the Amazon rainforest suffered its most devastating fires in recorded history.

I seek to earn the PhD to document the relationship between humans and their plant wisdom on the brink of erasure, while the natural habitat of these plants, especially in the rainforest, is disappearing with little action taken to prevent it. I aspire to become a field researcher in Anthropology affiliated with a major research university, while also contributing to "pop anthropology" through creative writing, non-fiction, and independent filmmaking about forest peoples, ethnomedicine, and ethnobotany, and their implications for global health.

I founded a successful company, which I now serve only in an advisory role, allowing me to prioritize my doctoral studies. Our employees are international, working in Asia, Brazil, and Europe, and I am proud of the multicultural, highly collaborative environment we have fostered. I have visited over forty countries in my twenties, often traveling alone. In addition to my native Romanian and English, I speak advanced German and conversational French. I am particularly proud to have won the Lewis Prize in Fiction for my first historical fiction novel.

Thank you for considering my application to the Social and Cultural Anthropology program at the University of ____.

PHD Anthropology Statement of Purpose Examples