Anthropology majors may graduate with distinction in anthropology by fulfilling the requirements of the departmental honors program. This program is not connected with the university's Honors Program. The requirements for the department honors are:

• Minimum 3.5 grade point average overall and in the major
• Honors thesis written under faculty supervision and approved by the anthropology program

The thesis represents at least 6 credit hours of work devoted to an original research project in any subfield of anthropology. It may be completed as a substantial addition to a normal classroom course or courses, or by the appropriate use of the directed readings, independent study or fieldwork courses.

Thesis research is usually done during the summer following the junior year or during the senior year. Students interested in pursuing departmental honors must express this intent no later than September 15 of the senior year (February 15 for December graduates). The student is responsible for obtaining the consent of a department faculty member to guide the work. The final thesis product (commonly at least 25 pages, double-spaced) must be approved by the department undergraduate committee. A copy of the thesis remains with the department after graduation.