Social and Cultural Anthropology

In a world shaped by rapid technological change, global interconnections, and growing social complexity, understanding how people live, think, and relate to one another has never been more important. Social and Cultural Anthropology is a discipline deeply engaged with how people live in the contemporary world, addressing pressing societal questions from the perspective of those most directly involved – from urban dwellers dealing with floods in the wake of global climate change in Vietnam, to parents faced with early childhood interventions in Mexico to medical doctors navigating the moral terrain of new reproductive technologies in Switzerland.

If you choose to study Social and Cultural Anthropology at the University of Zurich, you will join an international, English-speaking program in a large department and a uniquely diverse, dynamic academic environment that brings together a wide range of perspectives, research interests, and regional expertise (including Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America, and Oceania). Moreover, a distinctive feature of the program is its close connection with the Ethnographic Museum, which enables students to engage with central debates in public anthropology, including questions of contested heritage, restitution and the responsibility of museums in a postcolonial context – as illustrated by the museum’s return of the Benin Bronzes to Nigeria in March 2026.

At the same time, the program places students’ own curiosity and initiative at its core. From the very beginning, you develop your own research project, guided closely by experienced faculty and embedded in a vibrant academic community. The program combines intellectual freedom with strong mentorship, allowing you to explore your interests while gaining rigorous training. 

The MA in Social and Cultural Anthropology is a research-driven program designed to be completed in four semesters. The program is centered on your own project: you are not just learning about anthropology—you are becoming an anthropologist. Over the course of your studies, you will design, conduct, and complete an independent research project – whether through ethnographic fieldwork in Switzerland or abroad, work with museum collections, or in-depth engagement with anthropological theory.

You will learn to:

• Navigate unfamiliar social and cultural contexts and make sense of complex situations
• Conduct qualitative, open-ended ethnographic research and acquire in-depth knowledge about the region in which you choose to work
• Collaborate with different actors and become familiar with their perspectives on the world
• Critically examine your own assumptions and positionality and situate your project in a wider historical, societal and intellectual context
• Transform empirical insights into theoretically informed and socially relevant contributions
• Communicate complex ideas clearly to academic and non-academic audiences, for instance through the publication of your research, participation in a museum exhibition or in the organization of an international film festival

Graduates of this program are equipped with a distinctive set of skills: critical thinking, intercultural competence, qualitative research expertise, and the ability to communicate across differences and to diverse audiences. Moreover, ethnographic fieldwork remains fundamentally human work that relies on embodied presence, interpretation, reflexivity and ethical judgment – skills that are not easily replaceable by artificial intelligence.

Our alumni go on to careers in:

• NGOs, development and humanitarian organizations
• Public administration (e.g. migration, integration, social services)
• Museums, cultural institutions, curatorial and heritage work
• Media, journalism, and public communication
• Education and academia
• Policy-making, advocacy, and international organizations
• Private sector roles such as user research, consulting, and diversity management 

Many graduates also successfully pursue doctoral studies and academic careers. Read what our students and alumni have to say here: Testimonials MA Students and Alumni

Watch the film about our anthropology programs (BA/MA):